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Let the Bees Decide: Why I’m Committed to Treatment-Free Beekeeping
The winter of 2024 into the spring of 2025 saw a wave of hive collapses across the U.S. Thousands of beekeepers lost their colonies, many seemingly overnight. While the headlines blamed Varroa mites, a closer look revealed a more troubling story: the very treatments used to control mites had begun to fail. Resistant mites thrived. Bees did not.
But here’s what most reports didn’t emphasize: the losses were concentrated in large-scale, commercial operations. These are migratory pollination outfits that truck bees across the country, stack colonies on pallets, and place them in high-stress monoculture environments like California’s almond orchards. These hives are routinely treated with miticides, antibiotics, and artificial feed, and the bees endure limited diets and relentless relocation. When collapse hits, it isn’t surprising.
Backyard and small-scale treatment-free beekeepers, on the other hand, generally fared much better. The Bee Informed Partnership’s 2024–2025 preliminary survey data noted significantly lower losses among stationary, non-commercial apiaries [1].
The Trouble with Treating
In conventional beekeeping, treating for Varroa destructor has become standard practice. Some treatments are synthetic miticides. Others are deemed “natural” or even “organic” — derived from plant acids or essential oils. The assumption is: if it’s natural, it must be safe.
But bees would never encounter concentrated oxalic acid or thymol in nature at the levels applied in a hive. These treatments may seem mild, but they alter the delicate microbiome of the hive and add stress to an already overwhelmed colony. And worst of all, they prop up weak genetics while simultaneously driving mite resistance.
It’s a treadmill: treat, breed weaker bees, breed stronger mites, treat again.
Not Abandonment — Observation and Intervention
Treatment-free doesn’t mean neglect. In fact, it requires a more attentive, thoughtful approach. If a colony is struggling, I don’t ignore it — I troubleshoot. That might mean sharing resources between hives, combining colonies, or providing a new queen if one fails to return. (Sometimes a virgin queen doesn’t survive her mating flight. Other times, the colony may fail to accept a newly introduced queen or reject her outright.)
I also practice Integrated Pest Management (IPM) — not as a treatment system, but as a philosophy of awareness. This includes monitoring for signs of pests, diseases, viruses, and stress — and giving bees the conditions they need to stay strong. Often, a well-supported hive will maintain its own health with minimal interference.
One of the biggest threats to a colony’s wellbeing isn’t a pest — it’s the beekeeper. Bees maintain a hygienic and well-regulated environment. They seal their space with propolis to control moisture and air flow, and they’re experts at climate control inside the hive. A rough inspection can disrupt all of that. Opening the hive too frequently can cause comb to collapse, bees to be crushed, and temperatures to fluctuate. Too many beekeepers obsess over finding the queen — when all they really need to see is evidence of her: fresh eggs, larvae, and healthy brood.
Resilience Over Intervention
Being treatment-free is about respecting the natural rhythms and resilience of the bees. It means selecting for strength, adaptability, and self-sufficiency. Rather than intervene with chemicals at the first sign of trouble, I let the bees show me what they need. It’s not about passively accepting loss. It’s about proactively supporting the conditions for survival.
Yes, losses happen. But when they do, they often reveal deeper issues — forage availability, colony stress, disease, or mismanagement — not just a pest. In many cases, colonies bounce back with appropriate, non-chemical support.
The Long Game
Treatment-free isn’t just about avoiding chemicals. It’s about patience. Long-term vision. It’s trusting that bees have been managing mites and pathogens for millions of years without us, and that maybe the best thing we can do is observe, support, and get out of the way when appropriate.
Each loss of a colony — whether from mite pressure, environmental stress, or disease — is not just a failure; it’s a signal. A reminder that we can’t outsmart nature with stronger treatments. We have to work with it, not against it.
Let the bees decide. And build from what thrives.
Would you like to learn more about how treatment-free beekeeping affects honey purity? Read our article: [Medicinal Honey: Nature’s Original Remedy].
[1] Bee Informed Partnership. “Loss & Management Survey 2024–2025 Preliminary Results.” beeinformed.org. June 2025.