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Date: | Sat, 7 Mar 2009 17:19:05 -0700 |
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Things are quiet here on the list, so maybe this is a good time to bring
this up.
When I go to meetings, most of the talk is about emergency treatments for
mites and disease. There is always the obligatory tip of the hat to
genetics, then the discussion turns back to chemicals and manipulations.
Now, I happen to know that there are quite a few people out there who do not
have a mite or disease problem, but we seldom hear from them, and when we
do, we do not get specifics on how well the bees perform in commercial or
sideline use. There are a few who make claims, but do not back them up
beyond stating that the bees stay alive, and nobody has come forward to
convincingly indicate that the bees are commercially successful.
It was back in 2000 that Danny Weaver told us all at Apimondia that he was
seeing varroa resistance in his colonies. More recently, Weavers advertised
mite resistant bees. Did anyone check them out? How did they perform?
Weavers are well respected breeders and select for bees that exhibit
commercial traits, and not just survival.
Add to that all the other breeders who claim to have bees that seldom if
ever need a chemical intervention, and you would think we had reached the
point where debating and comparing the breeds of bees would be more of a
topic than debating and comparing emergency treatment options.
Apparently not.
How many on the list are using bees that are adapted to varroa and resistant
to other diseases and pests? Where did they originate? How long have they
been able to stay treatment free? Are they of commercial caliber?
It is my personal opinion that the bees I see are more hardy than some in
the past. Am I mistaken?
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