100 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



[ August 1, 1872. 



queen, after searching in vain for empty cells, and depositing 

 two or three eggs in such as she could find, at last stand in 

 despair on the edge of a comb and drop her eggs at random, 

 which the bees devoured as fast as she laid them. In wefc 

 and cold, or gloomy weather the case is very different. The 

 cells are generally empty, and the queen with her enormous 

 powers of laying has unlimited scope ; every available cell in 

 super and stock is occupied. Hence in due time proceeds a vast 

 addition to the population, so that the hive becomes most in- 

 conveniently crowded. Preparation is therefore made simul- 

 taneously for the raising of young queens. Then comes a day 

 cloudless and serene, one of the six fine days we get in an 

 average English summer; everything invites, nay urges, to de- 

 parture, and off they go. Sometimes ; as in the cases before 

 alluded to, where no such excess of population exists, it would 

 seem as if conscious poverty urged the bees to depart, in the 

 hope of bettering their fortunes elsewhere. 



Be it as it may, fitful and unproductive summers are favour- 

 able to much swarming. Thus far the years of 1871 and 1872 

 have resembled one another, only this year has been with me 

 the worst of the two — nay, the worst of any of the fifteen years 

 preceding ; for it was not till the middle of July that I could 

 detect in any of my hives, then numbering fifteen, a single 

 sealed cell of honeycomb, although two at least of my hives ha?l 

 not swarmed. — B. & W. 



OUR LETTER BOX. 



March Pullets Laying (Croydonia). — We answer "yes" to your first 

 question. It is perfectly possible for pullets to lay at the age you name, as 

 we have had it happen to ourselves to have a Cochin pullet sixteen weeks old 

 lay regularly. We do not know of any breed that hatches at the end of 

 eighteen days, nor does such a thing ever happen to us, although we keep all 

 breeds. 



Mating Dorkings (B. T. C). — You may leave them together till the end 

 (if October if you do not hatch till March. If you wish to breed earlier you 

 must separate earlier. As a rule, all breeding- birds, if they arc to breed early, 

 should be put together not later than the end of October. 



Dare Grey Dorkings Becoming Lighter [Idem), — It is the tendency of 

 all dark birds to get lighter, but you will always be subject in Dorkings to 

 varieties of shades of colour. You must not condemn the. cock. A Silver- 

 Grey cock that is the proper partner for liglit Silver-Grey hens must have a 

 faultless black breast. 



Feather-eating Fowls (M. D. F.). — The Spanish fowls are eating each 

 other's feathers. They will do so sometimes as the season gets late and the 

 plumage gets worn out. It is seldom general in a pen or on a run, but all the 

 mischief is done by one or two unnatural birds. Watch and remove them. 

 Rub still with compound sulphur ointment, and feed, if you can, every day 

 on seeded lettuces. It is only now they will do it, and if you can moult them 

 well off you will be safe from such annoyances for a long time. Watch for the 

 offenders, moult them in any small space, aud^when in full plumage they may 

 be safely put among their fellows. 



Exhibiting a Hen in Two Classes (W. S.). — We think the judge was 

 fully justified in what he did. One hen cannot do duty in two classes. She 

 is evidently a good bird, and you should have been content with showing her 

 in one class. Her absence from either class might stultify the judge's 

 decisions. 



Producing Bantams (Breeder). — Having made np your mind what breed 

 you wish to introduce into the Bantam classes, choose the smallest male you 

 can find, having the attributes of the breed most strongly developed ; put 

 him to a large Bantam hen approaching as nearly as possible to himself in 

 shape and colour, and guiltless of points that would disqualify the progeny 

 in the father's class. If your space permit, and you are willing to take the 

 trouble, reverse the above, take the smallest hen of the breed you wish, to 

 make, and the largest Bantam cock of proper colour, &c. The next year you 

 will have to choose your smallest birds, but those most promising in points 

 and character, and you must put them together. You will also put the 

 original father with his daughters, and mother with her sons. This will give 

 you such bh'ds that by judicious selection for breeding you will have a breed. 

 All such require re-pairing and strengthening now and then. 



Ducklings Dying (E. -ET.h^Your poultry have access to something that 

 is very injurious and fatal. You must find out what it is. There are certain 

 waters that cause paralysis in young Ducks. Some springs do it. We should 

 attribute your loss to that, but for the fowls being attacked. Are the duck- 

 lings shut in a house at night, and if so, what is the flooring ? 



Ducks* Legs Paralysed (Newcastle). — We are inclined to think that in 

 your case the evil arises from the coldness of the water. See what is said in 

 answer to another correspondent. 



Bees in Small Hives — Superfluous Swarms (R. IF.). — You bad 

 better give your two improved cottage hives ekes of 4 or 5 inches in depth at 

 once. The swarm may be able to carry down the combs this season. Keep 

 the best of the old stocks for a swarm next spring. To this you may also 

 give an eke either now or early in the spring. It" is, in case of an unusual 

 mortality during winter, best to have a good stock or two capable of affording 

 a swarm to supply deficiencies. It is hardly likely that your second swarms 

 will both be sufficiently well stored to stand the winter. You must inspect 

 them at the end of September, and decide whether to keep or break up. You 

 can drive out the bees of the stocks that are doomed and unite them to any of 

 your other stocks, or to your second swanns, if deemed advisable to attempt to 

 keep them ; and if these last are also to be sacrificed, then- bees can be added 

 to any others. II the second swarms are not sufficiently advanced to be 

 retained, you can carefully wrap them up and shake swarms into them next 

 year, to the great assistance of the bees and your own profit. 



Selling Price of Honey and Wax (E.).~ Most bee-keepers are glad to 

 get Is. 6(1. per lb. for the best honey in the comb, and from Is. 6<Z. to 2s. 

 per lb. for wax. The prieaB of both, however, vary with the locality. 



Transmitting Bees to a Distance (H. S.). — Bees bear travelling well at 

 aDy time of the ear when they ore not breeding ; therefore swarms travel 



well at any time, or bees transferred to empty hives, or to hives with sub- 

 stantial comb in them. In this case they must have sufficient food for the 

 journey they have to take ; otherwise the best times for bees to travel are iu 

 September, and from November to April. We have sent many hives long 

 distances with the most perfect safety in autumn, and in spring as late as the 

 middle of April. 



METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS, 



Camden Square, London. 

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



Date. 







A.M. 







1872. 

 July 



£3 ^ 

 p . n > 



Hygrome- 

 ter. 



.2 c 



lis 



11- 







Dry. 



Wet. 



o J 







Inches. 



deg. 



dee;. 



dog. 



We 24 



29.877 



7l 2 



66.i 



s w. 





Th. 2.S 



id. 57 



74 



7.'.2 



s.w. 



00 3 



Fri 26 



S9 848 



76.4 



CS.l 



w. 



1)7 8 



Sat 27 



29.991 



66 5 



Ba.7 



s.w. 



'0.6 



Sun 23 



30.U07 



70.7 



63.2 



s.w. 



66 2 



Mo 23 



29.8 i 



63.0 



04.7 



s.w. 



65 8 



Tu 3 



29 672 



te a 



02 6 



s.w. 



65 5 



Means 



-9.S65 



70.4 



65.1 





60 2 



In the Day. 



Shade Tem 

 perature. 



83.3 

 02.3 

 83.2 

 S2.0 

 SO 6 

 70.2 

 74.8 



S2.2 



deg. 

 59.4 

 64.4 



10.3 

 58.2 

 53 S 



:-:•! 



C .6 



F.adiation 

 Temperature 



In On 

 sun. grass 



aeg 

 221.5 

 132 2 



126 3 



127 3 

 127.2 

 1 9.1 

 1262 



127.1 



deg. 



;,7 :; 

 63.3 

 63 8 

 57 7 

 50.3 

 57.8 

 58.2 



0.130 

 0.362 



REMARKS. 

 2dth. — Fine all the early part of the day, hut stormlike, with lightning in th© 



evening and night. 

 25th. — Intensely hot during past night, and very hot out fine till 7 P.M., 



thunder very loud and near, with vivid lightning till 7.20, lightning 



almost incessant from 8.-10 to 9.10. Thermometer SO- in the bedroom 



at midnight. 

 23th. — Fine, but still very hot, rain commencing about 10p.m., and continuing 



more or less till midnight ; the hottest night for at least fifteen years. 

 27th. — Fair and bright throughout, but not quite so warro, and much cooler 



a( night. 

 28th. — Fine morning, sun hot, but tempered by a breeze, very slight shower 



between 8 and 9 p.m., dark and cloudy at night. 

 29th. — A lovely morning, bright yet cool, and so continued till about 5 p.m., 



when it clouded over and rain fell at 8 P.M. 

 30th. — Fine day, though thunder was very frequently heard at a distance, and 



a lirtle rain fell, but not enough to be measurable. 

 A hot week, especially the first three days. The temperature on the 20"th 

 192,3°) has only been exceeded during fifteen years on the following dates : — 

 185S, June 16th, 92.6'; 1863, July 21st, 9S.3 ; 1868, July 22nd, 98.2°.— 

 G. J. Symons. 



COVENT GARDEN TvTAWF.T — .Tm-.v 31. 



Supply short, especially in soft fruit. Business is steady, and prices a, 

 little higher A fresh consignment of Yvest Indian Pines has arrived in fair 

 condition, and continental supplies are well kept up, comprising Green Gage 

 and other Plums, also Currants. Potatoes rale heavy, and large quantities 

 are on hand. 



FKUIT. 



Apples ^ sieve 



Apricots <loz. 



Cherries per lb. 



Chestnuta hushel 



Currants $ sieve 



Black do. 



Figs doz. 



Filbert* lb. 



CI. ■ lb. 



Gooseb Ties quart 



Grape*, jothunse.... lb. 



Lemo'JS WOO 8 



M II.,,., each 



R. 



d. 



s. 



fl 1 



:-) 



OtoO 



,i 



•/, 







4 



ii 



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II 







6 



1 



I' 







9 



1 







2 







a 



II 



8 







14 



II 



y 







5 



II 



Mulberries V lb. 



Nectarines doz. 



Oranges 1*100 



Peaches doz. 



Pears, kitchen doz. 



dessert doz. 



Pine Apples lb. 



Plums £ Bieve 



Quinces doz. 



Raspberries lb. 



Strawberries $*lb. 



"Walnuts bushel 10 



ditto #100 



ArtiubOKrts doz. 



Asparagus ^100. 



Beans Kidney.. .. J sieve 



Brujid bushel 



Beet, Rerl doz. 



Broccoli bundle 



Cabbaue doz, 



Cap-icuras ^100 



Cairo's bunch 



Cau'ifluwer doz. 



Celery bundle 



Unleworts.. doz. bunches 

 Cucumh-'s each 



pickling doz. 



Enrti'vr doz. 



FenriRl bunch 



Garlic lb. 



Herb.i bunch 



HorKeradish hnDdle 



Lee^s : bunch 



Leitucj doz. 



VEGETABLES. 



, d. b. d 

 Oto 6 

 



Mushrooms pottle 



Mustard & Cress. .punnet 

 Onions bunch 



pickling quart 



Parsley per doz. bunches 



Parsnips doz. 



Peas quart 



Potatoes bushel 



Kidney do. 



Round do. 



Eadishes.. doz. bnnebes 



Rhubarb bundle 



Salsafy ^bundle 



Savoys doa 



Kcorzonera .... ^bundle 



Sea-Kale basket 



Shallots lb. 



Spinach bushel 



Tomatoes doz. 



Turnips bunch 



Vegetable Marrows. .doz. 



B. 



a. 



8. 



d 



II 



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l> 



6 







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2 







4 







POULTRY MARKET.— July 31. 



ExcESsrvE beat makes quotations difficult. Much that is partially spoiled 

 is sold at a very low price. Some that has only freshness of condition in its 

 favour sells well. 



LarfjeFo.vts 4 to i i: 



Smaller ditto 3 3 G 



Chickens 2 2 



Go-lings 6 6 i 



Dnokiiiiira SO S 6 



Guin aFowls 



« d 



Hares 



KabDits 1 5 



Wildditto 9 



Pigeons o 10 



Pheasants 



Partridges 



to 



1 6 



10 



1 o 

 <i i> 







