394 



JOUENAL OF HOETICULTDEE AND COTTAGE GABDENEE. 



[ October 29, 1874. 



hurting one, and then, on the principle that "a worm will turn 

 when trodden on," a touch of a very little instrament may make 

 somebody cry, Oh! — John Hcntjjb, Eaton Rise, Ealing. 



HONEY HA.KVEST IN SCOTLA.ND. 



The honey harvest in this part of Scotland (East Lothian) this 

 year cannot be called a prosperous one. The stocks were weak 

 in the spring, and though the season in the early part was dry, 

 it was often so cold as to prevent the bees from carrying after 

 the spring flowers were over. We were fortunate in having 

 nearly one hundred acres of turnip seed within a mile of us, 

 which helped us greatly, though not so much as it would have 

 done if the weather had been good. We had V of frost on the 

 12th of June, injuring the potatoes much. Still there were some 

 early swarms — the first a neighbour's on May 17th, and my first 

 was on the 29th. 



The season for the white clover was unpropitious ; though 

 there was a quantity the bees did not work on it as they used to 

 do. It was only on rare occasions that it gave off its usual fine 

 odour. However, there were very fine white clover supers or 

 tops obtained, though X did not increase my stock of hives more 

 than from sixteen to twenty, but gave room for breeding, and by 

 uniting I increased a ten-bar Woodbury to a twenty-three-bar, 

 and a ten-bar to fourteen. During July they got a good deal 

 of honeydew from the trees, which spoilt a number of tops, but 

 it enabled the bees to continue breeding, and they were sent to 

 the heather ten miles from here on the 29th of July, a week 

 earlier than usual, in very good condition for gathering honey, 

 full of bees and brood. The heather being fine we fully expected 

 a lot of honey, but the weather got unsettled, and a quantity of 

 rain fell the first week at the time the heather was at its best, 

 BO that our expectations were not realised. 



The average weight which my twenty hives obtained was 

 16 lbs. each, some gaining 24 and 23, one 30J, some only 6 lbs. 

 Last year the average was above 10 lbs. There are, consequently, 

 a great number of half-finished supers in this district, and as 

 we generally have them in supers, this is not a profitable season 

 for bee-keepers. 



I use the old straw Stewarton and Woodbury ten-bar frame 

 hives. I generally take the two outer bars from each of the 

 latter just before they are sent to the heather, and whatever the 

 season is these are mostly filled with honey, even when there 

 are no supers. These bars weigh from 4.1 to 5 lbs. each, so that 

 by using them I have always good pure honeycomb for the use 

 of the family : hence the superiority of the bar hive to any other. 

 I have reduced my stock to fifteen, breaking up the rest, and 

 putting the bees into weak hives, destroying unfertile queens, 

 and covering up for the winter. The old combs are selected ; 

 those which never had brood in them and entirely free from 

 farina are cut up, and run through a cloth, which is quite pure. 

 The other combs are cut up and run, and used for feeding the bees 

 with. The honey is not fit for eating, even though the combs 

 are never squeezed in any way. No one would eat honey again 

 were they to see it squeezed or run, and I am astonished to see 

 would-be bee-masters recommending such a disgusting practice 

 when there is no need for it. A neighbour had eight hives at 

 the hills, but he did not weigh them, consequently could not say 

 what was the average ; but it must have been about the same, 

 as my own, as they were about equal in strength. He will 

 reduce his stock to about the half (forty) by driving and uniting 

 two weak stocks. No bees are smoked here, and he never has 

 any fighting. He will unite as many as eight into one, and does 

 not adopt the bad practice recommended by some of smothering 

 the bees with honey or sugar syrup seasoned with mint. Mine 

 were all united without any attempt to fight. 



Full finished supers holding from 10 to 1.5 lbs. are selling at 

 23. 9(i. per pound, and as low as Is. id ; run honey about Is. 

 per pound. — A. Sheabeb, Tester. 



Joamal it may assist me to fiod them. The number of pen lost is 169. — 

 M. Le.vo, Markyale Street, DuTutable, Beds. 



Fowl's Intestines Ulcerated {7. M.). — The fowl would gradually have 

 wasted away and died. We kaoff neither the cause nor cute ol ulcerated 

 interual organs. 



LlGURiANS (0«(: iiifto wowld Projresa). — Write to the dealers in hires and 

 honey who adrertiae in our colamns. 



The Honey-Extractor. — " The honey-estractor made by Mr. Walton and 

 exhibif.ed at the Crystal Palace will be fairly tried aud tested here next 

 Saturday afternoon. October 31st. If any of the readers of this Journal 

 have a desire to see the slioger at work they will have an opportunity, of doing 

 so if they c orae here at three o'clock nest Saturday. — A. Pettioeew, Priory 

 Vineyard, Sale. 



Pettigrew's Hive {The Cornish Duckwing). — In a week or two Mr. Pet- 

 tigrew will give a woodcut and full description of his hives in our columns- 

 They are made of wheaten and rye straw, firmly and neatly sewed with canes, 

 beautiful in shape and appearance, and when filled weif^h from 60 to 130 lbs., 

 according to size. They are made in Ayrshire, and sold by Mr. Yates of 

 Manchester. 



Collateral Hives, &c. {J. R., Edgbaston). — Nntt's hives are asgoodas 

 any collateral hives can be — perhaps we might say aa bad. We have tried 

 them and other variations of the same principle, and discarded them all. 

 Undoubtedly the most profitable system, take it all in all, is the storifying 

 mode of management. As to your hive infested with black bees, we cannot 

 make out exactly from your letter the circumstances of your case. The snail 

 had certainly nothing to do with it. It was the weakness of the hive which 

 permitted the snail to enter. We cannot tell the cause of the appearance of 

 these black bees. 



White Babbit Skins (J. J. M.). — ks soon as the skin is taken off scrape off 

 all the soft internal part, and then sponge it with a strong solution of alum. 



BEE CHRONOLOGY. 



Mr. Pettigbew says the bee season of 1874 has brought to 

 light something new in the habits of bees— viz , that they will 

 for a time permit a divided sovereignty, as is instanced in the 

 case of Mr. Boulton's hive, of Ulverston. I can assure him that 

 the facts of this case are indisputable. Nothing was exaggerated ; 

 but the plain facts as stated by me in your columns can be veri- 

 fied, if need be, by the testimony of at least a dozen of unim- 

 peachable eye-witnesses. The facilities of examination given 

 by the Woodbury hive leave not the slightest loop-hole for 

 doubt, uncertainty, or incredulity. The bare facts stand out as 

 they were stated ; the reasons for such I leave for elucidation 

 to those better calculated, from experience of the habits of bees, 

 to adduce. — Beta. 



OUR LETTER BOX. 



QoLD-LACED BANTAMS AT Briohton Show. — Ify cup pen is either sent 

 somewhere by mistake or stolen. If you would name the subject in your 



METEOEOLOaiCAI, OBSERVATIONS, 



Camdem SqaARE, London. 



Lit. 51° 32' 40" N. ; Long. 0^ 8' 0" W. ; Altitude 111 feet. 



REMARKS. 

 2lBt. — Very hif,'h wind in night, and till the afternoon; rain in the morning ; 



fiae evening, and Tery little wind. 

 22Dd. — Rather cold, but a splendid day tbroughout, 



23rd. — A very bright fine day, but colder than we have had it this season. 

 24th. — Fo;^^ early; fine in the middle of the day, but dark early in the 



evening; splendid moonlit night. 

 25th — Dull aud raining at 9 a.m., continuing dull and cheerless all day ; very 



little rain, but not any sun. 

 26tb. — Rain in the moruing, and at intervals all day, and a wet night; bat 



the quantity ot rain that fell was small confeidering its frequency. 

 27th. — Dull damp day; occasional very bright gleams ot sun in the middle of 



the day, but only for very ehort periods; and a damp night. 

 Very windy ou the 2l8t, and rather cold on the two following days, though 

 bright and pleasant, hince then much warmer, but very dull. The meaa 

 temperature about 3^ below that of the previous week. — G. J. Szmoks. 



COVENT GARDEN MARKET.— Octoeee 28. 

 There ia no improvement here, and no change worth notice. 



FBUIT. 



a. d. B. d. 



Apples J sieve 1 Otol 6 



Filberts lb. 1 16 



Coba lb. 1 16 



Grapes, hothouse lb. 16 6 



LemoDS ^100 8 16 



Melons e&ch 2 6 



Oranges...... '^100 12 21 



S. d. B. d. 



CbestDuts bushel OtoO 



Peara, kitchen doz. 2 3 



dessert doz. 10 3 



PineApplea lb. 2 6 



Plums i sieve 3 4 



Walauts boahel 10 16 



ditto ^100 1 a 



Artichokes doz. 8 



Aspanig.ia VlOO 



Frencb 



Beans, Kidney.... 1 sieve 1 



Broad bushel 



Beet. Red doz 1 



Broccoli bundle 



Brussels Sprouts | sieve 2 



Cabbage doz. 1 



Carnita bunch 



Cap-i'^ums i^ 100 



Cauliflower doz. 3 



Celery bundle 1 



Coleworts.. doz. bunches 2 



Cucumbers each 



pickliu^ doz. 



Endive. doz. 9 



Fennel bunch 



Garlic lb. 



Herbs bunch 



Horseradish bundle 3 



YEGETAIILES, 

 d. B. d. I 

 to 6 I 



Leeks 



Ii'^ttuce doz. 



Musbrouma pottle 



Mustard & Cress. .punnet 

 OuioQs bushel 



pickling quart 



Parsley per doz. banohfs 



Pan-nips doz. 



Peaa quart 



Potatoes bushel 



Kidney do. 



Rafliahes., doz. bunches 



Rhubarb bundle 



Salsafy bundle 



Scorzonera bundle 



Sea-kale basket 



Shallota lb. 



Spinach bushel 



Toniatoea doz. 



Turnips bunch 



Vegetable Marrows ..doz. 



s. d. s. 



3to0 



1 2 

 

 

 3 

 



a 





 



