Hello All Thanks to Ken Hoare for the comments. I would comment further as follows: >But I fail to understand that you can judge the strength of a colony from >observing an insert. I was of the understanding that the strength of a colony can be estimated by the number of frames occupied. The varroa floor insert shows the number of frames occupied by the debris on the insert. Am I missing something here? > >Most certainly disagree when he states it is unnecessary to change the >floors in spring, Good point and taken. >No varroa screens are a tool to be used in beekeeping, just like the smoker >and hive tool, and once they have served their purpose they should be >cleaned up and put away until the next time. I understood that the varroa screen should be left on the hive permanently, and the paper/card insert changed to indicate mite fall against time. Again straighten me out if I am wrong. > please don't say there anything else otherwise we will >have no beekeepers left in the UK - that is apart from the Wedmore student >in Shropshire, UK. I too am a Wedmore student. I would heartily recommend 'A Manual of Beekeeping' by E.B. Wedmore. Sincerely Tom Barrett 49 South Park Foxrock Dublin 18 Ireland Hobbyist beekeeper e mail [log in to unmask] Tel + 353 1 289 5269 Fax + 353 1 289 9940 Latitude 53 Degrees 16' North Longitude 6 Degrees 9' West of Greenwich