38' 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



1 July 10, 1873. 



should be inclined to take the earliest date you have named, 

 allowing for all sorts of casualties. We have known swarms issue 

 before any eggs had been laid in royal cells ; we became aware 

 of this by subsequent examination, as we found ''artificially" 

 formed cells, and only such in out-of-the-way parts of the comb.] 



OUR LETTER BOX. 



Boston Show. — Mr. "W. 'WoodhDnse informs ns that he took the first prize 

 iu " Tumblers, any variety," with a Blue Boldliead cnek. 



Gapes {Brahma). — The plan you mention is in all old poultry-hooks. It is 

 a difficult operation and very uncertain. 



Exhibition Pens (F. B.).— We do not think you can do better than use 

 51 r. Turner's pens (of Sheffield). They are very good, and he sends an ex- 

 perienced man with them, who is very useful. You can put yourself in com- 

 munication with him. We know no one iu Bristol. You want troughs only 

 for water. Put sand or gravel on the floor, and throw the food upon it. 

 (B. B.).— We know no place where you can hii-e pons, except of Mr. Turner, 

 of Sheffield. We think well of them, seeing them often. 



Light Brahma Chickens (R. E. H.). — We give our chickens no Indian 

 com. It is not good for gi-owing chickens. It does not make bone. We 

 should at once discard pea and Indian cornraeal. Ground oats ai'e iu use 

 throughout Sussex, and we have boujiiht them of Mesers. Maish, Market 

 Place, Kingston, Surrey. Trybarleymeal, and mix some diippiiig withit. Give 

 them meat scraps from the table, and curd made of new milk turned with 

 rennet, and dried by two persons turning a cloth opposite ways. 



Turkey Poults Sickly [J. P.).— Are your Turkey poults at liberty? If 

 they are, the probability is the hen drags them about throufjh dewy or frosty 

 gra-^s till they get chilled. Shut the hen up in a rip — an empty china crate is 

 a good one, with a thatched hurdle to keep off the wind, and anotlier on the 

 top to keep off the rain. If as convenient or more so, you may shut them in 

 any outhouse, but they should not he let out till the sun is well up, and the 

 glass dry. Give them some ants' eg^'s if you can. Feed them ou oatmeal 

 with which a small quantity of pea and beanmeal is mixed, and chop-up some 

 onion-tops with it. You may safely give the sickly ones a pill of camiihor 

 the size of a garden pea. 



Cochins' I-'eathers Coming Lighter (X Y. ZX—Yon cannot prevent the 

 hens from moulting light. You are not safe in interfering with the moulting 

 process. Let Nature haw her way, and all bo well. 



*' From Nature's chain, whatever link you strike. 

 Tenth, or ten-thousandth, breaks the chain alike." 

 Ground Oats (H.J. X,.).— The sample you sent is of crashed oats. Ground 

 oats are as much a powder as is barleymeal. The only person whom we know 

 to prepare gi-ound oats is Mr. Agate. Slaugham Mills, "near Crawley, Susses. 



Canker in Pigeons {A Subscriber).— A. great authority stated in this 

 Journal, that of all things do not attempt to cut the canker out, but dress the 

 place twice a- day with a solution of zinc or copper (use the crystallised), about 

 half an ounce to a quart of water. Merely wash the bird's mouth, or wherever 

 the sore is, with a dight feather. The lotion must not be too freely used in 

 the mouth, a very little is quite sufficient. 



Fleas in a Pigeon Loft {Bird'^ £;/f ).— You have, doubtless, limewashed 

 the place thoroughly. Allow no dust, orfeatliers. or dirt to lie about. Clean 

 out the corners. The Persian insect powder would do good. 



LiGORiANS f.7. Mackenzie). — We have no reason to think that you -will be 

 dealt with unfairly. 



Bees Profitable (Rev. 8. A. Brenan).~'Bee3 are profitable, as we can 

 teetify from experience, and cent, per cent, is quite within the mark. But 

 whera to find a market for honey gathered in Co. Tyrone we cannot state. 

 You are too far fr(?m the great market, of London to get the high prices which 

 are obtained there, 2.*. or 2^. 6d. per lb. But if you got no more than Is., the 

 profit would still be cent, per cent, ou a well-managed apiary. Have you no 

 market in Dublin ? 



Bees near Cardiff <Bird'A Eye).— The suburbs of Cardiff ought to he no 

 bar to your success in bee-keeping. You must bo sufficiently near the open 

 fields to have a fair chance. They have succeeded even in Holhorn. We fear 

 it is not generally a good honey year ; hut the flowers are late, especially the 

 white clover, which is a grand honoy-producing flower. There may still be 

 three splendid weeks in July. But it is impossible to predict. The secret of 

 success in bee-keeping is to have strong stocks and swarms;, and to give your 

 bees plenty of room. What sort of hives are you using ? and what supers, if 

 any ? Ti'J we know this we cannot advise when or how to " take it off." 



Bees Clustering-out (C. M. Major).— It i« almost too late in the season 

 for swarms to do much good, or we should advise your driving out all the bees 

 of your cottage hive into an empty butt, which is to be left on the old stand. 

 The Neighbour's hive should then be moved to another part of the garden, 

 and the hive from which the bees have just been expelled be put in its place. 

 The bees returning will, with those rapidly hoiuLr hatched out of the cells, 

 make a good stock, and will raise royal cells. Taking the advanced state of 

 the season into consideration, we should be inclined to recommend either 

 raising the hive on a nadir or eke, or cutting out a 4-inch hole in the top, 

 fixing on, with a ring of soft putty, a hoard of suitable size, clamped at the 

 ends to prevent warping, with a 3-inch hole, and giving the bees a super. The 

 bees outlying would soon go up, and even if they do not fill the super before 

 winter, some combs may be built which will be useful the following season. 

 Bees clustering out in this way without swarming, proves that the hive is 

 strong enough to throw off a sw^rm, but for some reason or other the queen is 

 not ready or disposed to go. In such cases the bee-master should prevent 

 such waste of valuable bee time, by compelling them to swarm as soon as they 

 begin to cluster out. You will need no personal advice if you have any of the 

 works published relative to bee-keeping. 



Various i Novice).— Qneries 1, 2, 3, 4, White deal will do for hive-makiuT, 

 but better is rod deal. Screws are the best fasteners. Bees do not like ziuc 

 used as a plate such as you have in \-iew. 5, Can any of our readers say where 

 machines for the manufactory of straw hives can be procured ? Or will any- 

 one kindly furnish a drawing of such ? We think you might make one easily 

 with a little ingenuity to suit the size and shape you wish to give your hives. 

 bf No. 7. No. 8, 9, Dr. Dunbar has been dead many years ; so has Mr. Gold- 

 mg. We know not where their books can he bought. Can any of our readers 

 tell us? 10, Dr. Bevan's original work is now out of print. It has been 

 recently c<.hted by Major Mnnn. but we question if our old friend Dr. Bevan 

 would own t he work now published in his name, so many have been the altera- 

 tions introduced, and the liberties taken with his almost exhaustive treatise. 

 11, We do notknow Dr. Mackenzie's work on bees. 12, Perhaps Mr. Petti'Tew 

 an ten us " what are the diraensions of the largest straw hive that a good 



queen would be capable of filling in a good season." We have only tried such 

 a hive as would hold a bushel of wheat or a little more. 



Bees Clustering-out but not Swarming {J. Badgcry). — Yon will find 

 an answer to another correspondent which meets your case. 



Cat {P. M. R.). — We could not publish an answer. Ask any veterinary 

 surgeon. 



Newfoundland Puppy (Can^ne^. — The symptoms are some of those which 

 characterise the distemper. Give five grains of blue pill, and five hours after a 

 table-spoonful of castor oil. Foment the eyes by means of a sponge with a 

 decoction of poppies. This disease has too many complications for us to 

 advise f ui-ther. If the dog declines in strength he will require tonics, but consult 

 a veterinary surgeon, or buy Merrick's little book ou '* House Dogs and Sport- 

 ing Dogs," and follow his directions. 



Silk froji Silkworms. — " E. B. B." asks, How should the silk be wound 

 to make it available for use ? There must be an immense amount of wasted 

 silk among the thousands of silkworms kept by young people, and many 

 would be glad to make the amusement a useful one. When suitably wound 

 where would it be disposable ? 



[We shall be much obliged by information in reply to the above.] 



METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS, 



Camden Square, London. 



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



REMARKS. 

 2nd. — Rather cloudy morning and evening, but very fine in the middle of the 



day. 

 ord. Dull morning ; fine at noon, clouding over in three or four hours ; sharp 



shower at 8 p.m., then fine. 

 4th. — Thuuderstorm at 2 a.m., fine after; rather cloudy about noon, then fine, 



but two or three slight sprinkles of rain ; a fiue evening and night. 

 5th. — Showers in morning; fine afternoon, but still not summer-like. 

 6th, — Much rain in the night, but a lovely day after the morning. 

 7th. — A hf-autifnl summer day, and splendid moonlit night. 

 8th. — Much warmer, and a very fine day, though i-ather cloudy at night. 



Mean temperature much the same as previous weeks ; but the range some- 

 what greater, the maxima being higher and the minima lower. — G. J. 

 Symons. 



COVENT GARDEN MARKET.— July 9. 

 W^E have nothing fresh to report. 



Apples J sieve 



Apricots doz. 



C ii ferries I* box 



Chestnuts bushel 



Currants ^ sieve 



Black do. 



Figs doz. 



Filberts lb. 



Cobs Ih. 



Gnoseberrios qu.irt 



Grapes, hothouse lb. 



Lemons ^ 100 



Melons each 



Artichokes doz. 



Asparatius ^^ 100 



French 



Beans. Kidney ^100 



Beet, Red doz 



Broccoli bundle 



Cabbage doz. 



Capsicums 't*' ino 



Carrots bunch 



Cauliflower doz. 



Celery bundle 



Goleworts. . doz. bunches 

 Cucumbers each 



pickling doz. 



Endive doz. 



Fennel bunch 



(iarlic lb. 



Herbs bunch 



Horseradish bundle 



Leeks bunch 



Lettuce duz. 



POULTRY MARKET.— JuxY 9. 

 We have still a small supply, and the demand is quite up to the average. 

 These prices can no longer be depended upon. 



B. d. 8. d. 



Large Fowls 6 to 6 6 



S. nailer ditto fi G 6 



Chickens 3 3 G 



Goslings 7 7 6 



(ire'-n Geese 



Ducklings 3 G 4 



B. d. s. d 



Pheaaan's to 



Pirtridges 



Hares 



Rabbi'.s 15 16 



Wildditto 9 10 



Pigeons 9 10 



