96 



IRISH GARDENING. 



specially encourag-es the greater cultivation of this 

 valuable crop. Autumn and winter broccoli may be 

 planted in lines about two feet apart, with two feet 

 from plant to plant, but spring- bi'occoli in strong land 

 requires about two and a half feet every way. At this 

 season cauliflowers like a cool, parti)- shaded site, as 

 between peas or scarlet runners, not too close in the 

 lines, and they respond to rich feeding and manure 

 w iter applications. Brussels sprouts ought not to be 

 delaved before being planted, as they require a long 

 season of growtii even for the main crop. Drimihead 

 savo}' may be planted for early supplies, allowing two 

 and a half feet every way between 



In land that contains little or no lime the cultivation 

 of the cabbage tribe is troublesome, owing to it being 

 subject to the attacks of the fungoid disease called 

 "finger and toe." Rotation of crops in such a case 

 must be strictly followed, and the free use of lime in 

 the cultivation of the land, and make sure that the 

 plants have been grown in healtln' land. 



The Herbaceous Border. 



By Frank Hldson. 



PLANT out dahlia tubers, stocks, asters, and other 

 half-hardy annuals. Keep them shaded and 

 watered until they get established. Thin out all 

 clumps of annuals sown in the border, according to 

 habit or height, .\fter the summer bedding is done 

 there will be a lot of plants left over; these can be put into 

 vacant spaces, and will give a good effect. 



As soon as seedlings of biennial and pereimi.il plants 

 have made their rough leaf prepare nursery beds, trans- 

 plant them at a distance from four to six inches apart, so 

 that in the autumn each plant can be lifted with a ball of 

 soil. Keep the Dutch hoe working to keep lIowu 

 weeds. 



Bees. 



By T. Maguire, The Orchard, Enniskillen. 



UP to the time of writing (15th May) the season has 

 been exceptionally favoiu'able for the bees. 

 Stocks are very strong all round, and if only the 

 proper weather comes at the proper time a record crop 

 ought to be realised. Swarming will be early this year 

 if the weather be at all favourable for the next fort- 

 night, and sections have al.eady been put on in many 

 places, as there has been quite a glut of early honey. 

 Dandelion was yielding heavily during the recent hot 

 spell, and the strong smell of the freshly gathered 

 nectar from the hives in the evening alarmed some 

 people, who fancied they had foul brood. Dandelion 

 honey seems to be very rank stuff, and sycamore, 

 which is yielding just now, is also very strong- 

 flavoured. Practically no feeding has been required so 

 far, and it looks as if none would be required, though 

 of course a bad fortnight would soon clear out most of 

 the honey gathered. 



When a stock swarms and increase is required, the 

 simplest and best plan is to hive the swarm on the old 

 stand, giving it the new hive, with full sheets of wired 

 foundation, and putting the supers with the bees therein 



on top. The (^Id hive containing the brood combs 

 should be removed to a new stand, cutting out all the 

 queen cells except a couple of the best looking ones. 

 Perhaps one of the young queens may have hatched 

 out, as sometimes happens, before the swarm leaves. 

 In that case remove all the queen cells, first making 

 sure the young queen is all right. If several queens 

 are required for re-queening purposes, the old stock 

 ni.ay be broken into three nuclei, giving at least one 

 good queen cell to each, one frame of honej', and one 

 of brood. Should all the frames be left in one hive it 

 will work up into a strong stock later on, and may 

 require a super when the young brood has hatched out. 

 If it is not desired to increase, a queen can be reared 

 behind the dummy, giving a back entrance. Three 

 frames will be sufficient for the back nucleus, and a 

 strip of excluder should be placed over them to prevent 

 the young queen mixing with the main stock. Care 

 should also be taken that the dummy is not too short, 

 so as to allow bees to pass underneath it. Dummies 

 should be made of two pieces, one with the grain across, 

 the other with the grain up and down, nailed together. 

 Such a dummy can neither warp nor shorten. After 

 the voung queen has begun to lay and has been found 

 all right, the old queen can be removed, and her 

 successor introduced by merely lifting the dummy and 

 placing it behind. It takes a 13-frame hive to work 

 this plan comfortably, but no one should buy a hive of 

 smaller size. I find it very convenient to have the 

 hives take tivo dummies along with the 13 frames. 

 One of the dvmimies can be lifted out when manipulating 

 tlie back nucleus, leaving plenty of room. These back 

 nuclei (and in fact all nuclei) should never be allowed 

 to run short of stores. If they require feeding a frame 

 of honey may be exchanged for one of their empty 

 frames. If fed with syrup, they must be detached from 

 the main colonv in the supers by putting a piece of 

 canvas between, otherwise the main colony will rob 

 them. 



Supering must be carefully attended to. The first 

 supers are already on, in many cases. They should be 

 put on when the stock has become crowded up and 

 honey is being stored in the top of the brood combs, 

 the cells being newly lengthened out for the purpose. 

 The second and subsequent supers sometimes require 

 more judgment i[i putting on. If honey is coming 

 in quantity and the weather very hot, the second super 

 should be put on when the combs of the first are drawn 

 out and honey beginning to be stored in them. Under 

 the same conditions the third super is required about 

 the time the first is full and beginning to be sealed, but 

 no hard and fast rule can be laid down. If supering be 

 overdone the sections will be badly filled and take a 

 long time in sealing. If not done in time the brojd 

 nest will get jammed up with honey, the queen will be 

 flooded out, and sulking, loafing, and swarming will 

 t.ikc the place of honey gathering. 



"Thicri-; are untold possibilities both of pleasure and 

 profit in the smallest kitchen garden, and our greatest 

 need at present is to learn how to make the most of 

 space, so that each foot of ground may be constantly 

 occupied." — C. Thonger. 



