Hi All,
I guess the cat's out of the bag.  I'm seriously investigating powdered
sugar dusting, have collected data, sacrificed a colony to obtain an
accurate account of efficacy, worked out a mathematical model.  Will begin
large-scale field trials this month to obtain more data before I draw
conclusions.  I will publish in ABJ soon.

There has been a thread on Beesource that was brought to my attention:
http://www.beesource.com/cgi-bin/ubbcgi/ultimatebb.cgi?ubb=get_topic&f=2&t=007231#000011
It involved a discussion as to whether sugar dusting was "ecological" or
"organic."

I'm posting this reply here and at that venue:

Hi All,
I rarely venture onto Beesource.  Too much chaff to sift through.  This
thread was brought to my attention.  

Something that you may wish to keep in mind is that while those of you with
time on your hands argue about how many angels can dance on the head of a
pin, 99% of the bees are managed by beekeepers who don't have time for such
ethereal trivia.  I commend the organic beekeeping model.  However, in
reality, it will only make an impact in the same way that organic
agriculture has progressed.  Not by finger wagging, but by demonstrating
that it is economically sound.  I'm working on the latter.

Please keep up the organic work, but lay off the finger wagging.  You only
alienate the majority.  Instead, act as a model, and when you achieve
success in dealing with varroa, helpfully offer it up to the industry in
general.

I will be happy to share information I've learned, and techniques I've
developed for anyone to use as they wish.  I'm not going to tell you what
you should or shouldn't do.  I personally choose to effect change by
example.  If I can run a profitable bee business without resorting to
deleterious chemicals, my success will speak for itself.  If I can't, then
I'm in no position to criticize others.

I'm off to move bees into almonds this morning.  I will try to post a
preview of the "8-second" powdered sugar dusting method I've developed this
evening.

Randy Oliver

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