Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
Protecting against wax moth
The only protection against wax moth is to keep your colonies strong and healthy. If a
colony is failing, consider uniting it with another one (after checking it has no disease).
Protecting stored comb is difficult. Wax moths won't usually infest clean comb that has
no pollen or other debris in it, and they never (in my experience) attack foundation.
They seem to need used comb that has ingredients other than wax in it - they will
attack, for example, comb with honey in it, or comb containing pollen, brood, old brood
remains, cocoons and so on.
Stored comb
If you are storing comb, spray them with
Bacillus thuringiensis
. This bacterium can be
purchased from bee-supply stores and, when mixed with water and poured into a hand
garden-sprayer, can be sprayed easily on to the combs' face. The bacterium will protect
the comb without fail and won't contaminate anything except the wax moth larvae. This
treatment usually lasts throughout the winter. It is quite a task if you have thousands of
combs to treat but, for the small producer, it is very cost effective.
Freezing comb kills all stages of the pest. When you store comb over the winter in a
shed, keep the boxes in a cool, well-ventilated place with a spacer between them to let in
light: wax moths shy away from light.
In cold climates you can store your supers on top of your hives with a mat or escape
board between them. This will allow limited bee access but will keep the supers cold.
Whatever you read elsewhere, don't use PDB (para-dichlor-benzine) crystals. They
work, but have been shown to be carcinogenic. Remember, beeswax is a chemical
sponge that will soak up just about anything. It's best not to fumigate combs for the
same reason. It will also contaminate the honey if you try to use these crystals on
honeycomb.
Stored pollen and propolis
Stored pollen and propolis that has been harvested (see Chapter 12) will also be
attacked by wax moth, and for this reason should be sealed tightly in storage. Pollen
