Here's a twist. According to the article, a physician in Buenos Aires, Argentina applied sugar to an abdominal wound and was surprised at the results. A Mississippi orthopedic surgeon successfully treats skin ulcers by pouring granulated sugar on them. He also has seen it work on lacerations, burns, ulcers, amputations, surgical wounds, gunshot wounds and compound fractures. Finally, besides the reduced infection rate, the treatment also results in fewer and smaller scars.
More evidence now corroborates the notion that old combs can lead to bee management problems.
Levels of disease ranged from negligible to over 6 percent, with the lowest level on new comb or super comb, the highest associated with old brood comb. Aggressively renovating the bee nest by systematically removing old comb appears to be a management technique with promise. Again, this should not be done all at once, but slowly and regularly over a period of time. Remember, however, that rooting out old comb is only one variable in the chalkbrood enigma. Recently, several beekeepers have indignantly contacted me about pesticides used in citrus groves, and the effects on their bees.