Pebruakv, 192': 



GLEANINGS IN 



!•: K (■ V 1,'r r u k 



75 



The peculiaritii's cil' eacli icjfioii aic dis 

 cussed ill each case, and siitn)le direetiouo 

 are given for a system of nianagenient to 

 meet the requirements of the locality. Bee- 

 keepers will, no doubt, welcome tliis method 

 of handling tlie subject of management in 

 beekeeping, the details of which must of 

 course differ for different regions. These 

 bulletins can be obtained free while the 

 supply lasts by writing to The Bureau of 

 Entomology, Washington, D. C. 



The fourth new bulletin is United States 

 Department of Agriculture Bulletin 998, 

 "Heat Production of Honeybees in Win- 

 ter." This is a report on the stildy of a 

 colony of bees in a respiration calorimeter. 

 With this apparatus, the energy output of a 

 colony was measured by measuring both the 

 respiratory products given off by the bees 

 and the amount of heat given off within 

 certain intervals of time. The temperature 

 of the air surrounding the hive was changed 

 from time to time to determine the amount 

 of heat and respiratory products given off 

 at different temperatures. The oxygen con- 

 tent of the air, the percentage of carbon 

 dioxide and the humidity were changed, and 

 the response of the bees to these changes 

 carefully noted. 



One of the surprises in this connection is 

 that neither an excess of carbon dioxide nor 

 a considerable deficiency of oxygen aft'ected 

 the bees adversely. In fact, a lack of venti- 

 lation apparently had a quieting effect upon 

 them. 



The energy produced by the bees when 

 they were about as quiet as they are under 

 most favorable conditions in early winter, 

 when measured by this apparatus, was found 

 to be greater, according to body weight, 

 than that produced by a man working at 

 hard manual labor, considering the fact that 

 the work Avas done by only a relatively few 

 of the bees of the cluster. According to this, 

 the energy produced by a colony in the 

 height of a honey flow must be tremendous 

 for the body weight involved when com- 

 pared with higher forms of animals. 



We understand this bulletin is for sale 

 by the Superintendent of Documents for 

 five cents, cash or money order, stamj^s not 

 being accepted for bulletins. 



IN THIS issue are articles by W. J. Shep- 

 pard, Arthur 0. Miller and J. L. Byer on 



the Lewis treat- 

 Some Peciiliaxities 

 of European 

 Foul Brood. 



ment for Euro- 

 pean foul brood. 

 The reader will 

 note the differ- 

 ence in the attitude of Mr. Miller and Mr. 

 Byer regarding the destructiveness of this 

 disease and the importance of elaborate 

 treatment. 



Mr. Byer sees no need of fussing with 

 drugs, which involve;; fhaking the bees ■•'•o'n 

 their combs once a week in order that the 



(■(inil)s ina_\ he sjdaycd with a solution of 

 sodium liyperchlorite to control this disease, 

 when under his conditions the bees are able 

 largel}' to control it themselves. As he says 

 he looks upon Euroj)eau foul brood with 

 ' ' ('om[)arative contempt. ' ' 



On the other hand, Mr. Miller is enthusi- 

 astic about the drug treatment. He men- 

 tions the "virulent type" of European foul 

 brood i)revalent in his locality, which the 

 ordinary treatments for this disease do not 

 cure. Both of these men have been thru 

 the mill with European foul brood, but they 

 emerge with ()uito different views in regard 

 to treatment. 



Mr. Byer is located in the midst of the 

 clover region of Ontario where the stimula- 

 tion of the comparatively early honey flow 

 from clover causes strong colonies of vigor- 

 ous bees to clean out the dead larvae so 

 thoroughly that the disease is not able to 

 make much progress. If it does get the 

 start of certain colonies, doubtless 10 days 

 of queenlessness and then requeening with 

 a A^oung queen of resistant stock will usually 

 enable the bees to clean up the trouble. 



Mr. Miller in Ehode Island is outside of 

 the clover region proper where the early 

 honey flow is not dependable, and where the 

 bees can not be depended upon to clean out 

 the dead larvae so promptly or so thorough- 

 ly. One man, because of his stock, man- 

 agement and location, is able to look upon 

 European foul brood with contempt; while 

 another, because of the difference in his 

 locality, is compelled to go to a lot of trou- 

 ble to keep the disease under control. 



The so-called "virulent type" of Euro- 

 pean foul brood does not, however, entirely 

 stay out of the clover region or regions hav- 

 ing a dependable early honey flow. On aev- 

 eral occasions the Editor has seen it appear 

 suddenly in all its glory in clover localities, 

 but these were seasons when the clover, 

 failed. Even then 'its virulence depended 

 largely upon the stock and management. 



In any region having a strong dependable 

 early honey flow, beekeepers who have good 

 stock and so manage that their colonies are 

 rousing strong early in the spring will not 

 need to bother with drugs to control Euro- 

 pean foul brood, nor will they need to de- 

 stroy the combs. In regions where nature 

 fails to co-operate in furnishing a good 

 honey flow at the critical time the problem 

 is quite different, but rousing strong colo- 

 nies of good stock go a long way even there. 

 When these fail and requeening after a pe- 

 riod of queenlessness fails, as in Mr. Mil- 

 ler's case, something else must be done. Per- 

 haps the drug treatment is the answer as to 

 what this should be. 



In regard to the Stewart gasoline treat- 

 ment for American foul brood, mentioned 

 by Mr. Byer, beekeepers can well afford to 

 let the federal and state experts do the ex- 

 perimenting along this line, at least the 

 first seas:)!!. 



