Consequences of Leaving Honey Supers on During Apivar Treatment

If you leave the honey supers on during an Apivar treatment, you can expect that the honey will contain high concentrations of Apivar and propolis. Leaving them on for more than one day is not recommended. The temperature should not be higher than 80F during treatment and you should avoid eating it right after treatment.

Flow honey supers coat apivars with propolis

The APIVAR method involves applying APIVAR strips to the hives after honey supers are removed. The treatment should be repeated every six to ten weeks, or as needed. The strips must be removed at the end of the six to ten-week treatment period. After that, they can be re-applied.

Pollen collected by foraging bees is essential for healthy bee nutrition. Propolis has natural antibiotic properties. Pollen must be harvested from hives carefully and processed to meet strict CNG Standards. The pollen can be used as supplementary feed later in the season. Pollen removal requires minimal removal of propolis from the hive’s components, including chambers and frames.

Reuse of honey supers during apivar treatment

Reuse of honey supers during apiar treatment should be done at least 6 weeks after harvest. This is a time when bees are not yet swarming, and the honey supers can still be reused. In the fall, oxalic acid is an excellent treatment option.

Apiar treatment should not contaminate honey. The residues of the chemicals used in beekeeping can taint the honey and comb. This is why it is important to use a non-chemical treatment. There are some pesticides that can contaminate honey, but they can be avoided.

Apivar treatment can also be conducted with an alternative chemical, known as Apiguard. This treatment is organic and does not contain synthetic chemicals. However, it cannot be used on beehives while the honey supers are still on the hive. To prevent this, the flow frames should be removed.

It is also essential to remove and merge honey supers that contain no brood. This is not mandatory, but it is strongly recommended. This will make the strips more effective. Also, removing the supers will avoid bees from contaminating the honey or wax.

Avoiding amitraz during apivar treatment

Avoiding amitraz during apivar treatments can reduce mite populations. Apivar is a chemical pesticide that kills ticks and mites. Its main active ingredient is amitraz, which was first discovered about 50 years ago. The chemical inhibits the mites’ ability to reproduce by activating their receptors. It also has a variety of other activities. The combination of multiple routes of action may explain the slow development of resistance to this insecticide.

Amitraz has several effects on the bee’s nervous system, including direct and sublethal effects. It affects the octopamine receptors in the bee brain, which are involved in sensory inputs, antennal motor outputs, and higher-order brain functions.

It is difficult to defend amitraz, but studies performed on caged bees in incubators may provide a definitive answer to this question. Another study, by Botias, suggests that mites’ ability to survive amitraz treatment may be diminished by an infection of the nasal cavity.

While resistance to amitraz is rare, it has been observed in different parts of the world. Studies conducted in the USA, Mexico, Argentina, and Czech Republic reported reduced amitraz efficacy. Furthermore, Kamler et al. reported reduced efficacy of amitraz in the same area as the resistance reported by Rodriguez-Dehaibes et al.

Apivar has been used to treat colonies with amitraz resistance. However, in two apiaries, apivar had only a low efficacy and killed less than 80% of mites. However, the efficacy of apivar treatment was higher in colonies with high amitraz resistance.

Using OA during apivar treatment

Apivar is a versatile treatment for Varroa mites. It is effective against the mites without adverse effects to bees, brood, or humans. Apivar is approved for use in the European Union and has been used extensively since 1995. The Honey Bee Health Coalition is a group of beekeepers, growers, and government agencies dedicated to improving the health of honey bees.