Bob & Liz wrote:

> Burning is the method of choice and the method I practice myself but I must
> remind all beekeepers that burning alone did not work in the U.S. in the
> 1940's when U.S. beekeeping was almost lost to American foulbrood.

I believe that the reason burning did not work in the U.S. was that it was not
practiced universally.  We in this country have always tended to be resistant to
any legal dictum.  I have read many accounts by bee inspectors of coming across
unknown apiaries loaded with AFB.  All it takes to make burning ineffective is
for a significant minority of beekeepers to be either ignorant or uncooperative.

> I have been at bee meetings when the smell of AFB hit my nose.
> When I looked around a new beekeeper was holding up a frame wanting to know
> why all his bees were dead.  Smell & perforated cells.

This may be true, but illustrates the ignorance of the beekeeper.  By the time
you have AFB so bad you can smell it from a distance you have had plenty of time
to recognize it earlier.  These beekeepers mentioned would not have killed their
bees, burned their frames, and sterilized anyother equipment earlier.  They did
not even know what was going on.

Tom


--
"Test everything.  Hold on to the good."  (1 Thessalonians 5:21)

Tom Elliott
Chugiak,  Alaska
U.S.A.
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