todays news

[fatshark]

It is quite a shed!

I deliberately left the fridge and kettle out of sight to avoid shed-envy There's a bit of space left for the armchair.

Thanks for the offer Gavin ... I used my (t)rusty hivebarrow Buster (NSFW, or anywhere else) to move the colonies. I'll give you the grand tour once things are settled. The other thing out of sight in the photo is the end of the hose connected to the back of your IBC

[gwizzie]

Very nice David, where's the bracket for the 40" Tv ? LOL. How many hives you planning keeping in there ???

[fatshark]

Up to four full colonies and two nucs. Any more than that and I'd have to move the jacuzzi.

[prakel]

Nice piece @ approx 09:20 on Ron Brown and his (lack of) viruses:

Inside Out South West 26/10/15

http://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/b0071mt5

[Mellifera Crofter]

Nice piece @ approx 09:20 on Ron Brown and his (lack of) viruses: ...

Interesting Prakel. It's Ron Hoskins - not Brown.
Kitta

[The Drone Ranger]

Interesting Prakel. It's Ron Hoskins - not Brown.
Kitta

Yes unfortunately Ron Brown is gone now but his books live on
He was one of the first to discover varroa in the UK

[prakel]

I wouldn't worry too much about a slip by a less than well prakel, it's the content of the video which is interesting and really does deserve to be watched before iplayer takes it down. Should probably have posted it in Jon's grooming thread but chose not to as it is a transient link which won't be available in a month's time.

[Wmfd]

I wouldn't worry too much about a slip by a less than well prakel, it's the content of the video which is interesting and really does deserve to be watched before iplayer takes it down. Should probably have posted it in Jon's grooming thread but chose not to as it is a transient link which won't be available in a month's time.

Thanks Prakel, very interesting. It wasn't clear to me why the presence of one virus would crowd out another, but then I can't claim to be a virologist. The balance of one virus against another, if that is what is going on, might explain why varroa resistance has sometimes struggled to be retained, as presumably treatment and other movements might disrupt any balance that does exist.

[Wmfd]

Checked around the hives today, removed feeders and set things ready for the winter. I've even managed to move the swarm that moved into a horrible old brood box I'd been using as a wax melter - box and all moved to an out apiary.

Very picturesque mist as we drove up to drop off that colony. Mist laying to a depth of about 5-6ft across the fens, with just the trees sticking out above it.

All the hives look like they have a good number of bees, so fingers crossed for better wintering than last year. I've dropped the most exposed site and so all bees are at sites where I've had successful overwintering in the past. These are all sites with some protection from the wind.

Not a lot else I can do now!

David

[gavin]

Not a lot else I can do now!

Keep reading SBAi?

The virus work in the video cited by Prakel has been published here:

http://www.nature.com/ismej/journal/...j2015186a.html

Very interesting. The mechanism favoured by the authors seems to be direct exclusion of one (the virulent) form by the other (a non-virulent form) at the cellular level. However there could be other explanations based on population dynamics in this three-way relationship of bee-mite-virus.

Maybe I should wait until a *real* virologist comments?!

Good on Chris Packham for saving Ron's blushes by saying that his work is still valid. Keeping mite numbers down by these hygienic and grooming traits may be part of the story, perhaps allowing colonies to get by which then permits changes in viral populations.

I wonder whether the Scottish Ron is still maintaining non-treated colonies? Heard he'd been poorly.