StephenW Posted November 25, 2010 Share Posted November 25, 2010 Just to say thornes have now listed stuff they are selling in there winter online sale next Monday. http://thorne.co.uk/wintersale/ Stephen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StephenW Posted November 25, 2010 Author Share Posted November 25, 2010 The hive I got hust had a floor and entrance reducer should I get an open mesh floor? Just wondering as I am seeing what I should get in the thornes sale. Thanks Stephen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Speckled Hen Posted November 27, 2010 Share Posted November 27, 2010 In my opinion yes. I think it's generally recognised that hives remain healthier with an open mesh floor. It is an essential part of Varroa management and hive ventilation. With it should come a removable tray so that you can monitor mites dropping out of the hive either from natural reasons or from treatment. You can close the floor if needed, ie for regular monitoring, during thymol treatment, in seriously cold weather or if you want to protect a weak colony. I'm sure there are other reasons and I'm sure somebody more experienced will come along to tell you. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MedusA Posted November 28, 2010 Share Posted November 28, 2010 Definitely get an OMF. I agree with OSH for the reasons given. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StephenW Posted November 29, 2010 Author Share Posted November 29, 2010 Thanks Today I have ordered a few things from the sale. Stephen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StephenW Posted November 30, 2010 Author Share Posted November 30, 2010 Another question sorry. I see th..nes have medicines on the sale and it expired earlier this year. Will this be unusable? Stephen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Speckled Hen Posted November 30, 2010 Share Posted November 30, 2010 Hi Stephen I don't know much about Lactic acid varroa control but the Api herb is one of those food tonic treatments. It's probably OK but does it work anyway? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StephenW Posted November 30, 2010 Author Share Posted November 30, 2010 I havnt bought any medicines because I dont have bees but I was just wondering Stephen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Old Speckled Hen Posted December 1, 2010 Share Posted December 1, 2010 Next spring though ......and all that winter reading to look forward to. I think a lot of "medicines", kept in the cool and dark last for years. My mentor has Oxalic acid crystals that come out year after year for the association. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted December 1, 2010 Share Posted December 1, 2010 Oxalic acid crystals Oxalic acid is a chemical. Most pure chemicals don't change (think table salt here?) - apart from some organics, as in biological complexity - unless there is an energy transfer involved (eg photographic plates use silver halides which are changed by electromagnetic wave energy). 'Use by' and best 'befoere' dates, wrt oxalic acid is more important when it is mixed with other things as there are slow changes within oxalic/sugar solutions over time and these small changes can be toxic to bees. Sooo, one needs to look at the relevance of exceeding the date and a bit of common sense needs to be applied. If something has a shelf life of, say, one week and it is out of date by one week, that is by a huge margin; if on the other hand the shelf life is in excess of two years, one week is really neither here nor there, provided the storage conditions have not been adverse. Oxalic acid crystals, stored under ideal conditions, lasts decades, even before going off a tiny amount. It is used as a laboratory standard for ascertaining the strength of potassium permanganate solutions in volumetric analysis, per eg. All need to be assessed individually as there is no magical answer as a generalisation. Regards, RAB Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StephenW Posted December 1, 2010 Author Share Posted December 1, 2010 There is api herb aswell and it says it expired earlier this year so I dont know. Is it worth my while getting chemicals for when I sart next year? Stephen Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
