TENNESSEE AGRICULTURE 



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comb and honey. To do this u'c simply take it m^vy. But in the opera- 

 tion some precautions are necessary. We must see that the colony 

 will get healthy food as soon as the unhealthy food is taken away, 

 and have means for building new comb at once. So the operation 

 should be performed during a honey flow. The earlier the better, 

 provided there is enough nectar to furnish the food. Treated early 

 in the season the bees will have more time to build comb and store 

 surplus. They may be treated later with equal success, but will have 

 less time to gather surplus honey for winter stores, and may have 

 to be fed. We must take precautions against starting robbing, or 





mm 



Fig. 4.— American foul-brood comb, showing irregular patches of sunken cappings and scales. 

 The position of the comb indicates the best way to view the scales. { Original.) 



causing the treated colony to scatter to other hives or swarm out. 

 be lost, and carry infection to other places. So the operation should 

 be performed in the evening when the bees are settling down for the 

 night, and the entrance should be covered with queen-excluding metal 

 to hold the queen in case of swarming out the next morning. A regu- 

 lar queen-excluder laid on the bottom board under the brood chamber 

 will answer the latter purpose. Whenever bees are disturbed in their 

 hives they will fill their honey sacs with honey from the comb. As 

 this will happen when the hive is being treated, and some of this 

 diseased honey might be stored in the new combs, it is necessary to 



