Honey bees + insecticide

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Brewmeisterzero

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So, I have a predicament. This may not be the best place to be posting questions about this but, I figured Honey bees --> Honey --> Mead --> Mead forum at the HBT! Pretty simple logic but, it's done me quite well in the past. Here we go...

I have a farm with an orchard and grapevines and peach trees and whatnot. In the middle of all this we plopped down a bee hive. Made since with all the fruit trees at the time. My grandmother has a couple peach trees that produce amazing amounts of fruit every year while ours simply don't. The only thing I notice that she does different is that she sprays them. A lot.

So, we've come to the problem. I can't spray my trees with anything, that I know of, otherwise, I'll kill my bees. Here's where you guys come in! Does anyone know of anything that I can use that will repel insects but, not kill them?

I could find almost nothing on the internet on the subject. I read about pyrethrum which is derived from chrysanthemums which when diluted *could* act as more of a repellent than an insecticide but, I figured I'd ask you guys before I went out and committed 30,000 tiny little murders. And then chrysanthemum's themselves as a partner plant. No clue as to how many i'd actually have to plant to keep insects away.

Anyway, I'd be very grateful for any information you guys have on the subject...
 
What would be the point of having a bee hive in a field of beautiful fruit trees if you intentionally repel them from the trees? I don't have much else to add, but that certainly confused me.
 
The repellent would only be on the peach trees. That may not have been obvious in the OP. Everything else doesn't seem to be bothered by the bugs that much.

Maybe they'll get interested in it all if I take the peaches away from them.
 
i'll bet that whatever she does its done after fertilization is complete or before the flowers bud in spring. most pesticides recommend this type spraying and that spraying stop 2-4wks proir to harvest.
 
I have no background in this so take my words with a grain of salt.

I would wait until the peach tree is done flowering and the bees are no longer going to it for pollen. Then wait for a day when the wind is blowing away from your other flowering plants and not endangering the hive, and spray the peach tree. Hopefully the bees will no longer be visiting the tree and you will not affect anything else.

maybe that would work????
 
Brewmeisterzero said:
So, I have a predicament. This may not be the best place to be posting questions about this but, I figured Honey bees --> Honey --> Mead --> Mead forum at the HBT! Pretty simple logic but, it's done me quite well in the past. Here we go...

I have a farm with an orchard and grapevines and peach trees and whatnot. In the middle of all this we plopped down a bee hive. Made since with all the fruit trees at the time. My grandmother has a couple peach trees that produce amazing amounts of fruit every year while ours simply don't. The only thing I notice that she does different is that she sprays them. A lot.

So, we've come to the problem. I can't spray my trees with anything, that I know of, otherwise, I'll kill my bees. Here's where you guys come in! Does anyone know of anything that I can use that will repel insects but, not kill them?
I could find almost nothing on the internet on the subject. I read about pyrethrum which is derived from chrysanthemums which when diluted *could* act as more of a repellent than an insecticide but, I figured I'd ask you guys before I went out and committed 30,000 tiny little murders. And then chrysanthemum's themselves as a partner plant. No clue as to how many i'd actually have to plant to keep insects away.

Anyway, I'd be very grateful for any information you guys have on the subject...
Click to expand...

Depending on what type(s) of insect(s) you're having problems with, you might find some good solutions here: Beneficial insects for organic pest control in an Integrated Pest Management program.
I've done biz with them in the past & never had any problems with them. Regards, GF.
 
We have a few apple trees in our yard, and used to have problems with bugs. Now, to be fair, we probably have different bugs in our area so our techniques may not work.

Starting a few years ago, at the suggestion of a friend, we began spraying the trees with a mixture of dish soap and water. Basically, I preloaded dish soap in my automotive pressure washer (used to wash cars) and misted the trees down. This seemed to keep the crawling bugs down, but didn't affect pollination, so I guess the bees and hummingbirds didn't mind it.

Keep in mind that this is water soluble, so you'll need to reapply after a rain.
 
There are hundreds of acres of blueberry plantations around my house. In the very early spring, farmers pay an apiarist to bring in hives of bees to pollinate.

From that point until when the blooms are done, the only spraying that can be done are fungicides. When the pollination is over, the hives are hauled away, and then the insecticides can be applied.

A very common insecticide used is Sevin (carbaryl) which is incredibly toxic to honeybees. Bees will often travel a mile or so, so the hives must be very far away before spraying can resume.
 
Thanks for the information. I'm trying to stay away from the mainstream insecticides. Carbamates and organophosphates and the like.. I don't really have a way to move the bees so, if I can't find something that acts more like a repellent than an insecticide then I think I'll just have to go without peaches.

I saw a picture of what looked like some sort of mesh system that was draped over the trees that I can only assume was for pest control. I can't really find much on that either though...

Oh well, thanks for the replies, folks...
 
What you need to do is spray the trees when the bees have no interest in them. Then you will do limited damage to the bees. This is before blooming and after the last flower has fallen. You will also need to be sure the over spray does not cover other blooming trees, shrubs or flowers. Watch for clover or other ground cover. And it should be a very still day to ensure very little drift.

Most commercial growers will move the bees into the field during the blooming and then move them back out after pollenization is complete. They can spray after the bees have been removed.

Craig
 

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