July 17.1873.1 



JOURNAL OF HORTIGULTUBE AND COTTAGE GAEDENER. 



55 



hours during the dry, they were invariably followed by cold 

 ■winds or wet weather. With the opening of April, my sixteen 

 stocks during propitious moments flew stroug. 



But what did I live to see ? All the paths of the garden, and 

 the ground around the hive, were covered with German bees, 

 yet no Italians were to be found among them. I then watched 

 the fly-holes. Oat of all the hives many bees flew, the Italians, 

 however, alone returning. It was a rarity for the German bees 

 to return to the hive. The natural result was, that the German 

 stocks were becoming weaker and weaker, while with the 

 Italians there was no diminution apparent; further, by the 

 end of April, the German bees had no brood, while the Italians 

 were rich in brood. May was like April. My German stocks 

 had become so weak I hat, except in the warm hours o' the day, 

 not a bee was to be seen. The Italians, on the contrary, increased 

 in strength from day to day, and by the end of May began build- 

 ing comb. Long before this I began to feed the German bees, 

 so as to keep them alive. On the" 10th of .Tune the raspberries 

 began to bloom. The weather becamn warmer. The Italians 

 began with their whole strength to gather from the raspberries. 

 The weak German stocks were able to gather little. On the 

 20th of June the .Vcacia began to bloom, but its blossoms were not 

 as rich this year in honey as they had been in former years, the 

 frost having destroyed fully one-half of the blossoms. The 

 Italians now developed daily a stronger flight as the young bees 

 made their appearance, .\fter eight days they ascended to the 

 surplus honey-rooms and built them half full of comb. The 

 German bees now only began to have large supplies of brood. 

 When on the 8th of July, the Linden began to blossom, and the 

 Italians were so strong that I began to expect them to swarm, 

 the German bees had also become stronger, and were labouring 

 rather industriously on the Linden ; yet the most of the honey 

 brought into the hive was used for feeding the young brood; 

 there was none stored of any account. With the end of the 

 Linden blossoms the harvest was practically over ; still the 

 German stocks continued to increase in numbers, so that by the 

 end of August they were over-populous. The Italians had at 

 that time filled all the honey-room with honey, about 30 lbs., 

 and in the brood- chambers there was a superabundance for 

 winter use. When at the end of August I inspected also the 

 German stands, I was astonished. All the stocks were in arrear, 

 so that in order to winter them I had to feed them strongly. 

 Had I only Italians, the year 1871 would have been for me a good 

 ordinary one, as four stocks of this species would have given me 

 a yield of 112 lbs. of honey. — [Bienenzeitung.) 



THE SILK FROM SILKWORMS. 

 To make it available for use, ten cocoons should be put in a 

 basin of warm water (this will not kill the chrysalis] ; the threads 

 from each can then be easily found, and should be twisted together 

 ond wound round a reel 3 feet in diameter; this will fit the 

 ■weaver's loom. The individual threads will easily cement to- 

 gether, for they are very gummy, and if wound in this way, 

 will scarcely ever break. A few years ago we had .5000 silk- 

 worms in this parish ; the school children wound the silk, and 

 Mr. Smith, I think, of Coventry, offered us 56.9. a-pouud for it. 

 We never got a pound weight, and so he did not have it ; but in 

 one of his letters he said it was far better than foreign silk. It 

 was shown at the Coventry Museum, and especially noticed in 

 the newspapers. Afterwards it was sent to France to dress the 

 wounds of the soldiers in the late war. — J. Shelswell. 



PREP-^RING WAX FOR MAKING WAX FLOWERS. 



The material or wax in its crude state is unfit for modelling 

 purposes : it requires to bo prepared as follows, that is, if the 

 modeller is desirous of preparing his own material, otiierwise 

 it may be purchased ready made for use at any artificial florist's. 



*' Procure some of the purest beeswax, and having first cut it 

 in pieces, place it in a vessel and dissolve by means of heat. 

 When dissolved, add Venice turpentine in the proportion of 

 2 ozs. to each pound of wax. The addition of the turpentine 

 renders it of a softer nature, and prevents it from cracking in 

 the mould, as it would be apt to do if used otherwise." 'The 

 modeller can " impart any colour to tlio dissolved wax by rub- 

 bing together in a vessel a small quantity of the particular colour 

 required, mixed with olive oil with a portion of the liquid wax, 

 until it gets hard by cooling, when it should he well stirred into 

 the body of the dissolved wax." The liquid is strained through 

 muslin to remove impurities, and is then fit for use. 



A mould of the fruit, Ac, desired to bo copied is next required. 

 This is generally made from plaster of Paris, and consists of 

 two, three, four, and even more separate pieces, according to 

 the form and size of the fruit to be modelled. It is obtained in 

 this way : — First construct a card form, somewhat like a collar 

 box, about 1 inch or so larger than the fruit to be copied. Then 

 mix with water such a quantity of plaster of Paris as will bo 

 of a moderate thickness ; pour just as much of this into tho 

 form as will allow the fruit, which has been previously olive- 

 oiled, to sink only half way in the plaster. Having allowed 



some time for it to get set, remove the paper and make a few 

 holes on and around the edge of the mould. 'Then scrape the edge 

 quite smooth, and re-oil the uncovered part of the fruit edge of 

 the mould, replace the form, and pour on the fruit as much 

 plaster as will be of an equal thickness to the first part of mould. 

 Let this also stand for some 'time, then take off tlie paper form 

 and the mould is complete. By giving the first half of mould 

 more or less " cup-Uke holes," the second part will receive a 

 similar number of projections, which, fitting into the cavities, 

 allow tho parts to be exactly placed together, and render the 

 mould more secure. 



Leaf moulds are made by giving the leaf (which should be first 

 made quite clean, and then oiled, and placed face-upwards on 

 a sheet of p.aper), first thin, then thicker, coatings of plaster, al- 

 lowing a little time for the first coat to become set before giving 

 it the second, and so on, until the mould has acqiured the re- 

 quisite thickness. The face of the leaf only should be covered 

 with the plaster. 



Having shown how to obtain the fruit and leaf moulds, I will 

 now describe the method of using them. Before doing so, how- 

 ever, I wish to observe that no moulds should be used before 

 they are thoroughly set or hardened, and that preparatory to 

 using the mould, it should be placed iu hot water for a few 

 minutes, and then carefully wiped dry with a soft cloth. Ou 

 casting, take one half of the mould in the left baud and pour in 

 the liquid wax so as to nearly fill the hollow ; then quickly place 

 on the other part, in such a way that the projections of the one 

 fit into the cavities of the other part of the mould. Hold both 

 parts tightly together, and geutly turn the mould in the hand so 

 that the wiix may be disposed on the inside evenly. Havmg 

 allowed some little time to elapse, place the mould iu hot water 

 for about two or three minutes, then take it out and separate the 

 parts carefully, and remove the fruit as gently as possible. 

 Should there be any roughness on the fruit, it can be easily re- 

 moved by rubbing it with a flannel dipped in turpentine. 



Wax leaves may be painted green by means of Prussian blue, 

 chrome, and burnt sienna, and polished, when necessary, by 

 means of a soft lirush. The stems of fruit are made from wire 

 covered with wax of the required colour. 



The characteristics of both fruit and leaves are mostly pro- 

 duced by the colouring and its various modes of application ; to 

 give rules for such would be but waste of time, and only tend to 

 mystify the reader. Practice and study of the works of Nature 

 alone will enable the reader to acquire any proficiency lu this 

 art. I may mention, however, by way of a guide, that most 

 fruits require a body tint according to the particular colour re- 

 quired, and that all colours must dry on the wax before any 

 decision can be pronounced as to the correctness of tint. It the 

 modeller always endeavours to copy Nature in all her parts, so 

 that each part, when taken conjointly shall resemble the whole, 

 he will not only achievebut deserve success.— Sulvan. — (Engluh 

 Mechanic and World of Science.) 



OUR LETTER BOX. 



Preserviso Egos for 'Wintee Use (S(. EdmumD.—Yoxi must preserve 

 your eaus by rnt'ing tbem in alalced lime in n pan, layer upon layer, till the 

 pan is full. You muat put them in fresh, ana they will keep so. It is the 

 Renerally received opinion that Ducks mnst have a depth of at least 1^2 inches 

 of water. Observation will show you we are riaht. and yours is, wo hehevo 

 a solitary case. The Rabbit is an uncommon case, but those who breed from 

 bouijht stock frequently meet with these sports. 



CoLODRS OF Crete'-C'EURS (/. .S.).— Cn-ve-Cffiurs should be qnite black. 

 Both cocks and hens Ket white feathers in their top-knots as they grow older, 

 but they are a sreat disadvantage in competition. White feathers cannot be 

 excnsed nut of the top-knot, and any other colour is apositive disqnaliftcation. 



Chii'KENS not EtTiNO. AND Ah.ino (/. W. P.).— It maybe your chickens 

 suffer from the seeds they pick, but as a rule they improve in condition on 

 new-mown land. Change their food. Give them meal mornin,' and evening, 

 slaked with milk, some Indian com or whole barley twice between these 

 meils, and discontinue the scraps tor a time. The rains will probably dn 

 them good. Drought is bad for them. Give them camphor in all their 

 water, and supply their runs with road grit. 



Doncaster and Boston Potiltry Shows —T. S. AnsdeU, Esq.. Cowley 

 Mount, Lancashire, informs us that he won the first prize for Dark Bralimas 

 at Doncaator, and the silver cup for the same variety at Boston. We publish 

 the report.s as sent to us. ,(„., 



Poultry Food (Doner).— Do not be deceived by a delusive term. Mid- 

 dlinss " are not so good as barleymeal, being part of the ground grain that is 

 taken from the meal. If it were as good as barleymeal it would not bo sold 

 at half the price. We have long sought for some cheap lood that was as good 

 and nntritious as the dearer ones, but w« are still seeking. We find nothing 

 BO cheap as the best food. In snoh the weight is mado-iip of feeding stufl, in 

 the lower priced it is made-np of " offal." Profitable food mixes into dongli 

 or paste, it is smooth ; but tho cheaper and less- feeding is rough when wetted, 

 and looks as though fine-cut chaff were mixed with it. The fowls do not 

 Uke it. 



Eoo-eatino IIen— Swollen Crop (Jifcm).— There la no cure for a hen 

 that eats the eggs on which sho is sitting, but wo are boTind to say it is a very 

 nnusnal thing-so much so, that wo advise you to kill the hon as soon as hor 

 three chickens are fit to leave her. Sho will always do it. The swollen crop 

 may bo rcdnced, if not cured, by holding the fowl by the legs, head down- 

 wards, till the crop has emptied itself from tho mouth; the bin! must then 

 be shut up and fed very sparingly, and only with a small quantity at a time. 

 It mnst have water only twice per day, and then very littls. If the crop still 

 hangs down you may put alum in the water. It will bo somo time before i: 

 regoin its normal state, but we have seldom known this tiejti«aut foil. 



