Petroleum Jelly 1kg

01 · COUNTING VARROA

It holds the mite where it fell

Spread in a thin layer over the tray of an open mesh floor, it holds every mite exactly where it lands and lasts weeks without running, even if the hive sits at a slight angle or the thermometer moves. That is what makes a daily or weekly count reliable. And if you divide the tray into quadrants, the information stops being a number and becomes a map: where the load is, whether the trouble is on one side of the nest or in the middle.

02 · TRAPS AND BARRIERS

Sticky for long enough

In the trays of Aethina tumida traps it holds the beetles that fall or go looking for a slot to hide in. On hive stand legs it forms a film that holds ants back and lasts for weeks, which the liquid kind does not. And in some selective hornet traps it goes on the return areas to make it harder for a hornet that has gone in to find its way out.

03 · LOOKING AFTER EQUIPMENT

Threads, catches and bellows gaskets

On metal threads, lid catches and ripener valves it keeps rust away and stops propolis welding the parts together, so the yearly strip-down stops being a fight. On the rubber or leather gasket of a smoker bellows it improves the seal and keeps it from drying out and cracking. It also serves as a temporary plug in a crack: bees do not tend to propolise over it, so the real repair can wait.

04 · FOOD GRADE, AND WHAT IT IS NOT

Two uses not to buy it for

It is food grade, and if your business needs the batch data sheet for its hygiene plan, ask and we will send it. That said, there are two things it is not: it is not sold as a cosmetic — for balms and lip products look for something registered as such — and it is not a lubricant for silicone seals, because petroleum derivatives swell that material; what goes there is silicone grease.

05 · BEFORE YOU BUY

A 1 kg tub, enough for several trays, traps and protection points through a whole season. Apply in a thin layer with a spatula, a gloved hand or a brush.