Ant & SHB control?

[Hi-Tech]

I had a friend make this suggestion. Mix boric acid (roach poison) with grape jelly and put it into small peices of corrigated plastic (like what those political signs are made of). He places them in his hive, the ants go in and get the jelly but the bees cannot go into the small holes of the corrigated plastic.

Does anyone else use this method and if so, will SHBs eat and die along with the ants?

[Apis629]

It's usually unsafe or illegal to put unauthorised substances into hives as a pesticed controll. Just a Word to the Wise.

[Brian D. Bray]

If they do get into the jelly you'll have contaminated honey and dead bees.  And Apis is right beware is the bee inspector finds unapproved treatments in your hives that have the possibility of contamination.

[Hi-Tech]

That makes sense. I guess I will veto this idea as I have with so many others....  sigh.....

[Bubba]

Hi-Tech

Are the ant's climbing up your hive stand? I have my hive placed on 2 8" block's I kept spraying permethrin to kill the ant's but then every little shower we get the poision was gone. So I read about putting some axile greese around what you put your hive on. Well when we bought our house while cleaning around I found a 5 gallon bucket filled with red grease. Anyhow I put a 2 inch ring around both block's and that seem's to have fixed the ant problem for now. Now I will admitt that it is a bit unsightly but it help's.

[Michael Bush]

>Does anyone else use this method and if so, will SHBs eat and die along with the ants?

I've used boric acid and jelly on ants.  Not in the hive.  Put it on the ant hill if you can find it or on the inner cover if you can keep the bees out of it (#8 hardware cloth on the inner cover hole should do).

I've never had SHB so I don't know anything about that.

[Hi-Tech]

While I do have a small ant problem from time to time, my main battle is small hive beetles. I am building a new beeyard so I will hold off doing anything until that area is done and the hives are moved... Thanks all for the advice.....

[qa33010]

I use FGMO and smear it around the bottom boards and this has worked great keeping the ants out.  I'm reapplying either tomorrow or the day after.  I did a partial swipe with my finger today and they were getting thin, so I'll reapply.  We had our first rain in a long time last night, too heavy, and some was washed off.  It lasts for quite a while and stands up to medium or less rain.  The bees stay away from the FGMO and the ants don't get in from the outside.  With a SBB the bees keep them out from coming in.  I've watched the guard bees bite the devil out of 'em.  

   As far as how long I'll need to go back to my notes and see if I wrote it down.  I had better have.


     With SHB I learned how to bait them in.  Leave your protein patties on too long and they love you for it and start to trash a newly installed package.     As I write this I wonder if you can't set up a bait trap like the yellow jacket/wax moth traps?  

David