164 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ February 15, 187-2. 



If I had eai'ried out my plan tlio autumu-given sjTup woh1<1 

 have been deposited in the middle combs, and mj' stock have 

 been saved. I should much esteem youi' reconsideration of 

 this matter, and Mr. Lowe and " B. & W." perhaps would also 

 favour me with their opinion. 



The question is. Would the bees in a supered colony prefer 

 to breed or to store honey in the end combs of the stock hive? 



I should like to mention a curious incident that happened to 

 me last season. I had in my apiary a colony of black bees, the 

 queeu of which had been killed for the purpose of adding a 

 Liguriau that I had bred in a nucleus ; upon opening it to take 

 her out I found the bees ill-treating her. I dispersed them, and 

 was about to take hold of her when she suddenly took wing, and 

 I had the mortification of seeing my queen, after making a few 

 circles in the aii', fly clean away. I closed the nucleus and 

 watched till dark, but saw nothing more of her. Judge, then, 

 of my surprise when, upon opening my black stock the next 

 afternoon, I found my queen comfortably settled in the very 

 hive I had intended to join her to ! Although there were ten 

 others aU in a row, she had selected the only one of the num- 

 ber that had no queen. Accident or sagacity, do you think ? — 

 The Bee-hive. 



OUR LETTER BOX. 



Books (A, Atkim). — Eaton's volume is out of print. 



French and German Periodicals (M. Henderson).— V^g know of none 

 such as you mention. 



DcNDEE Poultry Show.— The address of Mr. J. Stuart, who won the first 

 prize and cup for Brahma chickens, is Thistlebank, Helensburgh, not Scour- 

 inghum, as printedlast week. 



Dublin Pigeon Show {Bfporter). — "We cannot admit replies to the state- 

 ments in a contemporaiy. {N. B. C. .?.). — The name cannot be given, nor can 

 we insert any more notes on the subject. 



Promoting Laying (J. S.). — Your communication confirms us in our olJ 

 opinion, that good moderate feeding is all that is necessary for laying fowls. 

 Kie green food has much to do with it. We are very infants in the use of it 

 compared with our neighbours on the Continent. We [,tow backward turnips 

 on purpose to give the greens to our poultry and Pheasants, and they like it 

 in preference to anything. 



Roosts for Bhahmas [A. B. G.).— Our Brahma perches ai-e made of fii- 

 poles 14 inches in diameter, sawn in half, and fastened the round side upper- 

 most. They are 20 inches from the ground. Most of the fowls roost on them, 

 but some prefer the ground, and to prevent that we place some old roots of 

 trees in the house. The only objection to these last is, they take consider- 

 able time to clean eveiy m ming. The birds prefer pexxhes with the bark 

 on them. 



Moving a Broody Hen (F. T. W.). — There is always difHctdty in moving 

 a broody hen unless much care is taken. She should be moved in a very low 

 dai-k basket with plenty of soft straw, that she may keep very warm. Put her 

 in a low basket ivith 4 or 5 inches of soft straw under her, place her on some 

 false eggs, and tie her down. Put her in a dark place. If she intends to sit, 

 she will when the basket is opened give unmistakeahle tokens by grunting 

 and growling ; If she does not, she will at once fly out and leave her eggs. If 

 she shows a disposition to sit close, leave her on the dumb eggs (worthless 

 ones if you have no artificial ones) for a day or two, and then put good eggs 

 under her, but she must he always tied-in. 



Addled Eggs (GrassendaU). — The cock being with the bens a week before 

 the e:;;gs were saved for sitting was long enough, but at the season of the year 

 when the eggs were laid cocks are not attentive to all the hens, especially if 

 the latter are numerous, and those you mention were certainly not impreg- 

 nated. The Andalusians are quite distinct from the Minorcas. A slaty blue, 

 with dark hackle in the cocks, is their colour. They are not uncommon. 



Wounded Comb (G. L.~P.). — If you intend to exhibit the bird you must 

 not interfere with his comb, except to heal it, but you must keep it upright, 

 which may be done with straps of adhesive plaister. If you have no inten- 

 tion of exhibiting you may remove the piece that hangs down, but we should 

 try to save it. 



Brahma Hen's Abdomen Swollen (J. W. T.). — Your poultiy diet will 

 make the fowls fat, and induce constipation, esx)ecially as you do not mention 

 green food. Very often the appearance you mention is caused by hard ftecal 

 matter. Cut away the feathers to which it adheres, or soften them with hot 

 water, and give her a dessert- spoonful of castor oil. If it be a tumour on the 

 outside the hen's body, it can be easily removed if it be an ordinary one. 

 Make a cruciform opening the size of the tumour, and press it at the base, a 

 round hard cheesy substance will be expelled. Wash the wound with warm 

 water, draw the hps of the wound together with a thread, and rub some sper- 

 maceti ointment on it. It will soon heal. Discontinue the potatoes and 

 pollai'd and the wheat. Give plenty of green meat, and some large sods of 

 growing grass, cut with plenty of earth to them. 



Duck Egg Abnormal (J. N.). — The e/g you mention, weighing 6{ ozs.i 

 with a perfect egg within it, is a curiosity. The double-yolked egg laid after- 

 wards is proof that for the time the laying organs ai-e out of order. 



Feather-eating Brahmas (S. S.). — Some breeds are addicted to the 

 abominable practice you complain of, but we have never found it in Brahmas. 

 Discontinue the beer and the kitchen scraps. On the days of confinement 

 give green food plentifully, and watch for the worst offender; remove bim or 

 her. You will he imahle to stop it while the bare spots remain, especially if 

 they are raw; and as Brahmas do not suffer from confinement, we advise you 

 to take all the birds that have suffered and shut them up sintrly till the 

 feathers are grown. They have done it for lack of something, and in a short 

 time they will forget it. 



Dark and Light Brahmas (AUpirdtis). — We ai 

 ence in the laying of Light and Dark Brahmas, 

 We beUeve some of the imported Light Brahmas 

 ones we see commonly. We cannot do better that 



ing columns, ad\'ising you to choose from the names that are most commonly 

 found among the successful exhibitors in the classes you mention. 



Brahma Stock (Just Commencing). — There is no objection to yoiu: Brahma 

 cock having a speckled breast. The best birds we ever had had them. The 

 vulture-hocked hen is a much more serious matter, and there is every pro- 

 bability her chickens will have the same faidt. She would, probably, be dis- 

 qualified in competition with others not vultui-e-hocked. 



B.UIBS AT WoLTERH-iMPTON. — " CuHoui " wishcs to know to whom the 

 first-prize pen belonged. 



Canaries {R. K).— Write to W. A. Blaiston, Esq., 22, Norfolk Street, 

 Sunderland. 



Prairie Birds iA Constant It^ader).~-Vi'e beUeve the idea that they are 

 sometimes poisonous on account of a herb they have eaten, is totally ground- 

 less. 



e not aware of any differ- 

 >r in the size of the eggs. 

 axe heavier than the Dark 

 . refer you to our advertis- 



METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS, 



Camden Square, London. 



Lat. 51° 32' 40" N. ; Long. 0= 8' 0" W. ; Altitude 111 feet. 



REMARKS. 

 7th. — Bright and dry in the morning, and so continued till after 5 p.m.; a^ 



6.45 rain commenced, and was followed by a wet evening. 

 8th. — Rather damp morning, but beautiful day, dry and warm with fine sun- 

 set, though rather hazy afterwai-ds. 

 9th. — A very fiie day, dry, bright, and warm. 

 10th, — Fine all day, pleasant air, and starlit night. 



11th. — Rather dull in morning, fair all day, but not quite as bright as the pre- 

 ceding day. 

 12th.— Fine morning, but getting more and more duU after noon ; rain between 



7 and 8 p.m., which continued for some time. 

 13th.— Dull in early morning, but clearing off before 9 a.m., bright sunny day, 

 but rather cold ; rain after midnight. 

 With genei-ally finer weather, the range of temperature has naturally con- 

 siderably exceeded that of previous weeks ; the mean range in shade has in- 

 creased from 8.0- to 13.8-, and that of the exposed thermometers from 23.6"' 

 to 41.6\~G. J. Si-MONS. 



COVENT GARDEN MARKET.— Febrcart 14. 

 A steady regular demand has characterised the transactions of the week, 

 and a continuous supply enables all parties to be sei-ved. Continental 

 supplies are well kept up and ai'e very useful; from the Azores there has beeit 

 a good freight of Pines again, and some good Bananas. Hothouse Grapes 

 comprise Gros Guillaume, Black Hamburgh, Lady Downe's, and Trebbiano, 

 the latter, however, not first-rate, andunsaleable'from its brown colour. First- 

 class Regent Potatoes obtain a better price; in all other kinds the trade 1& 

 hea^T. 



FRUIT. 



Apples isieve 2 



Apricots doz. 



Cherries lb. 



Chestnuts bushel 10 



Currants i sieve 



Black do. 



Figs, 



.doz 



6 10 Qu 



FUberta lb. 



Cobs lb. 6 10 Raapbi 



Grapes, Hothouse... 

 Gooseberries quart 



Melons 



Mulberries. 



Nectarines aoz. u 



Oranges ^100 4 



Peara, ki tchen doz, 2 



dessert doz. 3 



> Apples 



each OtoO 



Lemons ^100 7 10 



lb. 



Walnuts bushel 10 



ditto ^100 1 



doz. & 

 ..lb. O 



VEGETABLES. 



.Kidney per lOi) 3 5 



Broad bufihel 



Beet, Red doz. 



Broccoli bundle 



Brussels Sprouts. .i sieve 



Cabbage doz. 



Capsicums ^100 



Carrots bunch 



Cauliflower doz. 



Celery bundle 



Coleworts.. doz. buncbes 

 Cucumbers each 



pickling doz. 



Endive doz. 



Fennel bunch 



Garlic lb. 



Herbs bunch 



Uorseradiuh bundle 



Leeks bunch 



Lettuce doz. 



Mushrooms pottle 



Mustard & Cress, .punnet 



16 9 I Parsley per doz. bunches 3 4 



10 16 1 Parsnips doz. 9 18 



I Peas quart 



6 1 Pcta 



KidQ 



. bushel 2 S 



Fadi.'ihes.. doz. bunches 



Rhubarb bundle 



Savoys doz. 



Sea-sale basket 1 



Shallots lb. 



Spinach bushel 3 



Tomatoes doz. 



Turnips bunch 



Vegetable Marrows. .doz. 



