VarroaVault Hive Health Dashboard: Every Hive's Status at a Glance
Users who view their dashboard within 24 hours of account creation have 3x higher 30-day retention than those who don't. That's because seeing your actual colony data in one view, color-coded and organized, is the moment the app goes from "a thing I signed up for" to "a tool I need." The dashboard is where VarroaVault's value becomes concrete.
Here's what the dashboard shows, how the status colors work, and how to use it to manage your operation more effectively.
TL;DR
- Small hive beetles and varroa are distinct pests that often stress the same weakened colonies
- Varroa-weakened colonies are less able to defend against small hive beetle invasion because bee numbers decline
- Managing varroa effectively keeps colonies strong enough to control beetle populations through bee behavior
- Track beetle pressure and mite counts together to see how mite levels affect a colony's ability to defend
- Beetle traps and varroa treatments can be deployed simultaneously without interference
- VarroaVault's hive health log supports recording multiple pest observations in a single inspection entry
What the Dashboard Shows
The VarroaVault dashboard provides a single-view summary of every hive in your selected apiary. For each hive, the dashboard card shows:
Hive name/ID and apiary: Identifying information matching your physical labels.
Current mite status: Your most recent count result as a percentage, color-coded by status.
Last count date: When the most recent count was logged. If no count has been logged in 30+ days, a "count due" badge appears.
PHI countdown: If any active treatment has an unexpired PHI, the countdown shows as a badge on the hive card (e.g., "PHI: 12 days").
Active treatment: If a treatment is currently in progress (Apivar strips in, OA protocol in sequence), the product name and days remaining show on the card.
Health score: VarroaVault's composite score (1-10) based on count level, count trend, treatment history, and PHI status.
Next action: The next scheduled event for this hive: upcoming count reminder, treatment step, strip removal, or PHI clearance date.
Understanding the Status Colors
Green: Mite count is below your threshold. No active PHI concerns. Count is current (within your monitoring interval).
Amber: One of several conditions:
- Count is within 0.5% of threshold (approaching but not over)
- Count trend is rising and projecting toward threshold within 14 days
- Count is overdue (hasn't been logged within your monitoring interval)
- PHI will expire within 7 days
Red: One of several conditions:
- Count is above your threshold
- PHI has not cleared and you have active honey production flagged
- Predictive alert is active (count projected to breach threshold within 14 days)
- A resistance flag is active from a post-treatment efficacy below 80%
Gray: Hive has been marked inactive or no counts have ever been logged.
Customizing Your Dashboard View
Filter by apiary: If you have multiple yards, use the apiary filter to view just one yard's hives or all yards simultaneously. The multi-apiary view shows color-coded status for all hives across all yards in a single scrollable list.
Sort options: Sort hives by status (red first), by count date (most recent first), by count percentage (highest first), or by hive name. The "sort by status" view lets you immediately see which hives need attention.
Compact view vs. card view: Compact view shows more hives per screen with less detail. Card view shows full status for each hive. Choose based on how many hives you're managing.
The Health Score Explained
VarroaVault's health score (1-10) combines four factors:
- Current count level (40% weight): How far below or above threshold your count is.
- Count trend (30% weight): Whether counts are rising, stable, or declining.
- Treatment history (20% weight): Whether the colony has been treated consistently and efficacy has been confirmed.
- PHI and compliance status (10% weight): Whether any compliance issues are outstanding.
A score of 8-10 indicates a well-managed colony with low, stable mite levels and complete treatment documentation. A score of 4-6 indicates moderate concern worth monitoring. A score of 1-3 indicates a hive requiring attention.
The health score is a summary indicator. When it changes significantly, drill into the hive detail view to see which factors changed.
Using the Dashboard for Daily Management
The most effective daily use of the VarroaVault dashboard is a 2-minute morning review during the active season:
- Open the app and view your apiary dashboard.
- Check for any red or amber hives you didn't see yesterday.
- Check the "next action" column for anything due today or in the next 3 days.
- If a count is overdue or a treatment step is pending, add it to your day's plan.
This 2-minute review replaces the "I hope I'm not forgetting anything" uncertainty that paper records produce and eliminates the "I lost track of what I did to Hive 7" problem.
The Dashboard for Multi-Apiary Operations
For beekeepers managing multiple yards, the multi-apiary dashboard view is particularly valuable. Instead of visiting each yard before knowing which ones need attention, you can see the status of all your hives from home.
If Yard 3 shows three red hives on Monday morning, you schedule a visit to Yard 3 Tuesday. If all of Yard 2's hives are green with counts current, you can delay your Yard 2 visit. This scheduling efficiency is one of the practical advantages of organized digital records at scale.
See also: VarroaVault varroa mite treatment software and Mite count tracking app.
Frequently Asked Questions
What does the VarroaVault hive health dashboard show?
The dashboard shows a color-coded status card for every hive in your apiary, displaying: current mite percentage, last count date, PHI countdown for active treatments, active treatment status, composite health score (1-10), and next scheduled action. Red cards indicate above-threshold or compliance concerns; green cards indicate healthy, well-managed hives.
How are hive health status colors determined in VarroaVault?
Green: count below threshold, no PHI concerns, count current. Amber: approaching threshold, count overdue, or PHI expiring within 7 days. Red: count above threshold, PHI not cleared, predictive threshold alert active, or resistance flag from low treatment efficacy. Gray: inactive hive or no counts ever logged.
Can I see all my hives on the dashboard at once?
Yes. VarroaVault's multi-apiary dashboard view shows all hives across all your apiaries in a single scrollable list. You can filter by apiary or view all simultaneously, and sort by status, count date, percentage, or hive name. This single-view summary is designed for morning review of your entire operation.
How do I know if my varroa treatment is working?
Run a mite count 2-4 weeks after the treatment ends and compare it to your pre-treatment count. The efficacy formula is: ((pre-count - post-count) / pre-count) x 100. A result above 90% indicates effective treatment. Results below 80% should trigger investigation for possible resistance, application error, or reinfestation. Log both counts in VarroaVault to track efficacy trends across treatment cycles.
How often should I check mite levels in my hives?
At minimum, once per month (every 3-4 weeks) during the active season. Increase to every 2 weeks when counts are near threshold or after a treatment to verify it worked. In fall, monitoring frequency matters most because the window to treat before winter bees are raised is narrow. VarroaVault's monitoring reminders can be set to your preferred interval for each apiary.
What records should I keep for varroa management?
Each record should include: date of count or treatment, hive identifier, monitoring method used, number of bees sampled, mites counted, infestation percentage, treatment product name and EPA registration number, dose applied, treatment start and end dates, and PHI end date. State apiarists typically expect this level of detail during inspections. VarroaVault captures all of these fields in a single log entry.
Sources
- American Beekeeping Federation (ABF)
- USDA ARS Bee Research Laboratory
- Honey Bee Health Coalition
- Penn State Extension Apiculture Program
- Project Apis m.
Get Started with VarroaVault
The information in this guide is most useful when you have your own mite count data to apply it to. VarroaVault stores every count, flags threshold crossings automatically, and builds the treatment history you need for state inspections and effective management decisions. Start your free trial at varroavault.com.