Many farmers remembered the first TBSV (Thai Sac Brood Virus)
epidemic, struck Jumla around 1983-1984 but may have started as early
as 1978, and some claimed that the recent epidemic [1996-97] was
equally as devastating. The main symptoms of brood disease observed by
farmers were: slowed activity at the hive entrance; larvae (likened to
cooked rice grains) being carried out of the hive; the bees becoming
black and more defensive (due to few young bees surviving); sour or
bad smells coming from the hive; and inactive bees clinging to each
other inside hives. Perceptions as to the cause of the disease varied.
Some farmers blamed infection on 'pollution' of hives from the touch
of menstruating women or 'untouchable' (occupational caste) people!
Others associated it with the introduction of apples and peaches into
the district by the District Agricultural Development Office. This may
be because the first TSBV epidemic coincided with the introduction of
apples but it may also be associated with the introduction of
pesticide usage that accompanied agricultural developments. Others
directly blamed insecticides.

Information gathered suggested that indigenous hive baiting practices
might also be responsible for rapid spread of brood diseases in
traditional hives. Combs from absconded or dead colonies traditionally
are kept aside for production of hive bait locally known as "ghosard".
This is made from old combs beaten together in a pestle and mortar
with honey and certain scented herbs. Combs with dried scales of dead
larvae infected with TSBV and EFB become mixed into this mixture and
probably inoculate the disease organism into baited hives. Extension
workers tried to persuade farmers to dry-fry the combs thoroughly
before they mixed them into 'ghosard' and to use combs from
non-infected colonies in preference to combs from dead or absconded
colonies. By providing training in beeswax processing to make candles
and medicinal skin creams, and by buying beeswax from farmers for a
processing and value addition enterprise in Jumla bazaar, combs from
infected colonies were put to use and removed as a source of
re-infection. Though farmers sold wax and used it to make creams and
candles after receiving training, few accepted the practice of
scorching inside their hives or of changing their method of making
'ghosard'.

Some farmers claimed that scorching their hives in the spring of 1998
caused a lack of swarms to be captured later in the season. They said
that the comb imprints from previous years attract swarms and that if
these are removed by scorching the smell of the hive becomes
unattractive to bees. It was impossible to tell whether the low levels
of occupation by swarms in 1998 was due to the scorching practice or
the decline in populations of wild bees as a result of the 1997
disease epidemic.

Indigenous treatment of bee disease mainly involved smoking diseased
colonies with Juniperus indica but various others herbs and organic
material were also listed as smoking material by some farmers. These
included:
	

fish eggs, Jurinea dolonmiaea ('Bhut khes'), wild sheep horn, roots of
a forest spinach known as 'ruga sag', Verbascum thapsus ('Gune
Pucchar'), rice husks;
	
Saussurea gossypiphora ('nau mukhi bhut khes'), lichens or fungi
locally known as 'dinkine cheau' and 'chuna jurro', a species locally
called 'Gokhal dhoop', and Juniperus indica ('dhoopy');
	
Swertia chirata (Pate Tito) / Swertia racemosa (Danthe Tito);
	
Chillies;
	
Aconite spp. (beek);
	
'Chuna mullo' probably another Aconite sp;
	
Tobacco.

The latter 4 smokes probably have a 'knock-out' effect on bees and
their parasites.

Feeding of bees with buckwheat and honey 'candy' in winter, applying a
concentrate of a red turnip locally known as 'koira' around the mouths
of hives, feeding very old honey and concentrates of peaches or forest
fruits of Pyrus pashia, and infusion of pine needles (Pinus
wallichiana) in sugar syrup, were said to be medicinal to bees.
Sprinkling cow urine onto hives with special herbs is said to cure
pollution from menstruating women!

-- 
Battling with bee brood disease in  Apis cerana in W. Nepal - Some findings
by Naomi M. Saville
http://www.beekeeping.com/articles/us/saville/brood_disease.htm

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