Increase varroa resistance On November 15, 2025, we held the 7th annual varroa resistance conference in Hallsberg. The pleasant conference room in the parish hall near the Nordic region’s largest marshalling yard was filled to capacity. Around 60 beekeepers from
Varroa resistance is simple for the beekeeper For the researcher, however, varroa resistance is complicated. This was the point made by Prof. Stephen Martin at the Hallsberg Conference on November 9, 2024. The well-known naturalist/researcher Charles Darwin emphasized the importance of
Treatment-free beekeeping On november 12, 2022, the 4th Annual Conference on resistance to the varroa mite was held in Hallsberg. The goal for us participating in these conferences is to be able to conduct a more trouble-free beekeeping without chemicals
Strong Varroa resistant bee colonies Some suggest that one important trait for varroa resistance is smaller brood nest and less brood rearing. That may be so for some stock resulting in lower growth rate of varroa mites. It’s also resulting
Traits for Varroa resistance We have found in our Varroa resistant project in our local bee club that when you begin a project like this, checking the varroa level is the most important tool, if you plan to treat colonies
The local bee club in the small town of Hallsberg on 59°N 15°E invites to a meeting on breeding varroa resistant bees. Saturday Oct 24 at 10 am – 14 pm. Venue Garveriet, Bra & Begagnat in Hallsberg. WGS 84
Sometimes, the term VSH is used as meaning the same thing as varroa resistance. I think it’s helpful to clarify what VSH is. It is one of several resistance characteristics that affect the bees’ resistance to the Varroa mite. VSH
Before varroan came there could be seen occasional bees with undeveloped/deformed wings in spring. Maybe it was the influence of DWV, Deformed Wing Virus. But it may also have been chilled brood. During the final phase of the pupa development
One mite from 300 bees. I understand that sometimes it’s a good idea to get an idea of the infestation level of varroa mites in bee colonies. You can take samples from a couple of colonies in an apiary to
I ended the last blog-post saying that the season wasn’t completely over yet. That was very true. August has been our summer here in Sweden. And it’s not over yet, August and warm summer. Though the nights are chilly. But