Ted Fischer wrote:

> ... I disagree with Aaron's last
> statement that TM does not cure AFB - it does.

OK, this is semantics.  I went to Webster's to look up "cure", which means "to
return to a state of health".  Oxytetracycline does not return a larva to a
state of health, it prevents the bacillus larvae (AFB) from growing in the
developing bee larva's midgut thereby keeping that larva in a state of health.
TM can "cure" a hive by preventing bacillus larvae from becoming endemic in
that hive.  Pre-TM treatment infected bee larva WILL die, but the overall
health of the hive can return to normal as the post-TM treatment new
generations of bee larvae remain healthy.  A sick hive CAN return to a state of
health.  But the presence of AFB in that hive is not removed, it is kept in
check.  Has the hive been "cured"?  Yes.  Is the hive "all better"?  No.
The point I was making is that TM will not wipe out forever outbreaks of AFB.
I wrote, "TM does work, it keeps AFB in check."  If you want to split hairs
over "cure", that's fine but it misses the point that once an operation starts
using TM as a cure or even as a prophelactic treatment for AFB, that operation
must continue with that treatment or be prepared to endure AFB outbreaks when
the treatment stops.  It's what Andy called the chemical "merry go around".
Once you get on, you stay on or PAY THE PRICE when you get off.

For the record, I dust my hives as a prophelactic treatment for AFB, following
label instructions, every spring (early March 1) and every fall (late October).
I have seen one occurance of AFB in one hive in the past decade.  I burned the
hive, burried the ashes.

Aaron Morris - agreeing that TM is an effective treatment for AFB