1843. ] 
THE GARDENERS’ CHRONICLE. 101 
well-ripened ones to four.or six buds, according to their 
Strength. Strong-growing kinds, such as Brennus, Ful- 
gens, Triomphe d’Angers, and others of similar habit, 
with most of the Noisette Roses, when budded on tall stems 
make beautiful objects, if, instead of being shortened, the 
shoots are turned down and tied to the lower parts of the 
stem, so as to form a balloon-shaped plant. In the bor- 
ders, sow Sweet Peas and Larkspurs, and prepare for the 
general sowing of Annuals next month ; but do not rake 
the borders at present, or they will be rendered almost im- 
penetrable for the whole of the season. Hoe or fork them 
over two or three inches deep as often as you please, but 
do not rake them until the dry winds of March have ab- 
stracted a little of the superfluous moisture from the soil. 
For the sake ofa few days’ neatness in the early part of 
the spring we frequently do more injury to the soil and 
summer flowers than can be remedied during the remain- 
ing parts of the season.— W. P. Ayres. 
HOME CORRESPONDENCE. 
Treatment of Coppice-Wood.—In the Calendar at p.8 
of the Chronicle for 1843 is the following paragraph :— 
‘* Coppice-woods are like old Raspberry-stools, with only 
this difference, that a chance shoot here and there has got 
the lead, depriving all the rest of their due nourish- 
ment; this should not be so.’? The following instance 
will in some measure illustrate the truth of Mr. Bea- 
ton’s remarks, and give some idea of the loss sustained 
from this neglect in a piece of coppice-wood, which be- 
longed to the late Mr. De Winton, of Maeslough Castle. 
This Copse was situated in Cwm Neath, Glamorganshire, 
and being about 40 miles from the bulk of his property, 
but very little was known of it further than from the map- 
book, which stated that it contained 82 acres. In 1837 
application having been made to purchase it, Mr. De 
Winton sent another person and myself to value it. An 
old farmer, who had charge of it, told us that it had not 
been cut down for 35 years; it was evident that no care 
had been taken of it during that period. It consisted 
principally of Oak, Birch, and Alder. The previous 
cutting had been done in a ragged and slovenly manner, 
and in the following years no care had been taken to thin 
out and regulate the young shoots, which were entirely left 
to nature. On many of the stools nearly a score of shoots, 
with scarcely a branch on them, and only a few leaves at 
their extremities, were striving for the mastery ; on others 
one or two shoots had been fortunate enough to get the 
lead early ; and these, in many cases, had acquired the 
habit of trees, whose side branches had overtopped and 
choked the weaker ones, which had struggled hard for 
many years for existence, but were either dead, or in a 
sickly and stunted condition. Indeed, a great number of 
Stools were quite dead, owing to the shoots from the 
neighbouring stools having overhung and choked them. 
This state of things greatly lessened the value of the copse, 
and would also cause a considerable expense in filling up 
vacancies caused by dead stools. Even the large over- 
Srown shoots by no means made up for the loss of those 
which they had destroyed; on the contrary, they were ob- 
jected to as being too heavy for Pit wood, and of very lit- 
tle value to cut up for any other purpose. Several agents 
from the Iron Works stated that the copse would have 
been of considerably more value when from 25 to 28 
years old. This was our opinion also, and after having 
carefully examined the copse, we selected a part where 
We considered there was an average crop; and having 
Measured off. }th of an acre, we selected and marked the 
best Maiden Oaks, and other trees, at ‘the rate of 60 to an 
acre, always preferring Oaks where they could be had. 
hese were to remain for timber-trees, Everything else 
Was cut down and sorted ; and after having been carried 
‘0 a coavenient place, was weighed and valued as follows : 
—Pit-wood, 4 tons 74 cwt., at 21s. per ton, £4. 11s. 102d.; 
Cord-wood, 1 ton, 174 cwt., at 5s. per ton, £0. 9s. aig? 
or £40 10s, per acre. Total value of 83 acres, £3,321. 
The Copse was then advertised for sale ; and according to 
Certain regulations for cutting, clearing away, &c., it was 
Very soon after sold for £3250, being £71 below our valu- 
ation, If this Copse had been properly managed, and 
Sold when 28 years old, the value would, in all proba- 
bility, have been about £4000; or even if it had been cut 
Own and sold then’ at the above price, the next crop 
Would have been advanced seven years, or one-fourth of 
the time that the above crop was in coming to 
Perfection; and, therefore, the loss on that score 
“innot be considered to be less than one-fourth of 
the Price for which it was sold; viz., £812 10s, 
Pethaps there is no greater hindrance to the proper ma- 
pigement of plantations than game, when they are the 
lobby, One might as soon expect to get permission to 
Pull down the Mansion, as to enter one of those pet covers, 
tt hin, prune, and regulate the trees, which are gene- 
ay by the time they are 20 years old, so crowded and 
earn up, that they are little better than hop-poles. In 
onenstve plantations, the loss to the proprietors is incal- 
e able ; but in game covers, where the sound of the axe 
at ana must not be heard, this might be greatly obvi- 
nes » by planting at a much greater distance than is ge. 
aay, done; so that the trees would not require thin- 
Bann’ when full grown, would merely touch each other, 
a Wixt them the Portugal and common Laurels, Holly, 
mi i “vergreen Privet, and any other berry-bearing shrubs, 
fie be planted, which would answer for shelter and food 
ousl © game. If the ground had been trenched preyi- 
Tete’ to planting, they would very soon make an excel- 
the eke for the game, and likewise answer for nurses to 
Tooted In such cases, there is no occasion to plant 
if th, plants of the common Laurel, as it will do as well 
© prunings from a shrubbery are taken and cut into 
1 
“ngths from two to three feet each, and laid, without 
any other preparation, in shallow pits; covering them 
about six inches deep with earth, and leaving out as many 
of the points of the lateral shoots as convenient. I have 
found Laurels so treated make fine bushy plants, suitable 
for the above purposes. —James Alexander, Carton 
Gardens. 
Old Yews.—What is the best season to cut Yew? I 
shall be compelled to cut down 5 Yew-trees of consider- 
able growth, and as the wood is very valuable, I wish to 
cut it to the best advantage. I presume that if cut in 
the course of the present month and left to die with the 
foliage on, it would be in the most favourable state. One 
tree is about 2 ft. in diameter, in full vigour, and I guess 
them all to be about 150 or 170 years old—J. R. [Will 
some correspondgnt, who has performed such an operation, 
oblige us with his advice upon this point ?] 
Bees.—It affords me great satisfaction to be able to 
state that the plan which I have adopted with my Bees, 
as stated at p. 53 of the Chronicle, has been completely 
Successful, as up to the present time (Feb. 9) I have only 
witnessed four dead Bees, in addition to the three formerly 
noticed, and not one dead Bee since the 30th December. 
Tt was on that day that I found the four dead Bees on the 
ground, killed, as I think, in the same manner as the for- 
mer, about a foot in front of the hive, at a time when 
there were several thousands of the inmates abroad, owing 
to the mildness of the weather. Three of these Bees were 
decidedly young ones, and I observed the full-grown Bees 
busily engaged at the mouth of the hive, in cleaning other 
young ones, although at that unusual period of the year. 
It has been stated, that exposure to the South causes 
Bees to go abroad when the sun shines upon the hive, 
and that many perish in consequence of the cold on such 
occasions. My impression, however, is, that in a well-yen- 
tilated hive they do not go abroad when there is the least 
danger of suffering to any extent from cold, unless they 
are compelled by hunger to do so. Indeed, I look upon 
them and their motions as equal to the best barometer in 
announcing the state of the weather ; and as a proof that 
such is the case, I may observe that mine only left the 
hive, in very great numbers, on one day in the middle of 
January, when it was very mild, and again on January 28. 
On January 29, 30, and 31, and on February 1 and the 
forenoon of February 2, a few left the hive; and on the 
evening of the first four days hung in clusters from the 
combs in beautiful perspective, until at the back part of 
the hive they were within about half an inch of the bot- 
tom board. On the evening of February 2, I remarked 
that I thought we were going to have bad weather, as on 
looking into the hive, could not observe a single Bee, the 
whole of them having retired to the upper part. The 
morning of February 3 was one of the brightest that has 
been witnessed this season, and was accompanied with a 
powerful sun, although the wind, in exposed places, felt a 
little sharp; consequently my prognostication that bad 
weather was near at hand was laughed at; but in the 
course of the afternoon I could laugh in turn, asit will be 
recollected that on that day, when the sun had passed the 
meridian, the Metropolis and Woolwich were visited with 
one of the most severe snow storms that has been expe- 
rienced this season. From that day to the present not a 
Bee has been seen,and therefore I imagine that the weather, 
although open, is not yet settled. Irecently observed a 
number of glasses for hives exposed for sale, with ven- 
tilators formed of perforated zinc,-and felt surprised that 
a metal so apt, under peculiar circumstances, to form 
sulphate of zine (a poison), should be used internally in 
any shape in Bee-hives or glasses, when a common swan 
or goose-quill might be notched so as to answer all the 
purposes of ventilation, when required. The fact proved 
by Mr. Davis, who has the charge of Her Majesty’s 
kennel, that water passing through lead pipes was suffi- 
cient to bring on paralytic symptoms in dogs, ought, I 
think, to be a warning to Bee-keepers not to use metal 
in any shape, which might be liable to come in contact 
with the sensitive little winged lancers, designated at the 
t th icati Since writing 
the above I have observed Mr. Wighton’s remarks at 
p. 85, and from the good tone in which they are written, 
the surest means of eliciting the experience of all parties, 
I cannot but be pleased with his observations, In refer- 
ence to my statement, which he thinks « strange,’’ that up 
to Dec. 26, I had only witnessed three dead Bees from 
my hive, I wish to give the following explanation :—My 
communication, which appeared in the Chronicle of Jan. 
28, was made in consequence of aus Despairing Bee- 
keeper’’ stating, that on returning home in January after 
a short absence, she found great numbers of her Bees dead 
in the bottom of the hive. I stated the number I had 
observed in connection with my hive, and have now added 
one more—the number to the present date, Feb. 13, for 
the purpose of showing that my hive has continued quite 
clean, and as pure and sweet as it could be in the middle 
of summer. I do not wish it to be understood that the 
number of Bees I have specified are all that have died be- 
longing to my hive, All I can state with certainty is 
that if any others have died, they have not died at home, 
as I have not only carefully examined the bottom of the 
hive and side-boxes every evening with the aid of alighted 
candle, but I have also, on an average, once, and some- 
times three or four times a day, carefully inspected the 
ground in front and round the hive, and on many occa- 
sions the whole of the garden where I keep my Bees, to 
endeavour to find any that might have been carried or 
dropped down at a distance, but Ihave not discovered 
more than the number already given, I may add that I 
have never fed my Bees in any way directly or indirectly; 
1 am merely allowing them to take their own natural 
course, and only endeavour to assist them when I imagine 
l can do so beneficially. I am quite disinterested 
in the observations which I have made, as it will afford 
me great pleasure at all times to communicate such facts 
as I may notice regarding these industrious and valuable 
insects, when judiciously managed: or to answer gratui- 
tously by letter any questions put by parties who may 
feel desirous of knowing the plans which I intend to adopt 
during the swarming season, My views relative to form- 
ing artificial swarms, so as to increase the number of stocks, 
and to prevent swarming when preferred, are as yet only 
theories in my mind, and therefore I am reluctant that 
they should appear in print until they are tested. As I 
consider myself successful in one point, namely, securing 
the health of my Bees during winter, I am not without 
hope that I shall succeed equally well in my future ex- 
periments with them, as I become more fully acquainted 
with their peculiar habits, and have an opportunity of ob. 
serving incidents which may greatly influence their bene- 
ficial an q ly render them a 
source of pleasure to the rich, as well as a profit to the 
industrious, although {poor and humble cottager.—John 
Grant, Ed. of the Army and Navy Register, Woolwich. 
——I find the same difficulty that a “ Despairing 
Bee-keeper”’ complains of, (p. 837 of 1842), in keeping 
the temp of the side-boxes at 90°. So far is this 
from being the maximum, that it very often rises to above 
100° ; then, if a queen be ready, a swarm goes off without 
waiting for the side-boxes to be filled. This temperature 
is reached, even although the lid may be raised from the 
funnel, and the slide drawn from over the holes in the 
board on which the boxes stand. I also, like your cor- 
pond: id it impossible to prevent the Bees from 
plastering over the holes of the ventilating funnel, with 
wax or propolis; and this requires to be examined every 
day or two, Will some of your correspondents, who 
thoroughly understand Nutt’s method, tell me where I 
have failed >—7’. G. Clitheroe. 
Killing Insects for the Cabinet.—I wish to say a word 
o ‘‘S.,’” who writes a letter at p. 69, in which he recom- 
mends a most cruel mode of killing insects for cabinets : 
I will not say how, as I hope all the young readers of 
your interesting miscellany were touched with pity for the 
poor insects, and grief at the thought that any one could 
sit down and recommend such a system of torture as is 
there represented. I would only ask ‘S.’’ to remember 
that the God who made those insects will be his or her 
Judge! and that “The merciful man is merciful to his 
beast.’"—D. H. W. 
Aviaries.—The addition of an aviary to the amateur’s 
garden increases the pleasure of his Horticultural 
labour, gives a cheerfulness to the scene, and well repays 
any attention to the comforts of the little songsters. 
What can be more joyous than the early carol of the 
canary and goldfinch on a bright spring morning ?—and 
even in winter, the sharp chirp and quaint notes of the 
chaffinch and bulfinch are delightful. The facility with 
which birds can be preserved through the winterin the;open 
air, and the simplicity and cheapness of their food, makes 
it desirable that no pleasure-ground or garden should be 
without an aviary. Any snug corner facing the South or 
South by East, is the most favourable position. A bird- 
house, eight feet by four, and eight high, is sufficiently 
capacious to contain 40 or 50 inmates; the roof should 
be conical, as it provides a warmer roosting-place at night 
than a flat one. The back and sides should be built up, 
and the front divided into two compartments, each covered 
with neat wire-work, small enough to keep out mice. 
The frame to which the above is attached must rest on a 
raised brick foundation, about 10 inches high. The floor- 
ing ought to be well drained, and flagged, to prevent vermin 
from intruding. The interior should be white-washed, 
and the wire, &c., painted green. I have an aviafy in 
which I keep canaries, bulfinches, chaffinches, goldfinches, 
redpoles, &c., during winter, by merely protecting 
one-half of the ‘opening in front with a thick Jinen- 
curtain, which may be dressed with oil to make it more 
durable, and is drawn at night or during cold weather. 
This is all the precaution I have taken for the last three 
years. A Java sparrow has been out all this winter, and 
does not appear the worse for the exposure. Their food 
consists of coarse oatmeal, canary-seed, in small ees 
tities, white bread soaked in boiling water, which must not 
be allowed to get sour, and occasionally green food. The 
bulfinches eat barley greedily. I never elves m 
favourites with hemp or rape, and I find they keep in 
better health by depriving them of these pees nig 
Fresh water and gravel or sand are indispensable for an 
> 
aviary, 
Gold Fish.—Your correspondent “‘T. F.,”” at p. 54, 
deserves the thanks of many of your subscribers, and my 
own among the number, for his communication relative to 
Gold Fish. As one good turn deserves another, I will give 
him three hints which may be useful; In frost, a bundle 
of reeds, if placed endways, will supply air enough for his 
pond, without breaking the ice; and for breeding, he will 
find his fish to like a better locality than the leaves of the 
Lily ; this he may easily construct of rockwork, The 
water also may be improved by spreading calcined flint, 
about the size of Peas, at the bottom of the pond, which, 
from its extreme whiteness, will give his fish an appears 
ance of tenfold brilliancy.—dAn Amateup of Fish. 
Red Spider.—I see many questions asked and answered 
about the Red Spider; but all these appear to apply-to 
hothouses, conservatories, &c. I have some Damson- 
trees, the leaves of which turn as brown as if they had 
been scorched by a fire, and drop off prematurely ; a great 
portion of the fruit does the same, and all that remains is 
poor, and deficient in flavour, My wall-trees used to be 
affected in the same manner to such an extent that some 
of them died; but I have now discovered a remedy which 
appears to be effectual. Most of your readers will, uo 
