Hi Everyone,
After almond pollination last year, I handed the checkbook for Golden West Bees over to my sons Eric and Ian, along with all the checks we'd received for almond pollination--with this advice: "Don't confuse cash flow with income!"
I'm proud to say that "the boys" took that advice to heart, and this winter took more hives to almonds than we'd ever taken before, and at exceptional strength. They then broke our record for nuc sales, and not only ran the operation successfully for the year, but even made a slim profit to invest back into it.
My only condition for the handover was that I had access to as many hives as I needed for research projects. Since I'm now formally "retired," I can now devote myself completely to bee research. In that regard, I was perhaps overly ambitious--running 5 serious field trials this season, and have been working harder than ever. Two projects were on extended-release oxalic acid, one was to test a bee health product for a manufacturer (it didn't perform well), one to improve the formulation of pollen sub, and another is a very labor-intensive field experiment to better understand bee and varroa drift from collapsing colonies (the last two experiments are still underway).
You may have noticed that I hadn't uploaded any articles to ScientificBeekeeping for a while. My stumbling block was that the new editor at American Bee Journal and I have been learning how to work together. She feels that my articles could be better written, and sometimes does not agree with me on scientific interpretation. We've reached an agreement for her to simply put a disclaimer at the end of my articles, and allow me to write pretty much as I please, as I had long done when Joe Graham was editor.
Anyway, it meant that in order to post an article, that I needed to go back through each one and deal with all her edits--something that I just couldn't find the time to do--in part due to being on the road a great deal with speaking engagements. Finally, last week, during a cross-country flight, I just bit the bullet and did it at 30,000 feet. My web technician (Jane Gilpatric at gravitystation.com) has now uploaded my last 9 articles:
The following are now available at ScientificBeekeeping.com. You can click on the blue links below to take you to any of them directly. Happy reading!
Selective Breeding for Mite Resistance: 1000 hives, 100 hours In this article, I show how any large-scale queen producer can engage in a serious breeding program for mite resistance, and I kept track of the costs involved. I found that it only takes a hundred man hours of labor each season to do so--well within the reach of any producer. I'm walking the walk myself, reporting on successes as well as problems. One surprise--we found out that it is actually cost effective for us to perform a mite wash on every single hive in our operation in late spring!
An Objective Assessment of the Neonics I was asked by U.C. California to speak to the San Diego Master Gardeners on the neonics, and afterwards asked to write up a summary on this contentious topic.
The Varroa Problem 16a--Bee Drift and Mite Dispersal Following up on my article on breeding, I investigate what appears to be the large amount of mite immigration into some of my potential breeder hives in late summer.
The Varroa Problem 16b--Bee Drift and Mite Dispersal I continue the above. Since we have such a poor understanding of this phenomenon, I'm currently running a very elaborate field trial to give us some answers. A teaser: we've already confirmed a substantial amount of bee drift to a yard a half mile distant, and some drift to one a full mile away.
Modeling Nuc Buildup I've forced myself to learn how to use Excel in order to model bee and mite population dynamics. After noticing that some of our nucs build up much more quickly than others, I created a simple model in order to explain why. This article will be of interest to anyone who makes or purchases nucs.
The Varroa Problem: Part 17a — Treatment Free Beekeeping and Being Part of The Solution Rather Than Part of The Problem After investigating mite drift between hives, I came to realize that we beekeepers are creating a Monster--a symbiotic coevolution between varroa and DWV.
The Varroa Problem: Part 17b — The Evolution of Bees, Mites, and DWV Following up on the above, I look more deeply into how this evolutionary process is taking place, and how our current beekeeping practices are pushing it to become even more virulent each year.
The Varroa Problem: Part 17c Being Part of the Solution Unfortunately, many well-intentioned "treatment free" beekeepers are inadvertently contributing to The Problem. I discuss how they, and the rest of us, can instead be part of The Solution.
Determining the Relative Value of Hives for Almond Pollination I was reading agricultural extension advice to almond growers in Australia, and noticed that an old California study had been misinterpreted--as it has been in California. So I re-analyzed the data myself to determine the actual value--as far as pollination work performed--of colonies of different strengths. My hope is for almond growers to realize that they shouldn't simply rent bee boxes, but rather pay for what's actually inside.
Extended-Release Oxalic Acid Progress Report — 2018 California Field Trial We beekeepers have a crying need for a midsummer varroa treatment that can be applied in hot weather, while the honey supers are still on. Extended-release oxalic acid looks to fit the bill. I'm currently working with USDA-ARS to submit data to the EPA for an additional approved application method for oxalic acid. Here's what I learned this summer from my beekeeper-supported research.
I now have every reason to believe that this application method is going to be a game-changer for our industry. I've also included, for those of you who live where this method is currently legal, the most promising formula so far.
I direct my writing and research for North American beekeepers, but am appreciative beyond words to know that my articles are being read and utilized by beekeepers worldwide. To me, this is the highest calling for a human being--to expand human knowledge, and pass it on to future generations. We beekeepers worldwide are united by our craft and love of the honey bee--I consider us all to be brothers and sisters in beekeeping. I'm honored to be a part of our common learning experience.
That's all for now. I'm still deeply involved in the ongoing pollen sub and mite drift experiments, and have a freezer full of bee samples to titrate for oxalic residues. I thank you all for your donations in support of my research--they've allowed me to hire an assistant (Brooke Molina), as well as cover the costs of materials and labor for my experiments and trials. I've got a number of others either already started, or in the works.
Happy beekeeping!
Randy
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