DUSTING

[SilverFox]

How much Terramycin should you mix with powered sugar when installing a package of bee???? Or would the sugar alone be enough??

[Michael Bush]

Depends on what you hope to accomplish. If you want to get rid of Varroa, just powdered sugar is good. That's what I'd do. The TM is for AFB.

[jmor73]

could i ask? why i should use Terramycin for in my bees and how i'll put it on

[SilverFox]

TM is used for certian virises(?) that aflect bees, but it cann't be used within a certian time frame of the necture flow, I think it is between 3-4 months.

[Michael Bush]

>could i ask? why i should use Terramycin for in my bees and how i'll put it on'

I haven't used any in the last 28 years. But if you WANT to use it it's usually done either as an extender patty or with powdered sugar dusted. It's sold already prepared to use in these ways by several of the suppliers.

[Michael Bush]

And TM is only used for AFB (American Foulbrood) and EFB (European Foulbrood), both are bacteria. It has no effect on viruses.

[odfrank]

Sprinkling package bees with teramycin and powered sugar ? Where do people hear these ridiculous things ? The crap that people want to sprinkle on, fog with, feed to, medicate with, treat for etc. just amazes me...These are poor bees that just got shaken out of their hive, crammed into a box with complete strangers,, lost their real mother, shipped god only know how far...and now you want to cover them in a stifling medicated dust for no apparent reason ? Treat your bees (and plants, and fellow humans)like you would want to be treated yourself, and you might even be successful one day.....

[SilverFox]

I wasn't sure if it was virises or bacteria, that why the ? I knew someone would strighten me out. :O

[wishthecuttlefish]

Odfrank,
The reason I was at first inclined to do this is based on a recommendation of Dr. Keith Delaplane of the University of Georgia. He is a well known entymologist who specializes in beekeeping.

However, he does not explain the purpose for this one-time only dusting of terramycin on packages and I am beginning to have my doubts as to its usefulness, especially considering that the bacterium are only present in bee larvea. Perhaps someone out there knows why such a recommendation might have been made. Otherwise, I am going to email Dr. Delaplane.

Thanks,
Kai

[Hillbillynursery]

The bacteria are carried in the honeysac of bees from infected hives. The idea is if you treat a package and put it on clean foundation that the bacteria will be killed before the comb is drawn so no spores will get into the hive to start an infection. I fed TM in sugar syrup to mine when installed as a precaution. If the breeder has done what they needed to do to keep the bees clean then it is wasted money and time. But if a few of those bees do have the bacteria the shaken swarm is stressed and has a high chance of coming down with it than a established colony. As many on here will testify it is mainly a stress induce disease(but yes the bacteria has to come from somewhere and many say the spores are in every hive which may be true for established hives that have been in use a couple of years). I did not sugar my packages for mites and never had a problem. Use a screened bottom board and monitor for mites. If you have a mite problem do treat them somehow.

[wishthecuttlefish]

Thanks, that makes a lot more sense.

Kai