r>E"<;rOTEXD EX:CLTJSI"V-EL^2- TO BEES .A.JSriD HZOlsTE^S^ 



Vol. III. 



SEPTEMBER 1, 1875. 



No. IX. 



[For Gleanings.] 

 FOl I. BROOD. 



5]J^J[IVE yeai's ago the present season, I was in Xew 

 wa Jersey; (some aceoiint of this was afterwards 

 >^i jriven'in .1. B. J.) That season I had fcul brood 

 to eoritend with : and I now jiropose to tell you how 

 I managed it. I think it came by the combs being wet 

 by the drivins rain which soaked the ])onen." and 

 i-aused it to ferment; thonsh it is possible that I j)ur- 

 ••hased it with bees. I'.e that as it may. I will tell von 

 how 1 treated it, and. as I believe, eflectnallv curei\ it. 

 Abont the last of May I discovered a few cells of dead 

 brood in one of my hives, and soon saw more in other 

 hives. It did not at first occur to me that it was foul 

 brood, perhai)s because I hoped it was not. Soon the 

 increasing: numbers of perforated cells, and putrid 

 smell around the affected hives, which was much more 

 intolerable when a hive was opened, left no chance 

 for a doubt that it was the real, genuine article, 

 according to all the descriptions I had read. 



In opening the hives I sometimes saw bees loading 

 themselves from the ce'ls containing dead brood, just 

 the same as if it were honey. I feel very confident that 

 I maile no mistake in that respect. This is a point 

 which I do not remember to have ever seen noticetl as 

 coming under the observation of any other person, 

 (Mther before or since that time; and on account of 

 this observation my novel mode of treatment was 

 i>lanned. I thoughtViuitc likely that a portion of this 

 dead brood after being sucked from the cells was fed 

 to the larva\ causing their death of course at a certain 

 stage of their growth, and that this might be the main 

 way in which it was propagated after it was once 

 started. 



My treatment consisted of two parts; first, the re- 

 moval of all the brood and the extracting of all the 

 honey from aflected hives. Pcrhajjs this last might 

 not be essential. Second, I introduced comb contain - 

 inir young larva' which would immediately be fed a'l 

 the poison the bees had carried with them. When 

 this comb was capned over, it was removed and bur- 

 ied before it coidil infect tiie rest. I had not less than 

 ten and I should think more than lifteen, which were 

 treated in this way, and all recovered by Sept. I 

 think an occasional cell was discovered in the early 

 part of Sept., with a perforated cover, and these were 

 rut out witli a small knife blade. After Sept., the 

 disease did not reai)pear, although the bees were kept 

 right along in the same hives years afterwards. I 

 hope some of those who are so nrifortunate as to have 

 fonl brood will deem this method worthy of a trial. I 

 know it costs something to cut out and bury the brood, 

 but it costs more to let it stay in until the hive is des- 

 troyed. That season was the only time I ever had or 

 Sja\v it. It is not known here in this part of N. H. 



J. L. HUBBAKl). 



West Chesterfield, X. II.. July 5th, '75. 



"We oiin readily. Vtelievu our frieud is ri,i>;lit, 

 IVoin haviuii- noticed the avidity with wliich 

 tlie workers suck up llie juices of the larva; 

 after having cut out Que^-n cells, or uncapped 

 drone brood as we used to do. If it should 

 transpire, that removing; the brood alone would 

 answer without reinovin,2; all tlie honey, it will 

 be (lUite a saving; in labor. 



« Ml the last dav of Mav 1 divided a swarm of bees, 

 and in 10 days I flivi.led some more so as to get cells 

 from the first one for Queens. About the middle of 

 Jnne we had a very hard frost, so hard tliat it froze a 

 good deal of the brborl. Where there was much of it 

 I cut it out, and where there was not so much I left it 

 for the bees to remove, but some of them failed to do 



this, and in the course of time it became putrid ; when 

 I found this was the case I looked them over, and 

 from tliosc that had only now and then a cell alTected, 

 I ))ickcd them out with mv knife, but those verv bail, 

 1 dejiriveil of all their brood. 



Now for the result : those that hail onl v a few frozen 

 ones, got well, and those that had more did also, after 

 cutting out a second time, but one of them had to be 

 deprived of all their combs for two days and then 

 furnislied with emptv combs, and the" are now as 

 healthy as need be. Von mav doubt that this was tln^ 

 genuine foul-brood, but it su'relv was. for the healthy 

 brood was mixed all through the rotten mass. 



I have always had a dread of foul-brood since I kept 

 bees, but never saw any before and never wish to see 

 any again. 



A. J. HoovEK, Plymouth. Pa., Aug. 1st, "7.^. 



THE HOISE AE'SARY, ETC. 



fi WOl'LI) caution you a little about recommending 

 the introduction of voung (,>ueens in all cases, as 

 — 1 about two weeks ago, I put 10 such into heavy 

 stocks, and all were killed. Some were taken directly 

 from the cells as they hatched, and none, I think', 

 were more than two hours old; I inserted Queen cells 

 into two stocks at about the same time also; were in 

 two days before they hatched, vet they were also 

 destroyed. 



I had quite a time introducing fertile Queens into 

 those stocks; they killed two. but I believe now I 

 have a laying Q\ieen in each, though they were with- 

 out one about two weeks. 



I see you have your bee-house in oneration. The 

 idea that you and Mr. Coe advance, that bees will not 

 sting in the house is all bosh ; it won't go down. I 

 have been stung too much in the bce-honse : you have 

 no strong stocks, no old l)ees in vour lionse vet : wait 

 till about next July, when you get your "20 frame 

 hives full; then some day wlien honey is not yielding 

 much, you go to extracting from hives containing old 

 hybrids: yon will find they will give von -'nail Co- 

 lumbia,"— come right in from out-doors to get at you. 

 I would rather by half handle bees out of doors. I 

 think less of the bee-house every year I use it. I 

 might think it a good thing, if 1 did "not have neigh- 

 bors, who are making box honev on L. hives, witli 

 about hall the lal)or that I have." Tliev work the h. 

 hive on the plan described in .4. B. J., page los, pres- 

 ent Vol., only they use but 8 and !t frames in the brood 

 chamber, and fill nut one side or both, with a hanging 

 division board. jMr. Baird started witli ;!n stocks, and 

 had only 11 that attempted to swarm. Some stocks 

 have given from 40 to 45 four iionnd boxes to the pres- 

 ent time; of course all are nor full, but buckwheat is 

 to come yet, and when it yields well, we average .">(» 

 lbs. to tlie stock, inchiding new stocks that were. 

 started early in tlie season. ' Many of these best stocks 

 haven't more than .'> lbs. honey in the brood chamber. 

 What more can you ask of bees, when they store all 

 their surplus in the boxes? Of course some of mine 

 have done as well, but I would like to ask wliat is the 

 use of all this extra trouble ami ex|)ense, of bee-house, 

 "tide I)Ox" hives, etc. ? I have had but K! out <of iii 

 that have not attempted to swarm. 



You S])eak in July No., of those who recommend 

 packing for winiei-, and advise them to go slow; now 

 I don't consider jiacking absolutely necessary for 

 winter, but if you want to carry your bees through 

 such a severe spring as the last", and not have them 

 dwindle, I know of no way to do it so certainly, as to 

 pack them in the w.-iy I described, and i>ot disturb 

 in the spring any more than enough to jirove that 

 they have everytliing in good order. It taltcs no long- 

 er to jjack them in the fall, and the iiacking does no 

 harm through the winter, and inay be a great benefit. 



