THE GARDENERS' CHRONICLE. 



105 



rj*t"d L™ the i-^es I h r -de, S ho . 



STnHt "had ' been "three, * or even fo.r.-E. Barmall, 



^' fl , n f AWT-U »•» amuse some of your readers 

 . Li;' o ffiiWM example of Chinese bad fauh. 

 ffStS-W pupU.of -ine- -UH everyac,,^ o 



\ ilant now thriving well in the the young colony the first favourable opportunity."— 

 * •' ' ... —*.—*■ — * — ,/ofira Grant, Woolwich. [We cm assure our corres- 



pondent that neither Mel nor Melissa had a thought of 

 hurting his feelings. We did not dream that offence j 

 would be taken at a little harmless banter. *' Oderunt 

 hilarem tristes tristemque jocosi," says Horace or some- 

 body else ; we fear the saying is too true ; and yet we 

 cannot be serious always.] 



Bees. — la the year 1842, a stock of bees settled in a 

 box formed according: to Mr. Cotton's plan, and filled 



^curing what he might want in China 

 procuring p ot ti ng er), lately sent me 



2? °f Chinese seeds, duly labelled in 



(being in the 



over 79 little 



unintelligible 



or three, and to my astonishment they no: only broke 

 but sent out from three to eight shoots each. I cut the 

 roots off three week* ago, aud the shoots are now an 

 inch long. As it is difficult to get this plant to break 

 low down, propagating by roots aopears to be a good 

 way to get low bushy plants.— A. Thrclkeld, Headingly 



House, Leeds. 



Pheasants' Eggs.— I had given me a "clutch" of the 

 common pheasant's eggs, numbering fifteen, with the 

 caution that they had already been " setting upon." 



j tr8 ol Y accompanied with a list professing to 



S^ of many, and a slight descrip^ 



g If the rest. These seeds were positively declared 



tl i ,Pnuine, and the collector most trustworthy. 



? ftrnninatioii they were found to contain only 



yCtsin all not less than 11 different names being 



tft the very same seed in one case— the names 



San* n* o as many different families I have more than 



olec received seeds from China in these little jars, but 



lu anv of them ever germinated, and I believe it is 



TZtL with the Chinese to scald the seeds they sell to 



oarbarilnsI-X * Bmdm. [We fear the plant 



•ellers of the Celestial empire are not Sinenses but 



Sinonides, for they certainly must claim their descent 



from the prince of cheats.] 



Ttie |-j„ e# Writers on the cultivation of the Vine 



under glass, insist much on the necessity of keeping a 

 drv atmosphere while the Grapes are ripening. Now, at 

 Cabul and Candahar. where the Grapes ripen out of 

 doors, and are said to be the finest in the world, the dew 

 is, 1 should imagine, much heuvier than with us, so that 



at night both leaves and fruit must be covered with 



moisture. Should we not, therefore, imitate Nature more 



closely, and keep the leaves of our Vines in a healthier 



state ? obtaining thereby fruit of a finer flavour, if we 



were to keep a moist atmosphere at night till our Grapes 



are quite ripe. — Guichenet. 

 Bees.— My object in forwarding my remarks on bees 



to the Gardeners' Chronicle, was with the view of draw- 

 ing the attention of more experienced apiarians to pecu- 

 liarities I fancied I had observed in the habits of these 

 industrious insects, which might have escaped their notice; 



and I certainly expected, from the respectability of the 



publication to which they were addressed, that in the 



event of obtaining a place in its columns, the Editor 



would have avoided inserting remarks in subsequent 



Numbers tending to ridicule my communications. In a 



newspaper desirous of promoting a spirit of inquiry, the 



greatest care should be taken not to check, but rather to 



encourage, disinterested correspondents, who, if they are 



wrong in their impressions, have no object in view but 



to call forth the conscientious opinions of others, and 



BOt such evidently intended ridiculous assertions as your 



correspondents " Mel," and his amiable consort lt Me- 

 lissa/' have given in their allusions to u bees and their 



nightcaps." Perhaps your correspondent with the won- 

 derful Wrotham telescope will favour your readers with 



a solution of the reason a butterfly or a housefly, and 



many other sharp-sighted insects, can be touched by the 



hand on some occasions, when at other periods the 



slightest movement or approximation would cause them 



to fly away. I have witnessed, and many medical men 



can confirm the truth of my statement, that there are 



members of the human race who habitually sleep with 



their eyes open, and, I may add, without nightcaps; and 



the hand or a lighted candle has been moved backwards 



and forwards, close to the face, without the evelids or the „ - 



pupil contracting in the least, or the sleeper "being aware will not cure, but liquc 



of the presence of other parties. It is, therefore, surely im ™f. dlat ® ly i | lfl I ' n \ n ^'„ y . 

 not too great a stretch of the imagination to suppose that 

 the eyes of bees, in their dark abodes, may be sufficiently 

 obscured to enable them to enjoy, what it is probable all 

 animated creatiou requires, the luxury of repose. It is 

 surprising that your correspondent did not allude to the 

 continual hum in the interior of a hive in summer, as 

 likely to disturb the sleep of the bees, even although aided 

 by the nightcaps he says he has discovered ; but it is 

 more than probable he has been a great traveller by sea 

 tk u d ' ancl lias ascertained from personal observation 

 that the wearied sailor can sleep amidst the lashing of the 

 waves and howling of the winds on the tempestuous 

 or he may have yjgjted the interior of one of the 



a side-box ; I had 25)bs. of beautiful honey from them. Twelve hours elapsed from the time of their being taken 



- m a a ■ .- .a a . . • tt • • #_' a. ) _„.-«* » 1 . <* uniri or t\\f time ikHllKT (111 I If* 



Last year I had a large swarm from this stock, which I 

 imagined weakened them too much, as the season was 

 so unfavourable they only collected honey for them- 

 selves. I had purchased a swarm in the parish, but it 

 could only have been a cast, it was so small ; conse- 

 quently only 3 or 4 small combs were made and filled. 

 Knowing there was every probability of one, if not both, 

 of these stocks perishing In the winter, I resolved to 

 unite, and then by way of experiment bury them. I had 

 some thick syrup made, and turned up the hives, 

 sprinkling a very little upon the bees in each, and 

 placing the old hive upon the other, in hopes the smallest 

 lot would creep Up ; but no such thing occurred. The 

 next morning they had descended to the cast, and there 

 they pertinaciously remained, despite of my turning them 

 abour, first up, and then down, lt seemed certain 

 death to bury them with so small a portion of food ; 

 therefore I was compelled to put in both hives together, 

 and make them up in the form of a Potato pit, haying a 

 roof of two thatched hurdles put over to keep the rain off. 

 On the 25th of March, my prisoners were disinterred, and 

 I must confess I was very much delighted to hear a 

 brisk hum. About half a teacupful of dead bees were 

 taken out, and very little honey had been consumed ; 

 the bees seemed settled in the upper box, and as the sun 

 shone brightly they were quite overjoyed at their liberty. 

 Alas ! the unnatural swarm I had from them the spring 



from the nest and reset, the eggs at the time being quite 

 cold and apparently useless. At the expiration of twelve 

 days, to my surprise every egg produced a bird, which is 

 now very strong and healthy. Some years since I had 

 brought me twelve egtss of the sheldrake (Anas tadorna), 

 and in this instance they had been laid upon br s in 

 the open yard for 15 or 1G hours before they were reset, 

 and at the expiration of 24 hours every egg was hatched, 

 aud I succeeded in rearing all. These instances show 

 the great cbtagM of temperature the incipient germ of 

 life is capable of sustaining. — 1". 



Standard Ro9*».—\ have experienced some difficulty 

 in the cultivation of these. 1 have a great dislike to 

 seeing Standard lto«cs closely pruned, and I think that 

 pruning makes the French Moss and other small growers 

 unhealthy, whilst the more robust are induced to make 

 wood instead of bloom. I have not pruned my plants 

 so much as most other persons, but I found that when 

 it became necessary to reduce the size of the heads many 

 of the plants died. The wood being very hard, and the 

 buds small, they had great difficulty in putting out in 

 spring, and the "heath dock" generally eat out the 

 buds, or they were attacked with grubs. An idea struck 

 me that if thev were cut directly after blooming, they 

 would put out soon after, and have time to form heads 

 before winter. I tried several last year, which are now 

 fine and healthy, and have all the appearance of being 



Aias : cne unnatural »wuiu. * i»u .«««» ►»»— *..~ -i -» -- <• -- , ■ : t 



be/or,, finding these were so much better off than them- p anted about two year, w o ul not £*». ,t » a 



selves, (though they had not eaten all their stock of 

 provision) began robbing and murdering with savage 

 ferocity. I shut up the attacked for a day or two, and 

 fed the marauders. All went on quietly for a month, 

 when they made another attack ; the gardener covered 

 them with a mat, and though many were killed, still , 

 they went on thrivingly for a few weeks; then a third 

 attack was made, and before they obtained help more 

 were killed than before. To give my persecuted stock 

 a chance of life, it was moved into a walled garden, 

 some little distance off, where 1 flattered myself it would 

 remain undiscovered ; but no such good luck was for it. 

 On Monday last, the wretches came in double force very 

 early in the morning, and I do not think a handful sur- 

 vives of this unfortunate family. What can I do ? The 

 robbers thrive on their ill-gotten gains ; I have finished 

 aud sealed the combs in the centre box, and filled three 

 parts of a side-box, and now 1 have put on another, 

 thinking there must be M idle hands " which have perpe- 

 trated so much mischief. What can their learned advo- 

 cates say of such bad dispositions in their favourites ? 

 And are there anv means, short of fire and smoke, by 

 which to reduce my rebels to order ? What have I done 

 wrong or clumsily? And what should I have done, in 

 order 3 to the better success of my experiments? — 

 An Old Correspondent. 



The Sting of a Bee.— Turning to p. 509, vol. it., 

 of the Chronicle, my eye caught M Sting of a Bee." The 

 remedy there given is a very inefficient one ; laudanum 

 will not cure, but liquor potasste will, perfectly and 

 immediately ; it instantly removes the pain, and prevents 

 swelling or inflammation: the poison of the bee being an 

 acid, this very powerful alkali neutralises it, lt should 



regular mode of pruning, but under the circumstances I 

 have mentioned I imagine it will be found useful once in 

 three or four years.— J. R. Pearson, Chit well Nurseries. 

 American Blight.— I had three Apple-trees covered 

 with this blight, which I had scrubbed with a hard brush 

 and strong soap-suds several times without effect; but 

 after the trees were quite dry from the last scrubbing, I 

 had them anointed with linseed-oil, applying it with a 

 painter's brush ; this has entirely removed every vestige 



of the disease. — J . G. 



The Pine Appl*..— Having observed that you invite 

 persons disinterested In the matter, to make statement* 

 concerning the quality of the Thornfield Pines, I, although. 

 I have never seen any of the fruit in question, beg to be 

 allowed to state that I approve of Mr. Hamilton s prac- 

 tice with regard to moisture, and that 1 follow a similar 

 course with the most beneficial results. My method is 

 to grow the plants as fast as possible from the beginning, 

 never allowing them to experience a check if I can possi- 

 bly avoid it. They are subjected during the whole of 

 their growth to a verv moist atmosphere, as I never fail 

 to sprinkle them over-head until the fruit is in bloom. 

 When they are in this state, the walls of the pits are 

 wetted every evening before shutting up ; and as soon 

 as the bloom has dropped, watering over-head is again 

 resumed, aud continued until the fruit begins to change 

 colour. When this occurs, watering is discontinued 

 altogether, with the exception of occasionally wetting the 

 wails and pipes. When the atmosphere of the pits is too 

 dry, I prefer a good bottom-heat, which enables me to 

 give abundance of air in fine weather. This adds greatly 

 to the strength of the plant, and is most essential to the 

 flavour of the fruit. Under this treatment the fruit ot 



ocean 



aoes wen , uuv. n. must ut o^p..^*. . j - r - ^ 



being extracted. As I am constantly amongst bees, 1 

 generally carry a little bottle containing a few drops in 

 my pocket. It is verv rarely that I get a sting, but when 

 I do, my remedy is at hand. I regard it not half so much 

 as the sting of a Nettle.—^ Constant Reader. 



Humphreys's Compound.— Observing in an advertise- 

 ment in your columns, that what ia called a liquid guano 

 may be made by means of Humphreys's Compound, 



^"e^a^^iixsfflsr 222A u^rrr^roVsodird = 



amidst the continual noise of the steam-engine and loud 



hki u 1C 8 P innin g"Jennies, as in the dark room and 

 tumble bed allotted for repose when the labours of 

 ;. e da 7 are end ed. Your correspondent's attempted 

 aneer because 1 have designated some of the bees guards, 



shan nse i quence of the dmies the 7 a PP ear t0 P erform ' J 



whose 011 ? nSWer by quoting the following from Bonner, 

 EhrPTrri* ' P ublisli ed in 1793, gives an interesting and 



nsects . aCC< ? n . t ° f the natural histor y and habitS 0f theS6 

 dron '' Lwl? he uses the term * M scouts " and " squa- 



*eathe 



in? R pIJ S Very favou rable, the bees often, before swarm 

 and l\ °! lt Scouts in search of a proper habitation ; 

 any em 6 ? i y discover a b ive whose bees are dead, or 

 °ficbf i ab ° Qt the roof of a gentleman's house, 



**es hav Ca8tle, or trunk of a tree » more especially if 

 have died Wrought combs ^ it the summer before, but 



guano could be made from it. Under this impression, 

 1 got a chemical friend to examine this compound upon 

 the chemical ingredients of guano, and he informs me 

 that he cannot discover a trace of phosphate of lime in 

 it, which every one knows is the principal fertilising sub- 

 stance of guano ! I do think that parties advertising 

 manures ought to be more particular in their assertions, 

 and not take it for grauted that all who read their an- 

 nouncements are blockheads.— F. R., St. George's -place, 

 Brixton. [We cannot be answerable for the statements 



of advertisers]. . , 



Euphorbia Jacquiwflora.— The following is the result 

 of an experiment with this plant :— I bought a large 

 specimen, but to my disappointment it was covered witn 

 brown scale. Determined, however,to clean it, I cut every 

 branch back to the old wood, and smeared it over witn 

 clay, according to Mr. Baton's plan, made to the con- 

 sistence of thick paint. I shook all the soi away from 

 the roots in order to get at the bottom of the stem, l 



twelves, ine iruu ui iucsc ua»c i"F° " • ' 



like those of the Providence than of the Queen ; they are 

 of the brightest colour, and of the highest flavour, 

 abounding in juice of the richest quality. \\ hen grown 

 in a dry atmosphere I have seen the same kind, and also 

 other varieties, having more the appearance ot the neaa 

 of a Teasel than that of a Pine- Apple. These facts prove 

 that moisture is not injurious to the flavour of the 



Pine-Apple. — C. J. . , 



Singular Propensity of a Co/.-A friend of mine has 

 a favourite female cat who is fond of raw potato parings. 

 Every time the gude wife begins to prepare the potatoes 

 for cooking, puss leaves her warm corner, and begins 

 purring and mewing, and patting with her paw, till a 

 paring is given her, which she immediately devours with 

 much relish. As soon as she has finished, she renews 

 her supplications, is served again, until the potatoes are 

 all pared for the bipeds of the family. What is more re- 

 markable, the parings do not appear to disagree with. 

 ^rimalkin, who is fat and sleepy. Her descendants do 

 not inherit this strange propensity. — A. T. 



The Froth Fly. — Upon referring to p. 60S, vol. ii., of 

 the Chronicle, 1 find 4i Ruricola'' to be in error when 

 saying, " On removing the froth the small green larva; 

 will be found concealed, and are able to skip away when 

 disturbed." Now in this state skip they certainly can- 

 not, and but very imperfectly walk. He also says, 

 " But when and where the female lays her eggs is stiu 

 undiscovered, but most probably iu the y° uo S ^V; 

 buds which 



fy 



i are formed to produce leaves the Mo""'*? 

 If so, I would ask how comes the froth wtb 



dron oft " ,f U iD W ; nt ",' >V -3T3 o« ^«- is breaung ail over.* emg ^..n^- j'Y^-from t he youog "shoots of hard/ Fuchsias » ZZ™Zn7ei 

 *»» out the I"" ° r f r r d / y * before the 7 swarm> lp tl,e ,=' ou ," K r, ; , ™4kU dmded into t«o | have %** dowu iu autumn, aud had their roots covered 



out the place, and render it fit for the reception of [ roots about four or five pieces *ucti i wvuwa iu , 



