I was glad to see Jim Bach's post on the disposal of Apistan and Bavarol.  Move
over Jim, there's more room on that soapbox!

I too find it "appalling that beekeepers, and so-called beekeeping  gurus often
misuse chemicals...."

You missed one Jim.  It is the same beekeepers and gurus who lament when the
misused chemicals are no longer effective!  On Aug 23 Dave Eyre wrote that
opening a hive in the snow to remove strips is ill advised.
> a split cluster has a major problem getting back together and re-organising.
> The usual thinking regarding the removal of 'Happy Stan' after 45 days is to
> prevent resistant mites, but I don't believe they will form over one winter.
> I had to leave our strips in last year and we've had no problems. As an
> aside when Varroa first hit Ontario it was advised to leave the strips in for
> the first winter!

I heard a New York State bee inspector say that he too left his strips in
through the winter, couldn't get to his hives through the snow.  The very same
bee inspector is one of the chorus now singing the blues about Apistan
resistence, bring on the coumophos!  They just don't get it!  Dave is
correct, resistence is not a one season event.  Resistence is a gradual
evolution of the mites to become immune.  It doesn't happen in one winter, but
if happens faster if one winter is followed by another winter and a general
disregard of the label instructions that say take the stips out after 45 days.

No amount of reasoning or justification changes the label.  It was snowy, I
didn't want to break my clusters, I had an ingrown toenail, don't worry, the
label doesn't know what it's talking about, leave them in until next spring.
THAT is the ill advice!  Passing on that sort of advice also hastens the day
when the treatments are no longer effective.  One beekeeper in NY (a state
official no less) tells a GROUP MEETING(!) that he misused strips and noticed
no ill effects.  One (or perhaps many) beekeepers tell beekeepers in Ontario
that they heard you can leave strips in all winter with no ill effects and
Ontario beekeepers shout the word far and wide that you can leave the strips
in all winter with no ill effects.  They've done so, left 'em in last winter
and saw no ill effects.  Soon beekeepers everywhere are disregarding the label.
Their eyes see, "Remove the strips in 45 days" and their brain regiusters, "Put
'em in in the fall, take 'em out in the spring."  Then we quietly start hearing
rumors that apistan resistence is starting to crop up here and there.  The
producers of Apistan start an agressive marketing campaign to drive home the
fact that if you misuse the strips resistence will result.  And SUDDENLY,
Apistan resistence is everywhere!  Bring on the coumophos!

45 days is 45 days.  What is it about that sentence that is vague?  The label
is the label.  Is that so redundant that it cannot be understood?  James Bach
is correct, don't ask the questions here, you'll get all sorts of ill advice.
Read the label.  Got questions?  Read the label.  More questions?  Call the
manufacturer.

Aaron Morris - thinking THAT'S how to be terse.