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Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology

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From:
allen dick <[log in to unmask]>
Reply To:
Informed Discussion of Beekeeping Issues and Bee Biology <[log in to unmask]>
Date:
Mon, 17 Mar 2003 11:40:57 -0700
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> Just a word to maintain vigilance... Keep up your guard AFB was not so
easily defeated here.

Good point, Blane.

As described, we are not just puitting on patties and hoping blindly.

We are using an IPM approach, in that we pulled out all signs of AFB,
maintain a watch for active, and monitor the spore count in the honey
extracted.  Ideeally, we would use an alternate drug periodically or
have queens that all exhibit a marked resistance -- or at least no
suspceptibility to -- AFB.

As it is, our reduced spore count is encouraging, but if we see any
increase or beakdown, we wouldn't just medicate and hope it goes away,
as we understand some were doing, but we would go through the suspect
yards and pull out anything suspicious and melt or irradiate it, plus
anything nearby.

Moreover, if we did see some AFB coming back, we'd consider sending all
non-occupied brood combs to irradiation. Irradiation is becoming very
popular here in Alberta, and numerous beekeepers are pooling boxes for
the trip to Port Coquitlam.  The benefits go beyond simply killing all
and any AFB.  Boxes that have made the trip apparently are so sterile
that package bees produce amazing patterns, compared to the sad sight
that many see on non-treated comb.

Again, thanks for pointing that out.  If anyone thought that we are just
medicating, he/she'd have missed the entire point.  Our goal in
medicating is to get free of drugs.  Monitoring by spore count, and
perhaps bee spore counts (upcoming? Adony?), will give us that option,
if we can reduce the risk of outbreaks by reducing the background spore
levels and have the assurance of knowing what they are.

Hygienic stock will further bolster our protection and hopefully, some
day soon, we will soon be able to "Just say 'No' to drugs".

allen
http://www.honeybeeworld.com
One old beekeeper's sandbox...

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