260 



JOTTRNAL OP HORTICULTUKE AM) COTTAGE GAEDENEE. 



[ March 2S, 1866. 



be. EecoUecting poUen-gathering from the Devon Laurus- 

 tinus, stopped and disinterred some upper branclies of a 

 shrub, and found the bloom not opened. Regretted as we 

 strode along to see here and there on the top of the snow 

 an Italian, now a Britisher, follen to rise no moi'e. In front 

 of the hives the purity of the snow sullied with quite a 

 shower of excreta, but, fortunately, fewer bees dropped than 

 we had feared. Xo pollen-gathering — could it be expected ? 

 Made all snug and left them. 



By Thursday following the snow had silently and quietly 

 passed away, except where the drift had been deepest, a? 

 up against the garden wall and around the hives. Stood 

 long and patiently in the wet slush watching the late 

 arrivals, when lo ! at longlast in goes an active little Li- 

 gurian. Wished to, but durst not, with so much snow still 

 about the hives, raise the frames to ascertain what store 

 waslefc; but consoled ourselves with the thought that, if 

 short, we could administer a good supply of food directly 

 into the combs, this time without our Devon friend coming 

 down upon us. 



Saturday, February 26th, snow entirely gone, mild for the 

 season. Sammoned our assistant and set to work. First 

 out slides square straw hive, plenty of food, fair population, 

 that lithe little yellow queen already at work, good sprink- 

 ling of eggs, and even some grubs about ready for sealing. 

 Having been somewhat suspicious of the season and of 

 some unhatched cells, around which the fresh brood and eggs 

 ■were now deposited, excise aU brood bed for another experi- 

 ment, to ascertain if spring be more successful than autumn 

 for the extirpation by excision of the bee plague. Cleaned 

 board, and shut up in the hope that we, too, had had " a 

 last glimpse of fold brood." 



Next a black hive ; not an egg. but very strong in popu- 

 lation and store. Although breeding had not commenced, 

 were sti-uek at the forethought displayed by the workers in 

 busily employing themselves during their confinement in 

 cutting down the massive thicknesses of the emptied upper 

 portions of the combs that had contained honey to the requi- 

 site narrow width for brood. As we scrubbed up our capital 

 mahogany boards, artistically cut from old table-tops, we 

 inwardly thanked your g-enial coiTespoudent. "Upwards 

 AND Onwards," for the hint. It may interest our old op- 

 ponent of the "milk-pan and straw hackle" controversy to 

 know that the shadow of the hated hackle has never been 

 cast across his mahogany — we have long ago abolished 

 them. And adopted the pan, eh ? Oh, no, as gi-eat anti- 

 panists as ever. Something better than either — handsome 

 wooden octagon covers for Stewarton hives as figured in 

 No. 9, only they lift off in a piece, and square ones in the 

 same style for square hives ; both of a sufficient altitude to 

 take in the fullest set of storified hives. 



The next, another black hive. As many eggs as in Li- 

 gurian, but no grubs, thus giving, say, eight or ten days' 

 priority in favour of Italians. 



In Uke manner the eight stocks composing the home 

 apiary looked this. Gi-atified to find all well stored and 

 peopled, particularly the last. An octagon storified Ligurian, 

 from its determination to resist all interference, and its 

 inmates having on one occasion last summer gained a 

 complete victory over my assistant, has since been rated by 

 him as quite a noli-me-tan<jere. As we approaclied it, his 

 ready pipe was out at once — this was forbidden at the 

 season — and the cover cautiously raised and slipped off as 

 gently as possible. The inmates made a rush to the entrance 

 in an instant ; and before the hive could be raised and 

 placed on the spare board a cluster hung on poor Friday's 

 veil front, and a crowd on either hand, while numbers spread 

 themselves all over his clothing and stung av/ay with that 

 hearty goodwill with which the Italian alone can. 'Iho 

 hands were speedily transferred to his trowsers' pockets, and 

 the body doubled up, as down the walk lie tore at a great rate, 

 leaving his master to clean the board and make all snug as 

 best he could. On the hive being replaced, the bees were 

 built up thick upon the landing-board, and up the hive 

 front, more like .Tune than February. Wo only wished 

 " J. E. ii." ha'l been there to have seen and felt the weight 

 of a real storified blve still GOi lbs. gross with board. 



In the afternoon set off and made a similar examination 

 of the outlying apiary at a farm a milo or two distant. 

 Accompanied by the old farmer, their custodian, went down 



into the garden. A glance at the entrance of three of the 

 hives, and then the following colloquy, which we must re- 

 port for the edification of your Oxfordshire correspondent. 

 " Halloa, Hugh, mice in all the hives ! Why didn't you 

 keep a sharp look-out?" "I thocht as muckle ; but you 

 see, sir, as they werna my ain I did na jist like to meddle wi 

 them." Confound Scotch caution for once. Off first hackle, 

 and out falls from its apex and rolls on the walk a pretty 

 little ball composed of cut straw, beautifully arranged; 

 how " Upwards and On^vards " would have admu-ed the 

 snug little domicile ! In each case the mice were gone, and 

 these three Stewartons were all still well stored and peopled, 

 although the deep cuttings into the rich end combs showed 

 how luxuriously our little enemies had fasted during the 

 severe weather. Never sufi'ered from mice before, first indi- 

 cations of them in the home apiary at once putting us on 

 the alert, what had tempted the aggression in this instance 

 being the extreme lowness at which the permanent massive 

 thick stone hive-boards were set bringing the hackles close 

 to the ground. It may be worth noting that the combs 

 generally were much better kept in the hives under the 

 protection of the wooden covers compared with those under 

 hackles. Although both were ventilated alike, still the 

 farmer's hackles did not contain the same body of straw I 

 used to employ. 



A third small apiary was too distant to reach that after- 

 noon ; but there was no fear of mice there, as the custodian 

 invariably places a bit of lead over the entrance, with only 

 little cuts to allow the bees to be got out singly. We never 

 approved of such contrivances. Nothing like a thorough 

 cu-culation of pure air underneath hives during the dormant 

 season. Was never more impressed than this winter with 

 the great advantage of giving an ample supply of food when 

 required in October, so as to permit the bees to enjoy a com- 

 plete dormancy. No hive of mine receives a particle of food 

 till the ventilating ekes are withdrawn in the beginning of 

 April. Thankful to find all so flourishing, and not one foul 

 cell in all my black colonies ; those excised from the Ligurian 

 one alone excepted, casting a dark shadow over the prospects 

 for the season. 



March 1st. — Young bees on the wing from octagon Li- 

 gurian above alluded to. Again the yellow-jackets are in 

 the ascendant. 



March 10th. — Cloud of young bees out of a strong black 

 stock, confirmatory of a ten-days earlier stai't in favour of 

 the Italians. — A Renfrewshire Bee-keeper. 



Egyptian Bees. — In Lower Egypt where the blooming of 

 flowers is considerably later than in the upper districts, the 

 practice of transporting bee-hives is much followed. The 

 hives are collected from different villages along the banks, 

 each being marked and numbered by the proprietors, to 

 prevent future mistakes. They are then arranged in pyra- 

 midal piles, upon the boats prepared to receive them, which, 

 floating gradually down the river, and stopping at certain 

 stages of their passage, remain there a longer or shorter 

 time, according to the produce afforded by the surrounding 

 country. In this manner the bee-boats sail for three months. 

 The bees having culled the honey of the orange flowers in 

 the Said, and of the Arabian jasmine and otiicr flowers in 

 the more northern parts, are brought back to the places 

 from which they have been carried. This procures for the 

 Egyptians delicious honey, and abundance of beeswax. The 

 proprietors in return pay the boatmen a recompense pro- 

 portioned to the number of hives which have been thus 

 carried about from one extremity of Egypt to the other. 

 The celebrated travellei-, Niebuhr, saw upon the Nile, be- 

 tween Cairo and Damietta, a convoy of 4000 hives in their 

 transit from Upper Egypt to the coast of the Delta. 



OUE LETTEE BOX. 



Tnckraping Room iv a Common Sttiaw Hivi: (/7,)-— Get nn eke ma<le of 

 flruw of the hime diarautcr ii-t thu hive, antl of nucli depth a» you may deem 

 fit'-in(f. Uuist.' tl)f! hive on It us sooq a» miide, and keep it from ulipplnif by 

 tni'iiMK of tt tow stout )t:ilr-piiiH, HtuppioK ^^^ o\d entrance and tilling up all 

 cruvic('H wltli Kood inort;tr. 



DiiVKH NOT Hatchino {C. E. Jf.).— Ap ynu mention your Doves Homc- 

 tiinen HittinK on four «?(rk'», Uiero cun be no doubt but IhHt tlioy are two 

 \ivn\ conBequentl)* ihe crk** cannot be fertUu. Luy two cocks, or oxcbaogc 

 one lor a cock.— IJ. I*. liuKSj. 



