Annary 23, ISdS. I 



JOURNAL OP HOBTICOLTORB AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



87 



be introduced into the management, and, I believe, would 

 conduce to tlao success not only of the club itself, but of the 

 societies who would be in union with it. I therefore venture 

 to hope that the largo body of Canary exhibitors throughout 

 the country will avail themselves of this opportunity, and 

 assist Mr. Bedwell to carry into effect his excellent suggestion. 

 — Philip Wauuen, Soutliampton (Hon. Sec. JIanqtshirc Oi-iu- 

 tholojj ical Association). 



SILKWORM-REARING IN ENGLAND.— No. r,. 



TnE most essential requirement in silkworm-rearing is a 

 STiitable place to contain the worms. Such a structure in 

 Italy is called II casti'Iln, or the castle, and may be manu- 

 factured after various designs. One of the most simple and 

 useful is formed by means of four upright posts, which support 

 any given number of stages or shelves, on which the worms are 

 kept. Such a structure must be adapted in size not only to the 

 room in which it is placed, but also to the number of worms 

 to be reared. It is customary to have one for every half- 

 ounce of eggs to be hatched, and most writers allow to the 

 same, in a general way, from five to six stages. 



I shall describe one of six stages of full size, allowing some- 

 what more space than usual ; for I am fully convinced that 

 silkworms require more room than they ordinarily obtain. 

 Persons who rear worms from many ounces of eggs should 

 Lave a castle or two to spare. 



My castle has six stages, 12 feet long and 4 feet wide. Each 

 shelf thus contains 48 feet of space, and the whole six 288. 

 Half a dozen such castles could stand end to end, thus making 

 one, if required, or in any other way suited to the room. 



The easiest and best way of putting together the tables or 

 stages is to take two splines, 1 inch by 1 ! , to form the sides. 

 These are placed parallel to each other at 4 feet apart, and 

 are to be connected by nine cross half-inch splines, let into the 

 sides at the bottom, naUing them securely with IJ-inch wrought 

 nails, so as not to spUt the wood. Thus the stage will be 

 formed into eight compartments, each 18 inches wide, the 

 distance at which each cross piece will be from the other. 

 This frame thus finished should he strong and firm, with its 

 inch edgings upwards, which will servo to prevent the silk- 

 worms falling off. 



The next proceeding is to cover the inside with some mate- 

 rial, which, though tolerably close, will yet admit the air. For 

 this purpose bamboo canes, split up, are much used on the Con- 

 tinent. Some people only put on thinnish wire, forming meshes 

 about 3 inches square, and then cover with rather stiii paper. 

 This kind of netting is very suitable, hut I do not like the 

 paper covering, for it will not last much more than one season. 

 I substitute canvas, or some cheap grey calico, which can be 

 tacked on. This, when dirty, can be removed to be washed. 

 The next articie I shall more particularly name for covering 

 these tables, instead of the wire, &c., would be reeds, which 

 ■can be bedded over the cross pieces and secured down by 



twine or thin laths nailed to the splines. The table thus 

 covered will present one even surface for the worms, and the 

 cross pieces below will be out of sight, hut will be useful, not 

 only to hold the frame together, but as supports over which 

 to place the materials when the worms spin. If desired, the 

 ends of these tables could have cross pieces like the aide rails ; 

 thus there would be a protection against the worms faUing 

 from thence, and equality all the way round. Where, how- 

 ever, these castles are erected to stand end to end, this precau- 

 tion is not required. 



It now remains to prepare four square or round posts, very 

 strong and straight, about 3 inches in diameter and the height 

 of the room, which for this castle should be at least lOJ feet. 

 These posts are each to have six holes, 1 inch in diameter, 

 drilled through them, all in a perpendicular Une up their sides, 

 to receive O-inch pegs— viz., 3 inches will be inserted in the 

 posts and 3 inches will project from them. These pegs are to 

 be about 18 inches apart, 18 inches from the floor of the room, 

 and rather more from the ceiling. These prepared posts are 

 then placed upright between the floor and ceiling, and rnade 

 quite secure by wedges if necessary, or if they could be let into 

 the ceiling, and fastened to the beams there, all the better ; at 

 any rate they must be secured firmly. 



The posts are placed upright in pairs, with the pegs facing, 

 at 4 feet apart, or the width of the stages they have to support, 

 and which rest on the pegs, one above the other, at 18 inches 

 apart. The ends of the stages may project beyond the poles 

 nearly a yard, and be secured to the pegs to avoid the danger 

 of shifting. Some persons instead of pegs put pieces of wood 

 or rails entirely through from post to post, forming a kind of 

 ladder, on the staves of which the stages are laid, but either 

 mode will answer the purpose well if stability be insured. 



The above description of a silkworm house will answer for 

 all systems generally adopted, whether on a large or small scale. 

 Some are erected to swing by ropes from balks in the ceiling, 

 without touching the floor ; some are suspended from the walls, 

 and others have the posts provided with feet, which are very 

 necessary when the castle is small, and does not extend up to 

 the ceiling. Such a structure of half the size I have described 

 could be made for even parlour use, with any polish and 

 embellishment desired. I have studied economy and use, and 

 leave all decorations to the will of my readers. 



In case of erecting stages round the walls of a room, to which 

 there is no objection provided the ventilation is not impeded 

 and the walls are dry, they must not be above 2 feet in width ; 

 for, unlike the castle I have described, no person can go round 

 them to perform the necessary work in attending the worms. 

 Two feet is a su£6cient distance for a moderate-sized person to 

 reach without incommoding the insects. 



There is a custom among many silkworm-rearers to make use 

 of boards for these stages, but they are not so suitable. Ex- 

 pert rearers condemn them. The air cannot penetrate to dry 

 the worm's excrements, &c., which, collecting, soon putrefy, 

 producing an unhealthy fermentation beneath the worms, giving 

 off carbonic acid gas, w'hich is very injurious, laying the founda- 

 tion of all the direful diseases which attack silkworms. I must, 

 therefore, impress fully on my readers the necessity of using 

 stages, of whatever material constructed, through which the 

 air can pass. — Edwaed Habman, jun. 



UTILISING AND UNITING CONDEMNED BEES. 

 Oke of the most interesting, and certainly not the least pro- 

 fitable modes of turning a moderate amount of practical apiarian 

 knowledge to account, is, during the autumn, to sally forth and 

 collect all the condemned bees from farmers and cottage bee- 

 keepers within a radius of from four to five miles, and having 

 expelled them from their habitations by driving, convey them 

 to one's own apiary, there to be appUed either to the strengthen- 

 ing of such of our own colonies as may happen to stand in 

 need of a reinforcement, or to be established as new stocks, 

 and by a liberal supply of simple syrup fed up to a sufiieient 

 weight to stand the winter. It is, of course, to be hoped that in 

 process of time there will remain but few bee-keepers who 

 have not attained such a very moderate amount of practical 

 bee knowledge as may enable them to drive and unite bees for 

 themselves ; but pending the arrival of that golden age, whose 

 advent I am always ready to assist in bringing about, but 

 which still appears to remain so very far distant, the more 

 advanced bee-keeper may find both pleasure and profit in 

 devoting some of the glorious afternoons with which we are 



