JUNE 15, 1913 



407. 



imperative that the infected colony hived on 

 foundation (or starters) on the old stand 

 be not disturbed under four (and, better 

 slill, five) full daj's; for when the bees start 

 to the fields after hiving, the wax-workers 

 Aviil take all the infected honey brought 

 from the old hive, and, if left absolutely 

 alone, will digest it all in forming wax; 

 but if disturbed before four dajs so as to 

 exchange honej', they will, before again go- 

 ing to the fields, place the honey, now prob- 

 ablj' infected, in the first cell the bees have 

 drawn, instead of giving it to the Avax- 

 workers, when it will be fed to the first 

 brood that hatches, thus at once reinfecting 

 the colony. Should it become imperative, 

 from any cause, to break the wax cluster 

 before the fifth da}', all comb built must be 

 removed, and fresh foundation given. In 

 the course of about four weeks all the brood 

 in the hive with the pipe escape will have 

 hatched and passed out, and united with the 

 Iiarent colony, and as all have left the hive 

 with empty honej'-sacs there is absolutelj' 

 no danger of their canning the infection. 

 It is, perhaps, needless to say that the piped 

 hive must in no wise be disturbed until the 

 last bee has hatched and passed out, when it 

 can be removed to a place of safety, and 

 the wax rendered at leisure. 



Colonies that do not swarm can be shaken 

 on foundation in a clean hive on the old 

 stand, the hive sealed bee-tight, and piped 

 out as before. In shaking, it is best to 

 leave enough bees to care for the unsealed 

 brood, as thej^ will pass out and unite with 

 tlie treated colony in a short time anj' way. 



Colonies in box hives, whether diseased 

 or healthy, can be drummed out and trans- 

 ferred with the pipe, with no danger of 

 lobbing, infection, loss of brood, nor drone 

 brood to dispose of. Neither does it neces- 

 sitate smashed-up hives and the general 

 muss accompanj-ing transferring, and the 

 wax rendered by a good press will far more 

 than iDay for the foundation used. 



I have still to learn of a single failure in 

 the cure of foul brood by the above method 

 absolutely carried out, either in my own 

 apiary or in those of others who have used 

 the method. 



Frenchtown, X. J. 



[This plan is not new, neither is it old. 

 The basic principle was given bv Mr. M. M. 

 Baldridge, of Illinois, in 1894; but Mr. 

 Case's modification of it is new. The old 

 original Baldridge treatment was much the 

 same as that given by our correspondent 

 above, with this ditference : Mr. Baldridge 

 put a new clean hive on the old stand. In 

 this hive he placed a frame of brood and 

 bees from a healthy colony, and the queen 



from the diseased colony. The queen is of 

 course caged for 24 hours. The rest of the 

 space was filled with frames of foundation. 

 The old hive was set to one side, pointing 

 in the same direction, and as close to it as 

 possible. In front of it was attached a bee- 

 escape consisting of a tapering perforated 

 tin tube, all other means of egi'ess being 

 closed. The perforations of course were 

 too small to admit bees. The flying bees 

 and hatching bees, as fast as they would 

 come out of the parent colony, would go 

 into the new hive on the old stand. The 

 old hive was relieved of its bees and brood, 

 leaving nothing but combs and honey to be 

 melted up. 



It will be obsei-Aed that the Case modifi- 

 cation is much the same, except that his 

 tin tube has no perforations. It is six 

 inches long, and just large enough to let 

 one bee or drone through. Mr. Case ex- 

 plained to the writer that perforations have 

 a tendency to attract robbers; that the solid 

 tin tube, with its opening so far from the 

 parent hive, does not draw robbers. 



The Case method has the further advan- 

 tage that it delivers the bees, young and 

 old, to a point immediately in the center 

 and in front of the entrance of the hive on 

 the old stand; and as fast as young bees 

 hatch out from what brood may be healthy, 

 they reinforce the swarm. By this treat- 

 ment no healthy brood is lost; and as the 

 average of diseased colonies will contain 

 only a small percentage of infected bi'ood, 

 there will be but very little loss through the 

 treatment. 



The only caution we wish to offer is that 

 the parent hive be properly shaded if the 

 treatment is applied in hot weather. We 

 have had reports from those who have tried 

 the Baldridge treatment, showing how combs 

 were melted down because of the contracted 

 entrance through the bee-escape. The solid 

 tin tube would be worse in this respect 

 than the perforated tube. It will be simply 

 impossible for bees to ventilate a hive ex- 

 posed to the hot sun with a solid tin-tube 

 bee-escape attached as in the drawing. If 

 hives are in suitable shade, or if the weath- 

 er is not excessively warm, the treatment 

 will woi'k as described by our correspond- 

 ent. 



This treatment, or a modification of it, 

 has the endorsement of the Bureau of En- 

 tomology — see Bulletin 442, by Dr. Phillips, 

 subhead " Treatment with Bee-escapes." 



From the fact that we have heard excel- 

 lent reports from the modified Baldridge 

 treatment, we have no hesitation in recom- 

 mending it to our subscribers, providing 

 the weather is not hot nor the hive exposed 

 to the sun. — Ed.] 



