BEEKEEPING.

Taranaki Herald, Volume LXVII, Issue 16607, 3 December 1919, Page 4

BEEKEEPING.

(By “Tainui.”)

j FOUL BROOD. ! ! No one seems to care to tell us or say much about the origin of this di- ■ sense. A great deal has been done by science in .showing what it is and how to cure it, hut to the thinker the ques- ■ • tion of its origin seems to bo of great importance. A few years ago I sag- ■ gested that old, dirty combs were partly responsible and suggested a method of keeping the hive full of new combs not : more than three years old, two years for I preference. The idea was suggested to Ime by Mr. W t I’. Nicoll, of New Plymouth. The method is, to remove the old centre combs where the main part ; of the brood is reared, say two every : ; year after the third year, and put in ; • full sheets of foundation in their place, • j thus inducing the bees to build new I worker combs each year. The reason ; ■ why I think old combs are partly re- : ; sponsible is, first, that they must be ; | very dirty because each bee hatched. ; ; out has spun a cocoon as a covering 1 and left it in the cell. A certain : amount of waste animal matter must iof necessity be left in with it. This ' aggregation takes place rapidly as the | cells are rarely empty for long, and j several successive broods are hatched ! each year; second, I have noticed for many. years that wherever bees take possession of a house or large tree that • j in the course of a few years they build | new combs if they have r/jom, if not j they either die or swarm out. lam | aware that men with o wide experience ! say that combs are good for 10 or 15 | years, perhaps so for honey, but I do j not think so for brood purposes; third, i my experience during the past two years : has proved beyond a doubt that in every district or apiary where the disease is virulent, the hives show neglect. Many bad eases occur where they appear to bo in isolated districts, but I ■ am aware that the isolation may bo only , comparative, because we have yet runny colonies of bees in trees in districts | where the casual inspectoral visit may ■ fail to locate them ; further, three years • ago I got a swarm of Italian bees at , the Central Fire Station. How far had ’they eomo? So far as I could find out j no one within about 10 miles had any I Italian one must bo careful in 1 making any definite statement re the . •question of isolation. We know defi- ; 1 nicely ..that, once, started, it is very j i infectious. So is typhoid fever, but j we know that neglect of ordinary per--1 sonal cleanliness in ourselves and home : will breed it quickly, and then infection : in dirty homes will soon become general. Is it not possible that herein lies the foul brood trouble? Think, beekeepers, and try the experiment of keeping your , bees clean; lift the hivea twice a year : and clean the bottom boards occasionally, lift the covers and give. tho moth ; grubs a sorting up out- of the mat, 1 and experiment with a new frame of foundation in the centre of tho brood , and see next season whether or not ‘ the -queen uses it more'fully than' the | old combs, and please be good enough to let me know the result in order that , I may pass it on to my readers. I call it- the “Nicoll” method of re-comh- ; ing the hives. j DEMONSTRATION. | A-very fine day, a good lot of bees, { a large attendance, the-senior apiarist, i- ' and a worthy host and hostess. What ; more can a bcoman wish for when out for a holiday and instruction in his ; i hobby P ; ; Mr. Jacobsen was very happy in his i ; preliminary address. Needless to say ! j that the actual handling of the bees j j was instructive, and 1 noticed that his j ; remarks and illustrations were -listened ' to and watched by the visitors (the i bulk .of whom were, beginners) with a keenness that must have been very | gratifying to the demonstrator. Mr. , Beal again acted as assistant, and was ’ very much questioned at the close of j th.o demonstration “Show mo a queen j and then I will know one when I see her and will not bo buying a drone or worker, thinking I have a queen.” Thus an old gentleman of some 70 sum- : mers. So tho lady “bceraan” of the j party opened a hive and "ratified the j old gentleman by letting him sec the , ‘ royal lady, a beautiful hybrid. Votes 1 ! of" thanks s to Mr. Jacobsen and tho j • worthy host and hostess ended our i Windsor Road demonstration. j j The next demonstration will bo on ■ ‘Thursday, December 11, at Mr. M. ’ ■Marsh’s apiary, Egmont Village, ..at . 2 p.m. ' . SUPERING. 1 ■ ' Supers should now be put on, even if the bees have not yet quite filled the hive. It gives the bees plenty of. room and helps to check swarming". EXTRACTOR. I I have the address of an owner of an extractor which she wishes to sell, hav- | ing married and left the district, and ! shall bo glad to hoar of anyone wanting : it. j