MillerThousand AnswersBeekeepingQuestions.pdf - BioBees

THOUSAND ANSWERS 99healthy which has been slightly diseased the previous year. If acolony has been very badly diseased this year, next year you maylook for it at the very start with plenty of diseased larvae, probablybecause of the millions of spores that are present-.Q. In treating colonies with European foulbrood by dequeeningor caging the queen all agree the first thing to do is to makethe colony strong. I find that ideas differ on this matter of strongcolonies. What is the minimum strength with which you couldexpect success?A. You have struck a new question, yet now that it is askedthe wonder is that it was never asked before. Without beingdogmatic about it, I should say that the colony should be strongenough to have six Langstroth frames well filled with brood—tobe more specific about it, each frame being three.-fourths filled.I think it also important that there be a good force of youngbees, and without this it would not be likely that six frameswould be well filled with brood. Old bees that have begun workAfield are not the ones that do house-cleaning, and it may wellbe questioned whether doubling up such bees to any extentwould answer the purpose.Q. Are the germs of European foulbrood transmitted byhoney, or, in other words, would a frame of sealed or unsealedhoney (with no brood) from an infected colony infect a healthyone?A. I think it would in some cases. I know that in some casesit does not. I would have little fear of surplus honey from aninfected colony. I would not feel quite so safe about a broodcomb,even if it contained no brood. With American foulbroodthe case is different. However, in either case, I should preferboth honey and combs that had never been within a mile of afoulbroody hive.Q. Would combs that have never contained brood be affectedin any way, even if they had been drawn out by colonies affectedwith European foulbrood? Would it be safe to use any of thosecombs? Now I have 200 self-spacing frames all drawn-out combs.They have been exposed to the diseased colonies, but not usedfor brood-rearing. The diseased colonies had stored honey inthem, and I extracted it. Would it be all right to use them, orwould it be better to make wax out of them? Everybody's beesare affected around here, as one of the beekeepers left his hivesout to be cleaned up where bees had died.A. I have used such combs without bad results. Whether itwould always work so well I cannot say. If I had never had the