TREATMENT OF BEE DISEASES. 19 



Introduction of Italian Stock. 



Since, as stated previously (p. 11), Italian bees seem to be better 

 able to withstand European foul brood than are other races, it is 

 recommended that apiaries in rejiions where this diseas^e is prevalent 

 be requeened with young, vigorous Italian queens of good stock. 

 This should be done whether or not the shaking treatment is given. 



Dequeening. 



It has been found that tlie removal of the queen and the keeping 

 of the colony queenless for a period often results in the disappearance 

 of European foul brood. The length of time that this should be done 

 is in dispute. ^Ir. E. "W Alexander, who advocated this method,^ 

 recommended that the colony be kept queenless (by cutting out all 

 queen cells at the end of 9 days) for a period of 20 days, at which 

 time a cell containing a queen of Italian stock ready to emerge is to 

 be given the colony. The young queen will thus begin to laj' in about 

 27 daj's after the old queen has been removed, or in at least 3 days 

 after the last of the drone brood has emerged. Other writers have 

 advocated a shorter time. 



The dequeening treatment is not alwaj's successful, and it is there- 

 fore recommended that care be exercised in trying it. Since there is 

 a considerable percentage of successful results, this would indicate 

 that there is an important princijDle involved. It should not be for- 

 gotten, however, that European foul brood often disappears in the 

 late summer of its own accord if the case is not severe (p. 11), and it 

 is probable that in many of the cases of dequeening reported as suc- 

 cessful the disease would have disappeared without the treatment. 

 This treatment is suggested only for the experienced beekeeper. 



IWSPECTION OF APIAKIES. 



Several States have passed laws providing for the inspection of 

 apiaries for contagious disease and creating the office of apiary 

 inspector. The men holding these offices are usually practical bee- 

 keepers, capable of giving excellent advice regarding disease, and 

 it is desirable, when disease exists in a community, that the owners 

 of apiaries take steps to learn who the inspector is and to notify 

 him of the existence of disease. The Bureau of Entomology of this 

 department can usually give information concerning the inspector 

 and is always glad to be of service in bringing the beekeepers and 

 inspectors in touch with one another. 



Apiary inspection has proved beneficial to the beekeeping industry 

 in spreading information concerning the nature, symptoms, and 



^ Alexander, E. W. — How to rid your apiary of black brood. Gleanings in Bee Culture, 

 vol. 33, pp. 1123-1127. 1905. 

 442 



