448 



JOUBNAL OF HOBTICULTXTEIE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



r'J'mie n, im. 



half a dozen of the loops by yon, as tho nlime in the windpipe 

 makes the gut limp, and yoii reqnire it stiff. I now never lose 

 a bird from this disease if taken iu ordinary time. — G. W., 

 Cardiff. 



SUPERS AND SWARMING. 



I HATE some bees in one of " Neighbour's cottage liives," a 

 last year's swarm. Last month I put on a large glass super, 

 with a pieco of comb attached to tho ventilator, the bees went 

 into tlie glass, and commenced working. They have enlarged 

 the piece of comb, and partly filled it with honey, but yesterday 

 (June 1st) they swarmed. The stock hive seems full, and tho 

 cells nearly ull filled with honey. 



Is it right to let the super remain on, now they have swarmed ? 

 and could the swarming be caused by too frequent looking at 

 the super to see how they were getting on ? — T. C. WnooonTON. 



[It may be laid down as a general rule, that when a swarm 

 issues from a hive in which the combs are fixtures, the bees 

 will not afterwards complete a super. There are, of course, ex- 

 ceptions to this rule, but as these can only occur in exception- 

 ally good seasons, they may be left out of the question. What 

 then, it may be asked, is to be done, and how in such a case 

 can the completion of an unfinished super be brought about? 

 We should advise as the course most likely to lead to the at- 

 tainment of this desirable end, that the super be removed from 

 the old stock, and placed on the swarm — say about a week after 

 it has issued. By this time the young colony will have so far 

 advanced in the task of furnishing its new habitation, that the 

 queen is not likely to be driven to breed iu the super, and there 

 will be every probability that the task which the little emigrants 

 left incomplete when they abandoned their old domicile will 

 be satisfactorily completed in their new premises. The con- 

 tingency which will remain to be guarded against, is the possi- 

 bility of the adventurers storing all or nearly all their provision 

 for the coming winter in the super, in which case they mnstbe 

 in some measure compensated, by liberal feeding in the autumn, 

 for the stores of which they have been deprived. 



It is, of course, unadvisable, to disturb bees by too frequent 

 inspection, but we do not think the infraction of this rule suffi- 

 cient of itself to cause them to swarm.] 



RETAINING SUPERS AFTER SWARMING. 



A WEEK or two back you published the different weights of 

 my single bee-hive during the past winter, the weight on May 

 4th, being 29! lbs., as shown in the Journal, No. 268, page 374. 

 On May 8th, the weight slightly increasing, I put on a small 

 straw hive (Payne's), 7 inches deep, 8 inches broad ; this and 

 other alterations in the hive made the total weight 38j lbs. 

 On the iOth, the weight had declined to 38^ lbs. ; on the 13th, 

 to 37i lbs. ; on the 21st it had risen to 41J lbs., and the small 

 hive was so crammed with bees, that I lifted it, and put between 

 it and the stock hive a box 11 inches square, and 7 inches deep. 

 This box raised the weight from 41} lbs. to 45} lbs. The bees 

 at once commenced working in the box, and on May 30th the 

 weight had increased to 52 j lbs., an increase of 7 lbs. iu nine days. 



All my efforts to prevent swarming, however, were useless, 

 for on June 2nd a swarm came off weighing only 2j lbs. Now, 

 I am in a difficulty, for Payne's book says, " Whenever a swarm 

 comes off leaving a small hive iu an unfinished state, let the 

 swarm be hived, and the small hive removed from the stock 

 hive, and placed upon the newly-hived swarm, for no further 

 profit can be expected from the stock hive beyond a second, 

 and, perhaps, a third swarm." From what I have read in the 

 Journal during the last few months, most of your correspon- 

 dents have had swarms, and still left the supers on, and ob- 

 tained large quantities of honey. I have so far left mine on, 

 and the bees seem busy at work in them. Which is the correct 

 plan of the two mentioned ? 



After the description given above, do yon see anything wrong 

 in my management that should make me unsuccessful in pre- 

 venting swarming ? and if not, can yon account for the swarm? 

 and am I sure to have a second ? — J. R. Eetton. 



[We see nothing wrong in your management, the result is 

 just tho fortune of war, or rather of bee-keeping. The first 

 swarm wUl probably be followed by a second, but nothing can 

 be predicated with certainty on this point. Bead our reply to- 

 day to Mr. Wroughton. It is, as we have there stated, only in 

 exceptionally good seasons such as the last, that a stock waich 

 hw awarmed will either fiU or even complete a partially-filled 



super. In answer to your concluding qnery about hives, w« 

 should say, No. 3 for the novice, No. 2 for tho more advanced 

 bee-keeper.] 



OUR LETTER BOX. 



Trexthekt op Docks pok EiniBinoK (S.).— With very few eicoptloaa 

 t>irdH improvo far more iu condition when at liberty than when in coa- 

 nnt'mont. Thf^v do not alwnys incrciae in weight, bnt they do in haalth 

 nnd leather. If you require positive weight you must shut them np ; bnt 

 tho plnce tihouht not b.* too email. An old pig-atyc does very woU if 

 littered with straw where it la ondcr cover. The food may be oita. oat* 

 menl, and Kreavcs. Tho latter make woif;htini; fat. We are sticklers fop 

 nature, nnd tlio best cThibitor-t of Kouen Dnctta never conOne their 

 I'irda. Ayli'sbur>-B are more nrtilcially got up. They require to bo at 

 litieTty in the morning, as their t-ills become and remain pale by contaot 

 with the cold grasa when covered with early dew or hoar frost. 



MABKmo Cbickbkh (£. C. C.).— You may mark your chieliena aoasto 

 know ono brood from another by piasin*? a coloured waxed thread Ihroash 

 the web of the wing. It mast be cecnrely tied nnd cut short ; or, yon 

 may take a red-hot needle and bom holes through tho web of tho wing, 

 niiirking the dilTerent broods or strains with one, two, or three boles. 

 The mnrks arc iodeIit>lc, and the oporution seems to ciuae little or no 

 pain. You cin. if you will, mark by a notch in the beak, or the eyelids; 

 Imt those cocker's marks are known to everyone, and detected at once by 

 those who understand them. The marks iu the web of the wing are per- 

 fectly concealed. 



CeJve C<Eun CtnCKEXB (.T,).— Crjve Ccrur.liko all black chickens, are 

 hatched with a qU'tntity of white down about them. This should gradually 

 disapp-ar as fe.ltberi grow, nnd at two months old they shoull ho quito 

 black top-knotted chickens. Thr'v are pert and gay chicks*, h'lving tails 

 developed at an early age, but do not ^ivo the idea of tho size which 

 they afterwards attain. 



IlEs Leaving Her Eggs [A. .r).— Thongli a Brahma hen has left her 

 not^t for four or or five hours on the ninth day of sitting, tho eggs are not 

 likely to prove bad in consequence. 



Management of the Woodlark (E. S. C.).— Tho usual plan is to feed 

 a Woodlnrk on Germain piste, which I do not consider a wholesome food. 

 I w-ould recomniond bread and cheese. Woodlnrks clean themselves by 

 dusting in sand. I think they will also wash in water. I expect that their 

 feet had become encrusted with dirt owing to the t'irds being in a relaxed 

 state of bo'ly, which I think cheese will correct. The bottom of the cage 

 should he kept c'ein with plenty of dry sand, and, I feel sure, WoodlarkB 

 would do better with a turf to peck at. A chopped egg will be a very good 

 addition to their bill of fare. — B. P. Brekt. 



Mule's Breeding iGreenfinch).—\i has been reported that Goldfinch 

 MuU'S will breed, but I never knew of a case. I hnvo Imown Mules pair, 

 nnd even ben Mules lay small eggs, but never had any produce. There 

 is no hnrni in vour trying the experiment, but it is ten thousand to one 

 rgainst you. It is the rule for Mules not to breed ; if they do, it is the 

 esceplion. — B. P. Brent. 



Cockatoo Picking its Feathers lAn Old Su&fcrifccr).— We would ad- 

 vise you to give tlie cockatoo a good s)Tinping of water two or three times 

 a-day with a gardcu sjTiuge. and keep him on scalded bread. Indian corn, 

 and canary seed. If the bird has plucked its feathers any length of time 

 it is very doubtful if it can bo cured of the habit of doing so. TJio vinery 

 temperature of 65- to 75^ is very suitable for the bird. 



Purchased Bee-house and Hives 'J. S., BrUiol). — If the manufac- 

 turer's name be on the bee-house or the hives, it will be better to write to 

 him for inform tion. - bould you not be able to identify the maker, we 

 will do our best to enlighten you on being furnished with inside measure- 

 ments and a detailed description of bo^h house and boxes, stating if 

 these latter dilfer from each other, and, if so, in what particulars. 



Killing Moths [J. B., Durham). — For entomological specimcna, the 

 best mode of killing moths is to bruise fresh laural leaves and half fill 

 with tbem a wide-mouthed jar, put over them a thin layer of cotton wool, 

 and close the jar with a tightly-fltting bung. A moth put into the jar will 

 be dead in a very short time. The cause of death is the vapours of the 

 prussic or hydrocyanic acid emitted by the leaves. 



Death of " Kino Dick."— By a printer's mistake in my letter inserted 

 last week respecting the death of tlie noted bull-dog " King Dick," I am 

 made to say that it will be especially interesting to your readers aa 

 " King Dick " was the size of *' Romanic," the bull-dog suffocated daring 

 its transit to tho Sheffield Show. The fact is this, " King Dick " being 

 the sire of " Romanic," I did think the ycvj close blood relationship 01 

 father nnd son. coupled with their almost simultaneous death, was bt^tb 

 interesting and remarkable. — Edward Hewitt. 



Galvanised Iron Tanks and Pipes.—" IP. T." would be glad to have 

 information as to the suitability of galvanised iron for water tanks and 

 pipes for storing and conveying water for clean domestic use. He fears 

 the zinc might poison the water, rendering it undt for drinking or cook- 

 ing-purposes, and hIso that the zinc might "flake off and stop up the pipes, 

 or quickly rust if laid under gronnd. Being about to lay water on to hia 

 house, a distance of about 40 yards, it seems that galvanised iron wonld 

 be cheaper than any other material if it woold prove sufllciently durabl* 

 and cleanly. 



POULTRY ALVIlIfET.— June 11. 



Our Bnpply increases weekly, and tids fair to exceed the deniAiid, 

 wliich is dull. The doubt and uncertainty that prevail with all cUaees is 

 not without effect on the poultry market. 



a. d. 



B. d 



Largfo Fowls 3 



Smaller do 3 



Fowls 



Chickens 1 



Goslings G 



Dacklinga 2 



Guinea Fowls 



Partridges 



Hares 



Rabbits 1 



WUd do 



Pigeoas ....... r...>"-0 



B. d. s. d. 



