The American Bee Journal, Vol. VI., Number 5, November 1870Various
Science
The American Bee Journal, Vol. VI., Number 5, November 1870
Various
Bee culture -- Periodicals
This was about the 1st of August, and again hyposulphite of soda was
selected for the trial; and from the first application I have had the
disease under control. Three days ago I examined the three colonies
thoroughly, and found no new cells diseased in the two which had been
the least affected; and in the almost hopelessly diseased one (as much
diseased, in fact, as any of those that I destroyed,) an entire brood
had been raised, with not over fifty or sixty diseased and perforated
cells with dead larvæ remaining, most on one comb, and nearly all the
cells contained a new supply of eggs; this colony is certainly
convalescent, and I think now, from the recent and second application of
the hyposulphite of soda, is entirely cured. Still, I should not be
surprised to find two or three, or even more, perforated cells after
this second crop of brood has hatched, as the whole hive, honey, and
comb, had been for so long a time so thoroughly saturated with the
disease, and at least two-thirds of the cells had, before the _medicine_
was used, been filled with putrid larvæ. If so, I shall treat it to a
third dose.
Now, Mr. Editor, as it is frequently of as much practical importance to
tell how to administer a remedy, as it is to know its name, I will ask
your indulgence a little longer, hoping that others may improve upon my
remedy or at least test it, if they are so unfortunately ignorant and
careless as I was, in bringing “the wolf home to the fold.”
The solution of hyposulphite of soda which I used, was one ounce to half
a pint of rain water. With this I thoroughly washed out every diseased
cell with an atomizer, after opening the cap; also spraying over the
whole of the combs and the inside of the hive. The instrument I use is a
spray producer, invented by Dr. Bigelow of Boston, and sold by Codman &
Shurtleff of that city. There are two small metallic tubes, a few inches
long, soldered together; and by placing the point of exit of the spray
at the lower part of the cell, the whole of the contents of the cell is
instantly blown out upon the metallic tubes. With a very little practice
there is no necessity for polluting the comb with the putrid matter.
Place the comb perfectly upright or a little leaned towards you, and
there is no difficulty; yet, if a drop should happen to run down the
comb, it would do no harm, but had better be carefully absorbed with a
piece of old dry cotton cloth. I quite frequently do this with the bees
on the comb, as it does them no harm, to say the least, to get well
covered with the vapor.
It is not at all injurious to the larvæ, after they are two or three
days old, though it may be before that time, as I have noticed that
after using the hyposulphite where there are eggs and very young larvæ,
the next day the cells are perfectly clean.
There are many interesting points which have come up during my summer’s
fight, which I would speak of; but I have already gone beyond all
reasonable bounds in this communication.
Public-domain text, read in full here on John Shaqi.
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