Watering & mosquitoes

[Pete0]

Cut a plastic barrel in half longways and made a water plant planter and bee waterer. To check mosquitoes I could put vegetable oil on the water. The larva die cause they can't get air. If I put Food grade mineral oil on the water could a bee drink through it? Still get to the water, I mean. Then at the same time I might be controlling mites. Then again I could just leave it as is.

Hived the bees last weekend. Did an inspection today. Saw the queen and there are 3 frames being drawn out. They are busy.

[jlk]

I am not sure if they could get water through mineral oil,I think it would depend on how thick the oil was on the surface.I water my bees with an old bathtub on cement blocks.It has a drain plug,and once every week or so during the summer I just drain it and refill,to keep the skeeters down.I also float an old piece of foam cushion in there to keep the bees from drowning and to give them a place to land( a homemade lily pad!) Just my two cents...JOHN

[rainesridgefarm]

I have two goldfish that I put in our watering pond (100 gallons. I also put in some floating plants for the bees to land on. The goldfish eat the larva from the skeeters.

[Frohnho]

Does anybody know if the mosquitoes dunks have any toxic effects on honey bees? I think the dunks are some type of bacteria that infects the larva of mosquitoes in the water.

[ikeepbees]

I checked with the bee lab in Baton Rouge on this, and their consensus was that the mosquito dunks would have no adverse effects on the bees.

------------------
Rob Koss