[rrussell6870]

If anyone would like to know what we have found that works well, please just PM me or email me so we can talk directly. I have posted some of our findings on the Mississippi Beekeepers Club section of this site (under social groups). SHB is a VERY big problem and will only get worse...and make no mistake about it...help is NOT on the way from the government or colleges... We need to work together to educate other beekeepers and find the most effective means to fight this threat to ALL of our livelyhoods and the industry as a whole. I would like to see us all unite and share our own personnal findings with each other. We have MANY experiments going right now, and have found extensive treatments that work, yet take a lot out of a large commercial operation. Please send me your findings and I will send you mine...I would like to post them on the forum here, but since most of the best methods have not been approved by the Feds, I cannot openly suggest it...If you have any suggestions or experiments that you would like to try... I have set aside 1,000 hives specifically for studies. I will gladly run any tests that you would like to try...just let me know what you have in mind and we can work together to find a way out of this mess. Thanks!
Robert Russell
Russell Apiaries

 

[Tim B]

I will be taking a cd case and cutting two sides off of it. I will insert double sided tape on both sides of the inside of the case and apply Coral dust to the tape. I will then attach the case vertically on one side at the back corner of the hive with an open side of the case pointing down. The beetles can enter the case from the top or bottom as they climb the wall. The fact that it is hanging vertically will allow the dying beetles to fall out thus preventing the trap from becoming clogged. The case is to prevent the bees from removing the insecticide. There will be a minor exposure to cumaphos as the bees remove the dying or dead beetles so this approach couldn't be used with supers on but I will be using it primarily in nuc boxes and splits. It should keep killing w/o needing to be reloaded for a lengthy period of time but the bees might propylize the ends of the case. Such a configuration would work laying horizontally as well but might become clogged with beetles. I've also considered cutting a slit in the back of my bottom board through which a horizontal trap could be emptied w/o having to pull the hive apart or disturb the entrance. I'll update you on my findings as beetle season is starting to ramp up in our area.

 

[Robbo]

going ok so far with this method.

no beetles here in the winter tho.

will report back in the hotter months

http://www.beesource.com/forums/showthread.php?p=542655

 

[rrussell6870]

TIM B, We did a study on 50 hives using just the CoRal 2% Powder 4 years back. The CD cases work for trapping bettles for sure... the issue that we find with them is that the bees begin to propolize everything in double time at the first sign of the beetles (including the traps), which leaves you returning to the hive to replace or clean and/or reload the traps...for larger operations, this could mean a TON of extra work and costs (which will end up effecting the consumers pocket book)... This is a HUGE issue because for commercial operations like ours (queens and packages), we are worried that as costs are forced upwards, the hobbiests will become fewer and fewer... Although over 90% of our sales are to other commercial operations, they ALL started out as hobbiest.. and we are ALL getting older each day. lol. So for the future of our industry, we strive to keep the costs down so that the new hobbiest can afford to start. Sorry that was so long winded. lol. Our studies did show that the 2% CoRal Powder DID work effectively and lastingly when applied DIRECTLY to the back corners of the hive on top of the frames (allowing it to fall in between the frames...all the way to the bottom board), BENEATH the honey supers. This treatment is done 3 times per year at maximum and not only did it put a huge hurting on the beetles, but it also completely wiped out ALL varrora mites (in fact, 1 treatment works for 2 full seasons against varrora). We use your method in ALL of our mating nuks however...(10,000 of them). We place the micro-cd cases (with a small openning broken out on each side) in the bottom of each nuk...The bait and poison is simply Combat Roach Gel (about five tiny dots on the center of each case). These work great! There are not enough bees to gum up the entrances and the gel lasts for the whole season. Thanks for the awesome imput!!! Any more ideas, please post them!!! What works for you may very well work for many! Thanks!

 

[rrussell6870]

ROBBO, Thanks SO MUCH for your very well presented post! As I understand it you guys in Australlia haven't been hit quite as hard, possibly due to less shipping and thus lower levels of transfer and migration... lucky devils. lol. We have several traps that are simular to these on the market here in the U.S. Mainly screened bottoms with full sized trays of oil beneath, as well as "troughs" that are beneath a small slit made along the doorway. These are all very effective methods...yet the trouble with them seems to be that they are a huge expense for larger operations, both in the re-equipping and in the management stages. Thanks for your great input and please keep us informed of anything that you find!!! What works well for you, may work well for many!

 

[Daddy'sBees]

We'd love to see the CD case setup. Got any pics of this?

 

[BillyH]

This link is from Bee Hive Journal very good web site for Beekeeping. The web site has a lot of information for Beekeeping. :lookout:

BillyHut

http://beehivejournal.blogspot.com/2009/02/cd-case-small-hive-beetle-trap.html

 

[copper287]

I have wanted someone to come up with a trap that is on the front of the hive and goes up in the hive some.The bees can still walk over but holes big enough that the shb falls in.Needs to be in a L shape.With the long part up in the hive and some veg. oil in the lower part.Bees are running the shb's all the time on the front of hives and that should run them right in.That would take them out before they go in a hive and be easy to look in and clean.The bees would like it to,no more opening the hive up as much.

 

[rrussell6870]

COPPER287,

There is a trap that is made in western TN that is like what you described... It is called "Beetle Jail"...

Here is a link that shows a video of it in action.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=egLroAZ_Qn0

Again...It may be great for the hobbiests, but far to expensive and too much upkeep for a larger commercial operation. Our studies have also shown that beetles are just as likely to enter the hive from the top or absolutely any opening in the hive. The bees may make a good seal that can prevent this...but working your hives will break that seal and leave these areas virtually defenseless. I am hoping to try any other chemical methods that someone may suggest. Thanks for your great ideas!

 

[rrussell6870]

DADDY'S BEES,

I will take some pics of the micro-cd method for you and post them here. Again, they work very well and are very cheap, yet they do require you to access the lower brood chamber quite often... not so bad for the hobbiest, but can be overwhelming for a commercial beekeeper with several thousand hives. Thanks for your interest and good luck!

 

[BillyH]

Hey copper287,

The type of SHB trap that I have for all my Bee hives is the Freeman Beetle Trap. So for I have had good luck with the Freeman Beetle Trap. I only have Three Hives up now. Next year I will add two more Hives. That will be all the Hives that I will work with as a Beekeeping Hobby for me. I wish you good luck with your Bees, Just do not give up on the Ladys, You will have your good days and your bad days with your Ladys, Just take it "One Day At A Time" It will work out for you. Its a lot of Beekeepers on here that will help you out on the forum, What we need is that we all work together for the good of Beekeeping. For me I love to talk with others about Beekeeping. I do not know it all about Beekeeping but I will not give up. I am 66 years old, This all new to me. :lookout:

Take Care:
BillyH


http://freemanbeetletrap.com/home

 

[suttonbeeman]

I had my first loss to beetles today (should I say found them today). Even tough I have wintered in Florida since 2000 I have not had beetles run the bees out of hives until this year. I would see quite a few beetles in the fall but no problems. Last two years I took hives to Wisconsin due to the two droughts. You had to look hard thru 4-5 hives to find ONE beetle! THis year my colonies have numerous beetles .....about the number I would normally see two months from now. THe loss was 7 nucs(strong framers). We have been trying to extract for a month with a huge crop and I hadnt done anything with the nucs. THey needed more room, and i think they sent out distress signal. We came out of Fl with fewer than normal as it was a cold winter. I lost seven and captured a swarm that abandoned in a tree. I believe the cause is the hottest summer we have ever had with lots of rain....like a tropical enviroment.(this is in KY). The remaining 25 nucs are full of beetles and I put in a Cutts beetle blaster and plastic 3 x3 corragated with slit down middle
with fripnol(sp) on bottom, Last year was cool and wet no problem here and the two before were hot but VERY dry. THe first year I was in Fl was a very dry year....didnt find a beetle when I got home (April 2001). Anyone have any simlular situations??

 

[BillyH]

Hey suttonbeeman,

I am so sorry about your lost to SHB. If you will please go to this link and read it about how to kill the SHB and see if it will be a big help to you " I hope So".
http://www.beesource.com/forums/group.php?do=discuss&group=&discussionid=165

Take Care: :lookout:
BillyH

 

[archiater]

I just discovered tansy. A plant used in the "old days" to repel ants, mosquitos was stuffed into mattresses, coffins, and hung on windowsills to keep bugs away. It does repel Japanese beetles, ants, potato bugs so i'm giving it a try.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tansy


I found a guy in RI that has the stuff growing wild in his yard. I am going to stuff a bunch of leaves and stems under the SBB and over the inner cover. I have two hives that are loaded with SHBs but that doesnt compare to a more controlled study on 50 hives.

 

[rrussell6870]

ARCHIATER,

We would love to look into Tansy. Especially to find what chemicals it may possess that give it these properties. If it is viable, we could try to make it into a base oil, powder, etc... BIG concern about its effects on the bees of course. But we will soon find out. The study that we will start with will include 5 hives with a base oil drawn from the plant directly... if this has no major adverse reactions (such as the bees fleeing), we will begin to study the plant more and see if we can put it in a multitude of test in different forms, dose levels, and applications and levels of infestation. Thanks so much for bringing this to our attention!!! We will post a seperate forum on this site to report the finds on each study. Thanks again and please let us know how it turns out with your two hives!! If you can take pics of before and after and measure the amounts that you dose and way that you apply, that would be VERY helpful! Thanks again!

 

[rrussell6870]

I had a conversation with a gentleman tonight that mentioned that he had a small amount of kerosene leak out of a heated preasure washer and onto his honey house floor... he said that the next morning when he rolled the washer out of the honey house, there was a nice sized pile of SHB larvae dead on top of the kerosene. We are going to test this theory a little... Has anyone tried a baited trap that is OUTSIDE of the hives?? Like say one per bee yard that is baited with a few frames of honey in the sun, yet has a funnel or something near the entrance that will trap the beetles (maybe even one with a poison)? I have a trap that is use to attract horse flies that works in a simular way... there is a large black rubber ball that hangs beneath a cone, and on top is a large jar that is upside down above the cone... they are attracted to the ball in the sun, but when they fly up to leave it, the cone guides them into the jar (which they cannot leave simply because they keep trying to fly upwards... That thing fills up every week... Just wondering if anyone has tried a simular trap for the beetle BEFORE they even reach the hives? Thanks!

 

[Rick 1456]

The leaves resemble,,,flws too actually,,,Marigolds.....They too are companion plants to gardens. Not sure but I think they mask the attractive oders of the plants in question.
Ayway

Rick SoMd

 

[archiater]

Russell

In the link posted you will see their are health warnings associated with it. So i dont necessarily want the tansy nectar or pollen to get into the honey. Through word of mouth i was told to cut the flowers off and the stems and leaves with the oils in them worked fine in repelling ants. They reported it definitely did not repel the bees. I'll keep you posted but give me a PM when you post your results because i'm not always on beesource.

 

[rrussell6870]

Tansy,

This plant is better known here in the south as "Bitter Weed". It has long been a plague to dairy pastures as grazing on it would indeed make the cows milk taste quite bitter. There are several ways that this plant can be TOXIC, however, all include extracting the oil from the plant, so DONT DO THAT, unless you are very skilled and safe. Some Good news about it is that the blooms will NOT sour your honey. Actually the flower is the part most used for cooking and is said to have a wonderful flavor. Thanks!

 

[Kingfisher Apiaries]

Bee breeding! I think I have some hives that are SHB resistant!