>OK ... and not presuming to give the experts any advice.

No need for treatment-free beekeepers to be shy.  There is no problem in
simply telling us the details of what you did as far as management. The
only flak you would get is if you claim that something you did was the
reason the colonies are surviving.  So long as you simply stick to the
facts and observations, everyone can think for themselves.

One caveat is that before you state that your bees are surviving treatment
free, you should only include colonies that have made it for at least two
full years, and better three.  Also important is what percent of your
colonies die each season, and what percentage that your make up from
splits.  And how many colonies you run, and how many neighbor beekeepers or
ferals there are.

We'd also like to know how your honey yield compares to others in your area.

In Jeffrey's case I'm hearing that he has only a few hives, no neighbors,
splits his strong hives, doesn't bring in package bees, uses local stock,
uses some naturally-drawn comb, rotates frames out regularly, and leaves
plenty of honey for wintering.  If others will also report, we can then see
if there are common threads.
-- 
Randy Oliver
Grass Valley, CA
www.ScientificBeekeeping.com

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