> Our weather is similar to Dr. Rodreguez's at Va. > Beach except for the humidity. Our question is " should we suspend > the fogger treatment of FGMO after the first frost and not resume > treatment until we begin the spring population build up One other thing. Although you can fog whenever the bees are active, and the fog is more likely to be effective in Fall, when brood rearing is low, the flip side of the coin is that winter disturbance can result in winter loss. Mice, vibrations, intrusive winter inspections, etc can take a heavy toll on both populations and also hive count. I'm guessing that fogging during actual winter conditions could too.. Although there is likely no real hard data on deleterious effects of fogging at various times of year, I intuitively think that stopping at first frost would likely be too soon. Fall is an ideal time to find the mites vulnerable, with little brood to invade, but I don't know when the bees really settle in for the winter, and therefore should not be disturbed, in your area. Here, a thousand miles north of you, we figure mid-October is the cutoff for treating bees (with anything). That can be as much as two months after the first frost. (The cutoff date for invasive procedures like inspecting and/or rearranging frames is *much* earlier, though). Since we don't know exactly what works, and does not work, in your climate -- you say it is like Virginia Beach and I recall seeing ice and figid weather in VB in January -- you might be wise to talk to local beekeepers in your area and get an opinion on how much disturbance the bees can handle, and learn from them during which months -- if any -- they should be left alone in your district. allen http://www.honeybeeworld.com/diary/ :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: -- Visit www.honeybeeworld.com/BEE-L for rules, FAQ and other info --- ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::