Grease Patties Grease patty treatments are made from a mixture of 1 part vegetable shortening (i.e. Crisco) and 2 parts granulated white sugar. The paste-like mixture is divided into hamburger-sized patties on sheets of waxed paper. One patty per colony is placed on the top bars in the middle of the broodnest. Grease patties work very slowly; to reduce tracheal mite levels by mid-fall, patties should be placed in colonies in April or May. Patties should be checked every 4 to 6 weeks and replaced as needed to maintain a continuous exposure throughout the summer and into fall. Colonies may be supered normally as long as plain patties (without Teramycin) are used.

Some beekeepers incorporate Terramycin into patties in the spring and/or fall as a foulbrood preventative. It may also offer some advantage to colonies with Varroa infestations or infected with diseases associated with parasitic mites. Patties which include Terramycin (home-made or those commercially available under the brand name Terra Patties) should only be applied when bees are not storing surplus honey (colonies are not supered). DO NOT medicate bees when there is ANY danger of contaminating the honey crop.