138 AUSTRALASIAN BEE MANUAL 



Treatment m:iy be successfully undertaken at any 

 time when honey is being freely stored. When going 

 through the hives in spring make a note of those 

 showing signs of diseased combs (which are readily 

 detected at that time), for treatment later on, and be 

 very careful that robbing is not started. When the honey 

 season has set in, keeping the bees busy, treatment 

 should begin. All operations in this connection should 

 be carried out in the evening, when the bees are quiet. 



Prepare a clean hive and bottom board with narrow 

 starters of comb-foundation in the frames. Remove 

 the infected hive and stand to one side, and put the 

 prepared one in its place, prop up the front about an 

 inch, lay a sack near the entrance, and shake and brush 

 the bees as quietly as possible close to the entrance, 

 and when finished remove every vestige of the infected 

 hive away where bees cannot get at it. The combs, if 

 not too badly infected, may be melted into wax, or, if 

 insufficient in quantity for that purpose, they, with their 

 frames, had better be burned right away and the ashes 

 buried. 



On the evening of the fourth day following, the 

 necessary number of frames for the hive should be 

 furnished with full sheets of comb-foundation, to be 

 exchanged with those the bees have been working on. 

 This can be done by removing the frames one at a time, 

 shaking the bees back into the hive, and inserting the 

 others. The comb built on the starters during the four 

 days may be cut out and melted up, and the frames 

 disinfected. 



When there are several colonies in an apiary affected 

 with disease, or one here and there in different parts of 

 it, it may be taken for granted that nothing less than 

 the treatment of the whole of the colonies at the same 

 time will be effective. To do otherwise, will be to 

 expend time and labour with no good results. 



The theory of this treatment is that during their four 

 days' comb-building, the bees use up all the infected 

 honey contained in their honey-sacs when taken from 

 their old hive, so that when shifted again at the end of 

 the four days they start clean. 



