Yo Pam From Down Under ,
This is the Captain speaking , how are you . Just a few ideas to try and reduce the beetle attacks . * reduce the hive entrances to about 1 " this gives the guard bees more chance to defend .
* place simple beetle traps -diamataceous earth powder or oil traps -neither introduce chemicals and you can clean them to check levels .
* we have a slotted bottom board for such situations , the bees harry the beetles down the slots the bees cannot follow . The earth or oil trap below finishes them off .
* Closely inspect all your bee box lids , bottoms and joins for gaps . Little beetles can hide inside these . Re- plane warped or poor fitting equipment , repainting helps ( a good oil or wax dipping is always good for the timbers ) this helps seal cracks and gives the bees a fighting chance .
* Finally add a fresh frame of brood to the hives to re-energise the hive with strong workers , choose a frame with 1-3 day old eggs so if you have a failing queen , they will supersedure her and you will know more about your hive strength .Repeat this for 3 x weeks in a row and your hive will be resilient and strong
Hope this helps - cheers David
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