James Kilty writes "The point is that treating uniformly rather then as needed hides good quality. If this good quality was added to the set of criteria then surely the bees would get better. Animal and plant breeders do it. The best of the best are also very gentle. In your case, if all are gentle, then further selection would be a bonus. If not, then what do you do? Requeen?" I requeen for gentleness, but if I could spend 2 dollars and 10 minutes once a year to make my bees gentle, like I do to keep my bees mite free, I would. And yes, breeders do it, but very few commerical farmers. It will be nice if you can breed a strain of bees that are productive, disease resistant, mite resistent and gentle. I don't have the resources or knowledge though. Regards Tim :::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::: -- Visit www.honeybeeworld.com/BEE-L for rules, FAQ and other info --- ::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::::