> I normally agree with prolific Allen Dick but if he says that
> scorching with a propane torch to clean up
> old frames/boxes, etc. for any reason is futile,
> I DON'T agree, based upon my own many years of
> experience in apiology and discussions with other
> pertinent individals.
 
I've recently been reading historical material back into the first
part of the century related to AFB control - all the popular methods
of McEvoy, etc, as well as a lot of 'home grown' NZ methods of the
day.
 
Scorching of boxes was an accepted practice at one time in NZ but is
no longer allowed or considered effective.  As we do not feed
antibiotics to control/suppress/cure AFB, my reading of the history
is that it became abundantly apparent that scorching did not render
boxes safe to put on 'clean' hives.
 
I will qualify that with one comment from an old beekeeper that
scorching can be *very* effective, but only if you scorch both inside
and outside of the box, and make sure the scorching meets in the
middle...
 
Perhaps Dr Mark Goodwin, who has done extensive research related to
AFB infection and detection, would make some comments to the list?
 
  (\           Nick Wallingford
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