Maqs

[The Drone Ranger]

This is a fairly new treatment have you tried it and if so what experiences would you like to pass on ?

[The Drone Ranger]

I'm reading elsewhere that using it late season can result in queenless hives ?

[fatshark]

Hi DR ... one or two similar stories from people at the National Honey Show. Queenlessness or quite a few dead bees. And related, but drifting off topic ... Max Watkins (?) from Vita talked about a new product they will be marketing based upon hops that appears to be a) well tolerated, b) usable anytime and c) not quite as good as Apiguard. Should be here in 2015.

[Jon]

I know a few who used it locally without problems.
Haven't tried it out myself yet.

[The Drone Ranger]

I have a feeling MAQS might be best as a Spring treatment because you can still fix things if the queen gets taken out
I had heard a little about the hop based treatment Fatshark, it has a very low toxicity to the bees I believe ?
It's good to have a few alternatives
I used the exomite apis a few times and that killed a proportion of the brood, mainly just at the bottom of the frames and the young stuff, but it was a bit worrying when the bees flung out a little pile of dead brood onto the landing board
The MAQS is the only treatment that claims it's safe to use when the supers are on so might be popular in some quarters for that alone

[drumgerry]

Max Watkins (?) from Vita talked about a new product they will be marketing based upon hops

Sounds promising -any mention of temperature sensitivity for use Fatshark? That's what kills Apiguard for me where I am.

[mbc]

Apivar can also be used when the supers are on.
My first impressions of MAQS are that the strips are too much for a single national box, about half a strip per box seems more appropriate. Otherwise it appears to be quite an effective easy to use at any time, stopgap treatment.

[The Drone Ranger]

Apivar can also be used when the supers are on.
My first impressions of MAQS are that the strips are too much for a single national box, about half a strip per box seems more appropriate. Otherwise it appears to be quite an effective easy to use at any time, stopgap treatment.

Is that Apilife Var mbc the thymol biscuits ?

The temperature requirements for MAQS are fairly restrictive as well Drumgerry with the added danger that if the temperature is high the bees can be harmed

[mbc]

No, Apivar, the active ingredient is amitraz, its the one you need to get off your vet (or anyone you know travelling on the continent with time to pop into a beekeeping suppliers ;))

[The Drone Ranger]

No, Apivar, the active ingredient is amitraz, its the one you need to get off your vet (or anyone you know travelling on the continent with time to pop into a beekeeping suppliers ;))

I have heard of that, but never seen it.
Sometimes the names sound so similar it's worth checking

[drumgerry]

Been using Apivar the last two years with good results. I get it by mail order and on prescription from Bridge Vets in Dumfries. Never used it with supers on though and I doubt I'd be keen to.

[Bumble]

I've also used Apivar, bought it from the Bee Vet but sometimes local bee farmers order too many and have some spare.

The strips are about 20cm long and about 3 or 4 cm wide. Two per full hive, leave them in for at minimum of 6 weeks to cover two complete brood cycles.

[fatshark]

Sounds promising -any mention of temperature sensitivity for use Fatshark? That's what kills Apiguard for me where I am.

No mention at all, and I didn't think to ask. It looks like they do a lot of testing in Greece though so they might not have checked the lower end of the range! The active ingredient are beta acids (whatever they are) and they are only effective against phoretic mites. The kill rate as about 80% which is quite a bit lower than Apiguard.

[Pete L]

Roger White (aka Norton) has been using Hopguard in Cyprus.

http://www.vita-europe.com/news/vita-starts-registration-process-for-green-varroa-control-treatment/

http://www.betatechopproducts.com/products/varroa-mite-control.php


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T2y4rndPhlo

It has been available in the USA for a while, there are a few threads about it on Beesource.

[The Drone Ranger]

They look slightly messy but simple enough to use :)

[Mellifera Crofter]

...The active ingredient are beta acids (whatever they are) ....

I'm not sure what you're referring to, Fatshark - MAQS or Apivar - but in either case the active ingredient is not beta acids. That's Hopguard. MAQS: formic acid; Apivar: Amitraz ( as MBC said).

You can see I'm studying for Module 3 - pests and diseases.

Kitta

[Mellifera Crofter]

PS I just followed the links back and I can now see that you were talking about Hopguard. Sorry about the above, Fatshark. My mistake. K

[The Drone Ranger]

PS I just followed the links back and I can now see that you were talking about Hopguard. Sorry about the above, Fatshark. My mistake. K

I thought drumgerry was inquiring about MAQS temperature dependency as well :)
Don't know why

[drumgerry]

Never used MAQS for fear of queen problems so I didn't know it was temp dependent as well - thanks for the info DR! One of the selling points of Apivar to me is that it's not.