738 



should always be wired. Tf I use founda- 

 tion, I lay it on the wires and press the 

 edge of the foundation fast to the bar so 

 that it centers at the corner, then run a hot 

 soldering-iron over it. So fastened, the 

 sheet never comes loose. If I have no foun- 

 dation I just fill a hive with empty frames 

 and put in the bees. Spacing is the main 

 point to watch in that ease ; but should they 

 run off the track T straighten them out a 

 bit and the bees do the rest. Bees always 



GLEANINGS IN BEE CULTURE 



fasten their comb to the corner of a bar, no 

 matter whether tlie bar is with the flat sur- 

 face down or with the corner down. 



Thirty years ago I found this bar in use 

 in Ezra Catlett's apiary at Goleta, Cal. 

 Later T found all the other apiaries there- 

 about used the same kind of frame, so I 

 ('(included that all frames were made that 

 way until I saw the factory-made frame. I 

 then discovered why foundation is not only 

 necessary but indispensable. 



Palatka, Pla. 



REQUEENING AFTER TREATING BEE DISEASES 



BY JOHN L. BYARD 



My yard being one of the first in Massa- 

 chusetts to be condemned and quarantined 

 for American foul brood, together with all 

 others in the town of Southboro, it gave me 

 a chance to become early familiar with the 

 disease. After treating my yard I assisted 

 in treating those of my neighbors. 



Before inspection in July I had requeened 

 several of my colonies in June. My yard 

 was quarantined, promptly treated, and then 

 I requeened the rest of the colonies the last 

 of August. Those colonies requeened in 

 August far outstripped the others, wintered 

 in perfect condition, and gave a good crop 

 the following season. Those requeened in 

 June before treatment barely pulled thru 

 the winter, and in two colonies the follow- 

 ing season I found slight evidence of Amer- 

 ican foul brood. 



In comparison, those colonies in the town 

 of Southboro, near my yard, but which were 

 treated in the usual way without requeening 

 the following year in nearly all instances 

 showed disease. T cannot say that at that 

 time I considered requeening as an essential 

 part of the process of treatment; but with 

 years of experience, both as a beekeeper 

 and as an inspector I am now aware of its 

 importance in combatting American foul 

 brood. 1 am not prepared to say that the 

 queen transmits the disease ; but it is reason- 

 able to presume in egg-laying she has thrust 



her abdimien into thousands of cells con- 

 taining the scales of foul brood. It is be- 

 yond me to .«ay that in so doing she is able 

 to transfer tlie disease organisms upon her 

 abdomen. Yet there are far more signifi- 

 cant meanings to the procedure. 



First, the presence of infection at once 

 condemns, in my mind, the worth of the 

 queen heading that colony, especially if the 

 disease seems to have taken a firm grip. 



Second, from experience, as is shown 

 above, the shaking treatment does not ap- 

 pear to promote the efficiency of the queen. 

 On the contrary, be it the abrupt stoppage 

 of egg-laying, the rough handling in the 

 shaking process, or the confinement, or 

 whatnot, nearly all queens appear to be im- 

 paired, lose their prolificness, become "slow 

 to build up," following the shaking treat- 

 ment. 



Third, on general principles new vigor 

 may be induced in a colony by introducing 

 a strong young queen. 



Fourth, while there may be some uncer- 

 tainty as to the transmissibility of the or- 

 ganisms of American foul brood, either in 

 the egg or in the depositing of the egg, the 

 facts of experience show that reoccurrence 

 of this disease, after a most painstaking 

 method of treatment as usually recommend- 

 ed, is accompanied by the old queen from 

 the formerly diseased colony. 



SWARM PREVENTION IN COMB - HONEY APIARIES 



BY C. F. BENDER 



I have run two outyards for comb lioney 

 for eight years, and expect t© continue. In 

 April the bees which have been wintered at 

 home in the cellar are returned to the out- 

 yards. The main reason for returning them 

 so earlv is to catch the hoiiev from dande- 



lion and fruit bloom, which helps to build 

 up the colonies for the clox^r flow. An- 

 other reason is that the hives are less popu- 

 lous at this time, so there is less danger of 

 smothering bees in moving. 



Tlie only difficulty in running out-apiaries 



