M 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ July 3, 1866. 



apiarian friends, and that is, that I am trying the plan recom- 

 mended by one of the correspondents of The Journal of Hor- 

 ticulture of last year, and make half my stocks enter at the 

 top instead of the bottom of the hive, and during the summer 

 Season I find them work quite as well as before ; but I fancy 

 that the bottom boards require more frequent cleaning in the 

 Spring, and I have not as yet hit upon a plan of doing this with 

 facility, as I am obliged to screw the front of the top of my 

 hive on the ledge, and it is, therefore, not so easy to remove it 

 Us before. My reason for trying this plan was, that I found 

 my two tiers of hives inconveniently close for supering, but by 

 putting my lower tier under instead of above the inside ledge, 

 I have secured abundance of room between the two. 



In my next I may Bay something of Friendly Unions, of 

 vhich there have been more than one instance in my apiary, 

 and of Hunger Swarms. — Sibert-on-the-Wold. 



NADIRING. 



I have closely followed the directions given in your Number 

 lor July 11th, 1865, respecting the management of Stewarton 

 hives. The bees were wintered in two boxes. On May 18th 

 they had taken possession of a super, and on May 26th had 

 nearly filled it. I, therefore, added a third breeding-box as a 

 nadir. This box they appear to me to have filled ; but it has 

 been, I fear, at the cost of the super, as that remains in very 

 much the same condition as on the 26th of May. Is there any 

 objection under these circumstances to my appropriating the 

 Stores of the nadir, or at all events Buch a portion of them as 

 does not contain brood comb? I should be much obliged also 

 by being informed whether the inactivity in the super is the 

 result of any mistake in the management. 



I may add, that having read that the addition of a nadir 

 tended to quicken the work in a super, I added one to a small 

 Straw hive, and the result has been the same as with the Stew- 

 arton — viz., that no further progress has been made in the 

 Buper. — H. 



[We doubt whether yon will find much honey in the nadir, 

 but see no objection to your appropriating what may be there, 

 if you wish to do so. It does not follow that the bees ceased 

 working in the super because you had added a nadir. We 

 should be more disposed to attribute the suspension of their 

 labours to the recent break in the honey harvest, and shall not 

 be surprised if you find the present glorious weather set them 

 as hard at work again as ever.] 



REGICIDE. 



On going into my apiary on the rooming of the 20th ult., I 

 found two or three bees coming out of the cap of a royal cell. 

 I thought it was so from (he size of it. I again went into my 

 garden, and found (about 12 o'clock) the enclosed queen on the 

 alighting-board dead, with about twenty or thirty bees around 

 her. I muBt tell you that for two or three nights before this, 

 I heard piping uoing on. The hive in question is one of Carr's 

 bar-aud-frame hives, and I am working a super upon it. It 

 has not swarmed, nor do I think it will, for they bave half 

 filled it with comb, and Fhoulcl have had a considerable quan- 

 tity of honey bad not the weather been 60 cold and wet here 

 (Denton) during the previous ten days. I wish to know if you 

 think her an old queen, and what will be the consequences. 



— w. w. c. 



[When the queen reached us we found her crushed perfectly 

 flat by the manipulations of the post-office officials, so that 

 we can do no more than hazard a guess as to her history. So 

 far as we can judge from the colour and appearance of her re- 

 mains, we are inclined to believe her to be the old queen which 

 has been slaughtered by a juvenile rival. Although this oc- 

 currence is somewhat unusual, it is by no means without pre- 

 cedent, and we should think it likely to be followed by the issue 

 of a swarm.] 



FORMING STOCKS IN" AUTUMN FROM 

 CONDEMNED BEES. 

 I wish to increase my stock of bees, and beg to know your 

 opinion of the following method of doing so. 



I would buy from a cottager the bees which he would other- 

 wise kill, and would myself superintend their being driven 



from the full hive into an empty one. When I had brought 

 them home I would supply them with as much sugar and 

 water as they would take. Is it possible for bees so late in the 

 season, say August or September, to construct combs in which 

 to store up an artificial supply for the winter ? 



I suppose it would be desirable to unite two stocks. A 

 cottager should let me have these (useless to bim), for 2s. 6d., 

 and the bees might take 10 lbs. of sugar, value 6s. If success- 

 ful, would not this be the best, or rather the cheapest, method 

 of obtaining stocks ? I fear there is some difficulty in uniting 

 swarms. — One of your Constant Readers. 



[We never find it necessary to pay for condemned bees, the 

 cottagers in our neighbourhood being only too glad to be 

 spared the trouble of applying brimstone. Even with this 

 advantage we estimate the cost of establishing a stock in the 

 autumn from condemned bees as being about equal to that of 

 a good swarm in spring. The inhabitants of at least two 

 hives (three are better), should be driven into one domicile, 

 and will require, say two dozen pounds of lump sugar con- 

 verted into syrup by the addition of water in the proportion 

 of two parts of the latter to three of the former by weight, 

 and boiled a minute or two, to enable them to form and store 

 a sufficient quantity of new comb to stand the winter. 



There is rarely any difficulty in uniting swarms.] 



An Albino Redbreast. —A few days ago I captured a pure 

 white Robin. It is a young bird about seven or eight week 

 old. It has pink eyes and beak, and feet of a delicate yellow 

 colour. Will some one inform me whether it is likely to moult 

 into its proper colour, and what is about the value of such a 

 bird ? — A. B. Bailey, Shooter's Hills, Longlon, Staffordshire. 



OUR LETTER BOX. 



Moulting (A. J.).— As a rule, fowls moult a? soon as laying pd<1 sitting 

 nre over— that is, about the end of July. The time to recommence laying 

 varies, but adult fowls seldom lay till the end of January. S'-me breeds 

 moult in less time than others; it lasts about two months. Spanish aro 

 longer about it. 



Game Fowls (J. Maton).— The loss of one Bpnr by an accident is no de- 

 triment to ft Game cock in exhibition. There arc two Duckwings, the old 

 copper-saddled and the silver Duckwing. The hens of the former have 

 the Robin or salmon breast, and penerally a littlo blush on the wing, but 

 the latter must have none of it anywhere. 



Cochin-China Hen Injured (A Header).— Tour hen is injured in the 

 back. It often happens at this time of year when the cocks are too nu- 

 merous. As you say she is about to sit, she has. of course, censed to lay, 

 or the same appearance would be presented if she were epp-hound. As 

 it is always necessary in such cases that the patients should be separated 

 from the others, you cannot do better than let her sit. 



White Tcrkey Poult (W).— A White Turkey is not a rara avi*. but it 

 is very uncommon to breed them from coloured birds. You will have no 

 difficulty in obtaining a proper mate, as there is a distinct breed of them. 

 The present case may be a sport, or it may be Ihere has rt some time 

 been some white blood in one of the birds, and she hnB thrown back 

 to it. 



Excrescences on Spanish Fowls' Faces [A. W.).— Most of the excres- 

 cences \ou name are the result of pecking. Hens pre very fond of peck- 

 ins the cocks' faces, but cocks and hens are now alike petting shabby. 

 It is an unnotimd hnbit, and often arises from diseased or disordered 

 body. A free supply of lettuce will cure most of these disorders ; we hav* 

 found it most advantageous. 



Fattening Brahma Pootras, Turkeys, and Geese lldc-m).— Brnhmas 

 should be very well fed, but allowed liberty. Turkeys and Geeso 

 should be shut up ; an outhouse or even a large pipstye is good for either, 

 hut if Turkeys are put in it must be hurdled all round with hurdles 

 lengthwise, and leaning inwards. They must also heve perches. Good 

 ground onts m xed with new mi'k. and a little grease added, arevery good 

 food for the Brahmas Turkeys require the same nr bailee me 1, with a 

 little peamea! mixed, if with milk so much the better. They feed well 

 out of a pig-trough. Geese want oats, bran, gravel, grass, and soma 

 people give tallow chandler's greaves. 



POULTRY MARKET.— July 2. 



The excessive heat has caused very fresh poultry to make larger prices 

 than it would have done in cooler weather, but much was spoiled. 



s. d. b. d s. d. b. d 



Lar^e Fowls 4 to 4 6 Guinea Fowls Oto 



Smaller do 3 0„S 6 Prrtridges p „ 



Fowls 0„0 Hnres 0„0 



Chickens 2 0„2 G Rabbits 1 3„1 4 



Green Geese 6 0„6 6 Wild do 8„0 9 



Ducklings 2 6 „ 3 Pigeons b„0 .♦ 



