We are trying to sample some Varroa mites from around Michigan. We need to have
a quick way to know which colonies have more mites than others since most
beekeepers do not use sticky traps.

I remember hearing talks (or perhap reading ABJ or BC), some years ago,  that
certain smoker fuels (grapefruit leaves, etc) can cause mite drop [probably Frank
Eischen's work].  Anyone here tried others?

I am thinking of using tabacco stems (any tabacco farmer here? :) since they can be
cheap or free.  I am sure it would work fast, but I am not sure if it will leave some
residue (tabacco taste!) in honey or not. I suppose if we give say, 10 puffs to a
colony, count mite drop after 15 min on a sticky trap, the residue cannot be that bad.

I have found a few web pages on google.com, but anyone actually used any fuel
here to see mite knockdown efficiency?

Zach

Zachary Huang
Associate Professor                   tel: 517-353-8136
Department of Entomology              fax: 517-353-4354
Michigan State University             mailto:[log in to unmask]
East Lansing, Michigan 48824          http://www.msu.edu/~bees

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