Hi Carolyn, et al, just my 2 cents on CCD. Not that I am any kind of expert ... it was a topic in one of my Hort classes, and it appears the word is out yet on the cause(s) of CCD. Apparently, here in San Diego County, most honeybees are of the Africanized hybrid type now. Oddly, research seems to indicate they do not suffer from CCD ... and perhaps one of the contributing factors ... Varroa bee mites. A difference noticed in Africanized honey bees is that their cells are a bit smaller than the man-made cells used in commercial honeybee keeping, and perhaps this is a contributing factor. Also, indications are Africanized honeybees will dispose of mite-infested pupae. I see lots of honeybees ... Africanized or not ... here in San Diego County ... but noticed absolutely none in my parents flower garden in Michigan. I had mentioned to my Hort instructor that I have used Imidacloprid to control mealy bug ... primarily on my seedling and juvenile amaryllids. She indicated that there are some reports that Imidacloprid may be a factor in CCD. An article in WIKIPEDIA mentions it, along with other possible pesticide factors: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/… Since the word is still out on Imidacloprid ... and I use it only very sparingly and only on my seedling and juvenile bulbs, I am hopeful I am not contributing to CCD and will continue to do so until further evidence arises. Of course, I also realize the Pesticide companies have an active campaign to discredit any blame for CCD on their products. Ken Blackford San Diego --- On Sat, 9/18/10, Theladygardens@aol.com <Theladygardens@aol.com> wrote: My husband is a beekeeper. ... On the days when the neighbors have a pest truck spraying their property we find 400 - 700 dead bees on the carpet in the evening. We would never have noticed this if we had left the area in dirt and weeds. So my unscientific opinion is that colony collapse disorder is caused by several things including most people randomly spraying toxins to get rid of one thing but harming lots of other things in the process. Carolyn