395 



JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER, 



t November 14, 1872. 



8 lbs. ; But while this is so, we know from experience that a hive 

 with only such limited supplies may, in certain states of the 

 weather, die of starvation. If the honey is stored in detached 

 quantities in several parts of the hive, then the bees, clustering 

 in certain states of winter cold, may be unable, after the sur- 

 rounding stores are exhausted, to reach other parts where honey 

 is, and the bees perish. This I have often witnessed. It is 

 therefore desirable to have ample stores^ and so situated that 

 such contingencies may not occur. Resides, in a late spring, 

 extendiug on to May, the consumption of honey is larger, and, if 

 the hive is scantily supplied, feeding must be resorted to. 

 Winter feeding should be carefully avoided, except in extreme 

 cases, and having fed our stocks up to the proper weight in 

 September or October, we should leave them unmolested and 

 undisturbed, till the returning warmth of genial spring again 

 rouses our little favourites from their winter repose. — J. Lowe. 



National Pebisteeonic Society's Show. —Visitors to the 

 Crystal Palace Show can be admitted to this Society's Show on 

 the presentation of their address cards. The next meeting will 

 be held on the 19th hist., from 8 to 11 p.m., at Evans's Covent 

 Garden Hotel, when some two or three hundred Pigeons will be 

 exhibited from the lofts of Messrs. Jayne, Merck, Betty, Ord, 

 Hedley, and others. 



OUE LETTER BOX. 



Brahmas in a Shall Enclosure (Novice). — As much of the run as you 

 can must be laid down in grass. As a novice we do not advise you to begin 

 ■with a cross. In such a space as you mention you should keep Brahmas. 

 They are good layers and sitters, and good mothers. As you have no fowls 

 at present, we advise you to begin with, say, one cock and eight or nine 

 pullets. You can keep more hy-and-by, but they will be enough to begin with. 

 Any of the poultry books will give you instructions about a house, but they 

 are really not necessary. The fowls require a house to shelter them from 

 the rain, 'wind, and draught. It should have good-sized round perches within 

 2 feet of the ground. The floor should he of hard earth, beaten hard enough 

 to cause water to run off. It should, if possible, face south, west, or south- 

 west. The door should be at one end, not in the middle of tbe house; it 

 should open on their run. The house should be light enough to enable the 

 man to clean out every hole and corner, and the master to see that it is so. 

 A novice need not of necessity be ignorant. He has an open book "always 

 before him. He can see birds and fowls at liberty. Let him watch them, 

 and make his own place as much as possible like nature. More than half 

 the model houses and modern appliances rather retard than advance success. 

 There is nothing in the management of poultry that may not be mastered by 

 a little observation and a disposition to learn from the birds themselves. 



Precocious Pullet (A. W.). — "A pullet, cross-bred between Brahma and 

 Dorking hatched the last day of February, 1872, is stated to have laid thirteen 

 eggs in a stolen nest, and brought out ten chicks on the 1st of the present 

 month alive and doing well. Can this be?" "We quite believe it. We have 

 had the same thing with a Dorking. We hatched her the first week in 

 January to show for a competition in July. She had a brood of chickens at 

 the time. 



Light Brahmas for Exhibition (B. W. A.). — Unless yours are suburban 

 fowls they should not want much washing. If they have dirty patches on 

 their plumage, wash them off with a piece of flannel dipped in warm water 

 and a little soap. The feet and beak may he washed with plain water. All 

 the plumage may be washed in this way. The birds should then be put in a 

 basket partly full of soft straw, and kept before the fire till quite dry. They 

 should then be put on straw till they go to the show. They should not be 



washed unless it is necess ar y, as it is not good for the plumage. 



Various (N.). — Some people prefer the Brahma's spangled breast of which 

 you speak. It is quite as correct as the black one, and such cocks throw the 

 best pencilled chickens. But mind, it must be spangled, not splashed. Any 

 interference with the process of moulting is injurious to the bird and its 

 plumage. We strongly advise you to give no medicine of any kind, but 

 merely to feed generously with cooling food. It is unusual for a pullet to 

 moult heavily ; but at ten months old she is nearly a hen thoroughly fur- 

 nished. , ,Cif ~ r j n! ra ^^ ^jlqo 



Dorking Cockerel's Breast and Tall (H. S. F.). — There is no reason 

 why such a Dorking cock as you describe, with many white feathers in his 

 breast and tail, should not take even a first prize at the largest show. Dork- 

 ings are birds of weight and symmetry as table birds, not of feather. There 

 is no occasion to disqualify Black Dorkings because such a thing was never 

 seen. In order to meet the fancies of breeders, classes are provided for White 

 and Silver-Greys. Such being the case.no judge would be justified in pass- 

 ing a bird on account of colour. 



Plumage of a Cuckoo Dorking {Ctesar). — The ground colour of a 

 Cuckoo Dorking is a French grey, or a washed-out blue. Oats, meat, and 

 turnip will cause looseness, while the opposite effect will be brought by beans 

 and peas, also by a liberal mixture of chalk in their food. 



Oxford Poultry Show (H. S. Fraser},— It is apparent from the certi- 

 ficate of entry you enclose, that the Secretary made a decided mistake. As to 

 the blots, &c, in a different coloured ink we will not pass a judgment. We 

 think he ought to return the entrance money and the carriage expenses. 

 (C. Dmnison, Halifax). — This gentleman writes to say that his birds were 

 not at the Show. j^g 6i;V g^g* 



Various (C J.). — All that we know about goat-keeping is briefly stated in 

 our No. 437. Goats need shade from summer heats. Xf a cow will eat Jeru- 

 salem artichokes, tubers and their leaves, they would not do her any injury, 

 They might be taken up as required. We Bhould boil them and tnix them 

 with cut chaff. Cider two years old may be bottled without any addition. 



Hexagonal Netting {H. F. F.). — We think the meshes will be small enough 

 to prevent the escape of the birds you name. „ , ,„.,, 



Saving Bees of an Upset Hive {J. H. Howard). — If, as we imagine 

 from your description of the combs after the accident and your subsequent 

 manipulations, your bees are now without any combs, save such small pieces 



as you have placed in the drawer, we do not think there is any probability of 

 your saving them alive in the way you propose. If you could obtain a few 

 empty combs and attach them in a hive, then feed copiously with sugar 

 syrup and the remains of the honey you have saved, you might have good 

 hopbs of success; but you must he prepared to find the cost somewhat con- 

 siderable, as, doubtless, a large portion of the supply given would be used for 

 the construction of new comb. Ln any case feed on the top by the bottle, 

 as so often described. The bees will not live in one compartment and go into 

 another just when they require food. As a matter of economy, you had 

 better unite the bses to some other colony. 



Bar Hives [M. Z.). — Bar hives are made of various sizes to suit locality, 

 size of swarms, &c. ; but by sending five stamps to our office you will get by 

 return of post "Bee-keeping for the Many," which will give you full and 

 complete instructions as to the best of all bar hives, and how to make them. 



METEOROLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS, 



Camden Square, London. 



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



Date. 



A.M. 



In the Day. 







, %. a 





«a 





Shade Tem- 



Radiation 



.9 



es 



M 



1872. 



p ^ 'fi _; 



5553 



ter. 





perature. 



Te mperatnre 



Nov. 









In 



On 







ra- a ^ 



Dry. 



Wet. 



o° 





Mas. 



Min. 



Bun. 



grass 







Inches. 



del*. 



flee. 





deg. 



deg. 



deg. 



des. 



deg. 



In. 



We. 



29.918 



56.4 



55.5 



w. 



50.2 



60.2 



49.4 



65.5 



46 8 



— 



Th. 7 



30.268 



484 



46 3 



w. 



50.3 



57.8 



44.4 



90.0 



40.1 



— 



Fri. 8 



30.283 



50.6 



49.5 



N.W. 



4S.6 



58.0 



41.8 



86.1 



37.9 



— 



Sat. 9 



30.1G7 



45.1 



43 9 



N.W. 



49.1 



51.9 



41.6 



66.2 



37.3 



0.210 



Sun. 10 



29.698 



40.7 



38.7 



N. 



47 8 



45 2 



37.8 



83.3 



36.3 



0.110 



Mo. 11 



29.S92 



SS.3 



34 6 



N. 



45.3 



443 



84.2 



76.0 



31.5 



0.050 



Ta. 12 



29.930 



38.6 



33.2 



N.E. 



44 



47.8 



36.0 

 40.7 



85 2 



31.8 



0.010 



Means 



35.029 



45.2 



43.8 





47.9 



52.2 



73.9 



37.4 



0.360 



REMARKS. 



6th. — Rather dull day, hut without rain; gale in the evening. 



7th. — Very bright and fine all day, getting colder towards night. 



8th. — Dull in early morning, bnt very fine all day, though rather overcast 



after 2 p.m . ; more damp towards night, but no rain. 

 9th. — Hazy early, but fine and bright afterwards, and so continued all day j 

 rather cooler than the previous day. 

 10th. — Rain in the night and early morning, then very fine till 4 p.m. ; rain at 



6 p.m., and snow at 9 p.m. ; fine but cold night. 

 11th. — Fine hut very cold in morning, a little snow at 9 a.m. ; a very fine though 



cold day. 

 12th. — Rainy and dark early, but soon cleared off, and was very fine in the 

 early part of the day ; dark and sharp shower about 2.30 p.m. ; cold and 

 windy after. 

 With a greater prevalence of northerly winds, we have had less rain and lower 

 temperature, except of course in the sun, which, having had a chance of pene- 

 trating the atmosphere, has sent the radiation thermometer beyond 80° on 

 several days. — G. J. Symons. 



COVENT GARDEN MARKET.— November 13. 

 We have very little alteration to report, the northern markets as well as 

 this being unusually quiet, and no orders to any extent are on hand, but we 

 look for improvement as we approach the more busy time of Christmas. Out- 

 door produce is generally sufficient for the trade, Broccolis being unusually 

 good and plentiful. 



EHUIT. 



s. d. s. d. 



Apples h sieve 8 0to5 



Apricots doz. 



Cherries per lb. 



Chestnuts bushel 12 



Currants 4 sieve 



Black do. 



Fiets doz. 



Filberts lb. 1 



Cobs.. 



lb. 1 



Gooseberries quart 



Grapes, hothouse lb. 



Lemons ^100 



Melons each 



Mulberries ^ lb. 



Nectarines doz. 



Oranges ^100 



Peaches doz. 



Pears, kitchen doz. 



dessert doz. 



Pine Apples lb. 



Plums J sieve 



QuinceB doz. 



Raspberries lb. 



Strawberries ^lb. 



Walnuts bushel 16 



ditto ^100 3 



s. d. 8. 

 OtoO 







12 







S 



4 



8 



9 



2 











SO 







VEGETABLES. 



Artichokes doz. 2 



Asparagus ^100 



Beans. Kidney $* 100 1 



Broad bushel 



Beet, Red doz. 1 



Broccoli bundle 



Cabbage doz. 1 



Capsicums ^100 2 



Carrots bunch 



Cauliflower doz. 2 



Celery bundle 1 



Coleworts.. doz. bunches 2 



Cucumbers each 



pickling doz . 



Endive doz. 2 



Fennel bunch 



Garlic lb. 



Herbs bunch 



Horseradish bundle 3 



Leeks bunch 



Lettuce doz. 



Mushrooms pottle 



Mustard & Cress. .punnet 

 Onions 3?" bushel 



pickling quart 



Parsley per doz. bunches 



Parsnips doz. 



Peas quart 



Potatoes bushel 



Kidney do. 



Found do. 



Radishes., doz. bunches 



Rhubarb bundle 



Salsafy ^bundle 



Savoys doz. 



Scorzonera.... ^bundle 



Sea-kale basket 



Shallots lb. 



Spinach bushel 



Tomatoes doz. 



Tnrnips bunch 



Vegetable Marrows., doz. 



s. d. s. d 



OtoS 

 

 4 

 



s 

 1 





 6 

 

 

 1 

 

 1 

 2 

 ] 

 S 

 

 8 



POULTRY MARKET.— November IS. 

 If the present dry and brisk weather last, we may look for an improvement 

 in trade and prices. Pheasants are coming in more plentifully, and Grouse 

 in smaller numbers. The prices of both are influenced by it. 



