DISEASE-FREE BEES

Press, Volume XCVIII, Issue 28992, 5 September 1959, Page 4

DISEASE-FREE BEES

Ulster Experiments ! On New Strain Beekeepers throughout the United Kingdom and other countries are watching with lively interest an experiment which is in progress in Ulster, where an attempt is being made to over-! come the dreaded accarine disease ■ by the breeding and distribution, of an accarine-resistant strain.' The disease has taken a heavy j toll of bees since it made its appearance in Ulster earlier this century. The experiment is being carried out by the Ulster Ministry of Agriculture, which is the first Government department to embark on such a venture. The first, step in the Ministry’s programme' was the importation of two queen bees from a Buckfast Abbey! (Devonshire) strain which, it is believed, is resistant to the dis-i ease, though some experts are sceptical of this claim. In the comparative isolation of' Tardee Forest, young virgin l queens (the progeny of those! which were imported) have been mated with drones from the same pure strain and it is hoped to produce 25 fertile queens of this breed for distribution to selected beekeepers this year.

Next year, if things go according to plan, there should be 50 queens for distribution and in 1961 150 are hoped for. Thereafter about 250 queens of this pure strain will be available each year. It will be some time before the results are known but, if it is successful, a big step forward will have been taken.