🔵How to use Apivar for mite control

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[@kamonreynolds]

This colony has not been treated since it was installed in April. It was given a gram of OAV 7 days after install. It tested a 1.33% infestation a week prior to this video.

[@feliciachitwood9400]

I am in Kentucky I am new to beekeeping and I am using this for the Mite treatment it is August 4-21 and I'm thinking it's too hot to treat right now will you please give me your input it's 80° right now

[@jasonadams3781]

@@feliciachitwood9400 Apivar isn't temperature sensitive like Apigurad (Thymol) or Formic acid (MAQS, Formic Pro)

[@darrenpierce9903]

Great videos. Toothpicks work well to keep apivar strips in place. May be cheaper too

[@kamonreynolds]

Yes they do work very well

[@lennelonge2626]

Thanks for the info! I love learning different ways of doing something so it gives options on treating a problem.

[@rogerbarnes7093]

Thanks for taking the time to make another great video.

[@SuperBuickregal]

Thanks again for another informative video.

[@Pugwash07]

I use the wooden skewers used for bbq kebabs. Good tight fit and won’t slip out. Use Apivar at the start of September when brood is dropping off as the bees get ready for the cold months. UK here.

[@farmonturtlehill1157]

Thank you. These treatment videos are so helpful to a new beekeeper. Could you do a video on OA dribble?

[@Dstick1Spearfishing]

Nice job Kamon, good balanced info.

[@familyhearingandbalancecen9777]

Appreciated this information on these strips!

[@fuzzy927]

I use Formic Pro and boy does it knock the mites out but it is also hard on the bess. Glad I am in WA State where the weather allows for the treatment.

[@paulmechaniow838]

Very informative Kamon thanks for posting.A great help. Paul. uk

[@deepspringsdiscountfabrics]

Thank you for another informative video!

[@nancynolton6079]

Try toothpicks not nails! Also it's a good idea to smoke the area where you will be inserting the strips on the off chance your queen is between the frames and in doing so reduce the likely hood of rolling her.

[@FloryJohann]

It is weird that I just bought some Apivar 20 minutes ago. I got Apiguard and the Pro, but I am worried to use them right now since it is still hot here and I really need to treat for mites before it is to late. Thank you and your family for uploading the video.

[@143rmarsh1]

Great video. I think as a new bee keeper this is an awesome option for me to make it through the first year till I can afford the other tools.

[@beebob1279]

Check mite loads after your treatment. Mites in my colonies show resistance to Apivar

[@danskisbees7348]

Yes sir! It just keeps getting hotter. At least we got teased a couple of times with cloudy weather, it was really nice! I think the aliens terraforming device may have gone down a couple of times, lol.

[@homersturgill9172]

I started using Apivar last year in July and August in combination with mite away quick strips in spring and fall. It is a great treatment because it works good and is not temperature sensitive .

[@framcesmoore]

Ha Homer Sturgill this is the first year for Apivar and I have always did the mite away quick strips but it was way to hot tis time, when do u do the strips in the fall I live in virginia Thanks

[@feliciachitwood9400]

So it is not temperature sensitive I am in Kentucky and it is 80 degrees right now I've noticed my colony is starting to decrease for my understanding it is normal this time of the year anyway but I would think you would want a bigger Hive going into winter

[@johnvanderslice7966]

I've found toothpicks work fine to hang the strips,

[@beebob1279]

I used Apivar in May to reduce mite loads in my new package hives. A week after pulling the strips (48 days) I checked my mite levels. My mite counts went up. I used apiguard afterward to get the mite loads down and that didn't drop the levels. So, I am now doing a three week treatment using oxalic acid vaporization. I'll be treating four times in the three week period. I'm going to do a mite check at the end of this time period. I'm hoping the loads can be brought down so that they can be ok in fall until my late fall application of oxalic acid. I think package providers should make it public what treatments they use for mite control. I'm thinking the package provider has been using Apivar chemicals in the hives for quite some time which is why there's resistance

[@Blgtn43]

Thank you.

[@kevinwright8823]

Thanks for the information, it's super helpful for a new beekeeper. I am a little north of you in Louisville, KY. What are your thoughts on 1 brood box vs 2 ? If you've already made the video please guide me there. Thank You!!!

[@KujoPainting]

6:15 rather than having it sticking up over the frames you want to pull the little triangle up and push the whole length of the strip between the frames, that way the little flap presses against the side of the top far holding it in place.

[@nannygranny9534]

This is my first year and the gentleman I got my nucs from came over to help inspect my hives and one that was queenless now had a queen so I have a just purchased extra queen. We decided to use her in a split. Instead of taking a frame from multiple hives, he took 5 frames of capped brood from one one really strong hive. That hive has struggled since. I did spot the queen. Last week I took capped brood, 1 frame from 2 hives to boost it back up. Yesterday when checking there was a totally different queen. Question, by removing to much brood from this hive did the workers decide the queen wasn’t producing and replaced her?

[@mikewaybright1149]

Great videos

[@trichard5106]

Thanks !!

[@richardkuhn8115]

Well presented information. Nothing can take the place of Common Sense! Thanks Kamon.

[@richardkuhn8115]

If the treatment period for ApiVar is 56 days, and you treat with it at the beginning of the season up north here, that surely puts you behind with your nectar flow, right?

[@kamonreynolds]

@@richardkuhn8115 It definitely could delay supering up north! I really like using OAV, or Oxalic acid dribble (OAD) in broodless winter months. Hopefully, our colonies come out of winter clean so we won't need an additional treatment till after the flow.

[@richardkuhn8115]

@@kamonreynolds I purchased OA with a syringe, for the soul purpose of dribbling when the colony was broodless, But seemingly up here, when the capped brood emerges and the queen has stopped laying, it is cold. I feared opening the hive and exposing the hive to cold, wet OA dribble. They would have me for lunch! I purchased a OA Vaporizer this week in hope of doing some good.

[@uptank8461]

I think its whats best for the Bees not what we think we can save in money.

[@spicyflyhoneybees1478]

I'd like to see a side by side comparison of a hive that is being treated and a hive with a nice VSH queen that is treatment free. Put both colonies on scales and track their weight, mite loads, etc.

[@FloryJohann]

That would be hard to do since bees drift especially this time of the year and with it the mites jump on and off from bees like people getting on the bus and leaving it. You may get a better count if those hives are more than 5 miles apart, but then things may be to different from hive to hive, like floral or having or not having drones or robber bees around etc etc.

[@spicyflyhoneybees1478]

@@FloryJohann Both hives would be subjected to the drift so i don't see that being an issue. Ideally you would want to have a control hive for each as well to compare the results (non vsh bees untreated and vsh bee treated). In Kamon's case i think a good null hypothesis would be "The non vsh/resistant hive with treatment will be more productive and will survive winter". The alternative hypothesis could be something like "the vsh/resistant hive will be less productive and not survive winter". I believe Tom Seeley already did a similar experiment where he used feral and non resistant commercial colonies to see which ones would survive without treatment. I digress, to do anything like this and expect to get accurate results with only 2-4 hives isn't really practical, would be better to have two groups of 100 each. I just want to be entertained and see different hives go head to head to be honest.

[@lokesh303101]

Thanks bro.

[@debbieherbaugh217]

Thanks

[@ronblack2404]

I know your very busy, I will remove the supers so it does not contaminate my family’s honey, what do You suggest I do to feed the bees while the strips are in use for 56 Days? Thank you for helping all of us to save our bees,

[@evonnewhalen9794]

Hey Kamen, I'm a new beekeeper. I want to treat my bees before I install them into my new hives. What product do you think I should use or should I wait until they get brood started. My hives are Layens hives. I'm in a wheelchair and I didn't want to deal with lift boxes.

[@chrisbgarrett]

Hello, there are toothpicks that's are heavier duty that are pointed on one end that work good. Also pros use 1/2 a strip when making 5 frame nucs up. Also using gloves will cross contaminate onto that smoker your using. You really need a separate smoker to use for treatments. Side effects are dry eyes and tingling numb lips,then fatigue. I do it too but should know better. No one wants to use treatments but to be responsible we all need to.

[@filbilly]

When you treat with APIVAR, do you do inspections during the 6 week treatment? If my broodiest is under 5 frames and I use one strip, but during an inspection, say at week 3, I find I now have two more frames of brood, would you add another strip?

[@mnriley59]

Have you ever used or have an opinion on hopguard? I purchased some but have not yet used it. I'm in Wisconsin and have gotten my bees through four winters. My go to mite treatment has been Apivar and it's been great. But, as you say you can't use with supers.

[@kamonreynolds]

Hey Mnriley59. Hopguard 3 is the best of the 3 products they have made but it doesn't kill super effectively in one treatment if there is a lot of brood. It does knock the mites back. The other thing to watch for is they are messy. Make sure when you insert them you blow the bees out of the way because if the queen gets coated in that stuff she is toast. Once inserted the bees will chip away at them hopefully killing a lot of mites. Question for you. When does your honey flow start?

[@tas2583]

Kamon - Thanks for the great video on Apivar! I just got some Apivar strips and am considering using it on my problem hive... I recently completed a six-week treatment using Apiguard gel packs. I did a sticky-board count before the treatment (28 mites in 72 hours). My 72-hour board count one week after completing the treatment is 500-600 mites! Is my hive doomed? Are these mites that are still dying from the Apiguard treatment? Should I re-treat using the Apivar, or is it too late? (9/29/19)

[@markridgemr]

It can't be that bad. Amitraz is the active ingredient in flea and tick collars and is used as a bath or a dip. So if your dog/cat has a flea/tick collar and you pet your dog, Amitraz is getting on you.

[@doctortcbkk2027]

K-Man, its fall (late oct in Atlanta) and I dont want to take off any supers because that’s what they’ll use for winter. Is that ok?

[@adammcintyremusic4727]

Excellent video, learned a lot. I hope you didn’t get poison ivy that day.

[@lenoretalon9958]

Lol- less mites. Sure. Montana apivar in fall. OA the rest of what I call pivot points during the year. I also rely on a wintergreen to. Not illegal here. It is legal in Montana. We are still allowed to think for ourselves. Oa with strips - new idea for me.

[@yukonjeffimagery]

I am going to OA today. Its too cold here in Alaska for formic acid now.

[@kamonreynolds]

Cool, Literally!

[@danskisbees7348]

Hello Jeff, cold, what's that, lol. It's still 100F here in Eastern Texas.

[@TimKallmer]

Where'd you get your veil and hat? I'm having a hard time finding one like it online.

[@dennisanthony8335]

1st comment,another great video. Same here in Kentucky been really hot.

[@danskisbees7348]

Whoohoo! Definitely hot in Texas.

[@601salsa]

Question..... why not put stripes around the interior entrance to maximise bee contact as well?

[@natserog]

Hey Kamon....thinking of using Apivar on some of my outyards...Ive never used it.....If i am running double deeps but most of the brood is in bottom can i get away with 2 strips in bottom box and nothing in top box....Ka Ching concern.....you would think it would help? thanks!!

[@Noahsoak]

I wonder if you could use in a top bar hive.

[@robertselfridge3690]

Awesome videos, wife and I learn a lot from you. This is Bob from St. Augustine,Florida, We have 8 hives, 3rd year bee keepers. Our hives are up on 4(2 front,2 back) concrete blocks, Can we remove 2 concrete blocks to lower the hive without any problems ? Thank you

[@lenoretalon9958]

Robert selfridge I believe they would just reorient easily . I have done is several times without a single problem. This spring I did splits using a log to set them on until we build more stands. IMHO:)

[@kamonreynolds]

Hi, and thanks Robert, you certainly can lower them and the bees should adjust quickly.

[@bradgoliphant]

Hey Kamon, Question thats off the topic. Can Racoons damage a hive the same way a skunk can? Do Racoons bother and get into hives?

[@SummitForWellness]

We have raccoons try to get into the hives. They will pull out the entrance reducers, but so far we haven't seen any internal damage to the hives. I'm assuming when they reach their little paws in, the bees take care of business...

[@krispapas9834]

I use apivar in spring

[@krispapas9834]

Maq in mid summer oav in Fall

[@kamonreynolds]

Yes, keeping those mites low through the year is one of the main keys to strong colonies

[@babybeeapiaries8667]

I've thought of doing the OA vapor treatments during the Apivar treatment, but I was concerned the OA would get the strips and mess up that treatment. What are your thoughts on that?

[@jzak5723]

I've thought of doing the same thing, but I have not been able to find any information about it.

[@mj-ls7qr8xp3n]

Backyard beekpr here. 42 days is a long time. When would you even be able to use apivar? Late winter?

[@kamonreynolds]

Most places in TN are done by July. This gives July on as we don't pull fall honey from our bees

[@petpilgrimgoose]

Brand new beekeepers. Just got our bees May 29, 2021. We have been trying to learn for several months. Just found you. We are doing our 10 day (or so) inspection today. We are hearing so much conflicting things about Verroa and treating. Do we have to treat soon? Later? Why can't you have a honey super on the hive while using Apivar? Since these are our first bees (one hive) we can't remove the honey super and the Apivar has to be there for over 50 days, so now we are really confused. Any advice greatly appreciated!

[@marcinmys]

Good question about the honey supers!

[@jtelander]

Five rounds in 21 days didn't work as good as well as you thought? Please elaborate on the results of the OAV. Thanks

[@kamonreynolds]

Hey Jeff we will be posting the video soon it had a hard time upload for some reason

[@jtelander]

@@kamonreynolds Thanks. I've done four out of five.

[@danskisbees7348]

@@kamonreynolds I definitely want to see that.

[@jonmarcos8488]

Can you start w/ Apivar in mid January? Someone told gme it makes the Queens shut down ,which would be very bad as they’re getting ready for spring buildup. What do you think?

[@kamonreynolds]

Hi Jon, Apivar does not shut the queen down and can be used in Jan or Feb with no issues.

[@traveler3626]

Do you feed your bees with apavar on ? Pollen patties and sugar syrup

[@kamonreynolds]

Yes you totally can do it and if the bees need it you can kill the mites and give them nutrition all at once

[@traveler3626]

@@kamonreynolds Thank you . Really appreciate your help and support. Enjoy your videos too. Lots of great information.

[@ericshipplett3517]

I used a toothpick.

[@miafish9010]

Can this stuff make my vegetable garden toxic?

[@beekeeper1889]

What happened to your 5 in 21, Kamon? That doesn't sound too good... I noticed you carefully removing your 2nd glove without touching it with your 1st hand. Remember, whatever is on your glove, is also on your smoker, and that It's worth wrapping something around the bellows while you handle chemicals. Appreciate the videos, and your time, here in the UK 😉

[@kamonreynolds]

Fixing to upload the 5 in 21.

[@beekeeper1889]

@@kamonreynolds Cheers! Looking forward to it. 3rd OAV of 5, here today. Good results so far, counting a mite drop through mesh floor.

[@secondchanceiron6123]

What is your take on the drip method?

[@kamonreynolds]

Applied correctly with no brood it kills alot of mites

[@adaml262]

How many strip would you use for an 8 frame deep?

[@kamonreynolds]

Hey Adam! I would still use 2 strips per deep

[@adaml262]

@@kamonreynolds thanks for the feedback!, I know you prefer the 10 frame could you tell me what the main difference is between 8 frame and 10 frame and how they affect the bees?

[@TheGregpetree]

Hey Kamon, if you've said the answer to this elsewhere, then i missed it. How often do you use apivar? Do you use it on all of your hives? And what time of the year? Thanks! I will be growing my bee yards with swarm catches in April here in Oklahoma. I have drawn comb and will combine several if them to get to the nectar flow in June. If i can get some honey with the increases, i will be happy, but the goal is to also have healthy bees! I do already use OAV and love it, but now maybe through an alcohol wash at the end of the flow will show which colonies to treat with Apivar also.

[@breau8]

I have a question my friend gave me some Apicar that’s already open but it’s in the closed in Ziploc bag do you think those are still good I have some new ones but I thought about using those and I because you’ve done it longer I don’t know how soon you have to use them once they’re open. Hope I can hear back from you because I want to do a treatment today thank you Kamon in your amazing

[@kamonreynolds]

Hey Shari. Apivar oxidizes very quickly and break down very quickly. I personally don't think those strips are going to give you the results you want.

[@breau8]

@@kamonreynolds Thanks that’s what I thought too I’m just gonna throw them away

[@runningdogapiary5009]

I have heard that the quality of apivar has fallen off. Several people are reporting no affect on the mites

[@kamonreynolds]

Bob Binnie and I are 2 of those people. Product Q.C. is poor

[@babybeeapiaries8667]

I use toothpicks instead of nails.

[@FloryJohann]

How did your treatment work out using the Apiguard?

[@raysbees7650]

Thanks for the scientificcy lesson! ROTFLMAO

[@mikewaybright1149]

Could you cut a piece off of a strip and staple it in front of the entrance? Would that help any?

[@kamonreynolds]

Perhaps, keep in mind that the majority of mites are on nurse bees and in brood. Nurse bees and brood are always in real close proximity, so the more contact is made in the brood area the higher percentage of kill.

[@mikewaybright1149]

@@kamonreynolds I was just thinking the workers leave the hive they walk over the strip and when they come back they walk over the strip. That's 2 times over the treatment strip times the number of times they leave the hive. Should help alot I think, sounds good anyways.

[@doctortcbkk2027]

What? No big blue dot on your title? 😂

[@mikeries8549]

About the word 'weird'. How many times have you observed something and said, "gee that's weird". If you translate weird = evil it starts making sense. So calling yourself weird isn't what you think...or is it?

[@swampcrawlerls1267]

Apivar is so expensive when treating alot if hives.

[@darkeblue]

ESPN: What is the reason for 'Bama's sucess? Kamon Reynolds: Bees! kzbin.info/www/bejne/o5bHhputd9N-oMU

[@runningdogapiary5009]

I have heard that Apivar is no longer effective. Several people are claiming ineffectiveness or bad product. What are your thoughts?

[@kamonreynolds]

product quality is going down

[@runningdogapiary5009]

@@kamonreynolds That’s too bad. Would you still use it as part of your IPM? I live in North, MS. It’s so hot here that I can’t use apigard or Formica until October-November

[@escapetherace1943]

@@runningdogapiary5009 this is going to be my first year, there's too much to know about mites... I was going to apivar and maybe do oxalic, I'm in WA. Any advice?

[@geraltofrivia8529]

"Its scientificy stuff" Take my money..