Robin Dartington wrote: > > Any comments from beekeepers in temperate areas who rely strongly on > spring > drone removal? I'm a new beekeeper who is trying to stay as organic as possible. My comments reflect both of those perspectives. My method this first summer was a combination of things, including screened bottom boards, essential oils in the feed (both build up and fall), powered sugar shakes to check for mites, and, yes, drone brood frames. Some background (because all beekeeping is local, and not all bees are equal): I have two hives. I bought Italians from Buckeye Bee. One hive arrived with a mated queen and all Italian-appearing bees. The other arrived with a virgin supersedure queen, and a mix of Italian and Carniolian-appearing bees. That virgin mated after she arrived. Dunno with whom, of course, but some of the offspring still have a Carniolan appearance, though she looks Italian. There are a couple of other apiaries within a ten mile radius, but I don't know the beekeepers or the bees they keep. I'm in Upstate NY. My intention this first season was to learn, learn, learn. I spent about an hour a day observing the hives, and opened them every two weeks or so, so that I would have first-hand knowledge of what goes on the hives and to develop my own skills. Mite counts were low on every check. None in the powdered sugar shakes and a max of 5 in the drone brood frames. My bees were hived from nucs on June 23rd; one colony produced about 40 lbs of honey, the other no surplus, but they built up well for winter. On to the frames of drone brood: If you're a commercial beekeeper, bees' effort aside, I can't see doing it. It is labor intensive (for the humans!), and in a large operation, you would risk spreading disease shuffling frames among hives. For a hobbyist who isn't interested in eeking out every last ounce of honey, I see it as a good way to check for mite levels. I'm interested in healthy colonies first, honey production second. Bees are expensive; why use a method that produces more honey, but may force me to buy new spring packages? Am I "putting the breaks on"? Maybe. But again, production is second, health is first. Destroying a few thousand drones that might have been worker brood might cost me--what? A few quarts of honey? OK. But by now, we all know that mites can develop resistance to chemicals. So I'm taking the long view. Until I have bees that can handle the mites on their own (and one way or another, I'm sure that that can happen), I'm using methods that won't contribute to that resistance while keeping my bees as healthy as possible. Now, if we could sell drone brood as a delicacy, it might make it worth the effort for the commercial beekeeper. :) Lesli :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: -- Visit www.honeybeeworld.com/BEE-L for rules, FAQ and other info --- ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::