41S 



JOURNAL OF HORTICTJLTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 



t November 21, 1872. 



claimed to his companions, "Aye! I have got them," and they 

 flocked round him to see the treasure he had secured. "When he 

 lifted his cap a little from his breast, some of them escaped, and 

 one of the bees flew right at him and stung him just below the 

 eye ; I did not again hear him say, " Aye ! I have got them." 



At our Great National Horticultural Exhibition, held at the 

 Botanical Gardens, where they give away .£1000 in prizes, I 

 have exhibited my bees at work, honey, combs, &c, for several 

 years, and they have always been a very great source of attraction, 

 having much increased the Society's funds for admission. The 

 crowds of fashionable people round them for a week have been 

 very great indeed. One day I was standing outside the crowd 

 and saw an old country bee-keeper whom I knew, trying for a 

 long time ineffectually to get to the table to see the bees, but 

 there were so many before him, he would have been obliged to 

 have waited a long time, so I heard him say, " Hang it, I will 

 see them." He went away for a few minutes, when he came 

 blustering up again, calling out when he got to the crowd, 

 " Now, then ! Now, then ! we will let them out." The words 

 were like magic. The crowd backed away from the table, and 

 he had it all to himself. — William Case, Manchester. 



OUR LETTER BOX. 



EEEEDrsG Black Red Game Bantams {Brown Red). — If tout chickens 

 are too dark, a wheaten hen mil make them lighter. We are not friendly to 

 crosses of any kind, and do not, therefore, approve your idea of the Duck- 

 wing. "We cannot recommend any dubber, but there are numbers of them 

 throughout Lancashire. If you wish to breed Duckwings, breed from pure 

 birds. It is tiresome work breeding-out. You cannot breed good chickens 

 in a very small place ; the parents may live there and lay well, but chickens 

 want a run. The old birds may live in the space you name if they have sun, 

 and you take pains to supply them with all they would have at liberty. It is 

 useless to think of rearing chickens there. 



Points in Golden- spangled Hamburghs {G. F. R.). — Deaf ear, comb 

 colour, spangling, and tail are among the principal points of a Spangled 

 Hamburgh. The importance of each depends on the judge or judges. 



Breeding Duces {Amateur). — From ten to twelve months old, but they 

 will breed younger. A drake at six years is too old. 



Hottdan Hacele Feathers {J. J.). — Bed feathers in the hackle of a 

 Houdan would be fatal to any chance of success if any bird were shown with- 

 out them. Yellow feathers may be overlooked, but red are inadmissible. 



Brahma Hen with Fallen Chop (A, F. A 7 .), — Take your hen by the legs, 

 and hold her up, head downwards, till all the contents of the crop have run 

 out. Then keep her in confinement, and feed her frequently, very little at a 

 time. The crop will then assume its natural state after a while. 



Cochtn-Chtnas' Scaly Legs {H. J. £>.).— The disease in question— poultry 

 elephantiasis, has only appeared of late. We have known it about six years. 

 Houdan s and Spanish had it first, then Cochins. It came after heavy snow, 

 and we hoped that with fine weather it would disappear, but it did not, and 

 from that time we can always at a moments notice supply specimens in 

 various stages of the disease. We have always attributed it to the French 

 breeds, and have never known a Dorking affected by it. We bred once from 

 a cock and hen, both suffering from it ; only two or three of the chickens had 

 it, and they did not have it till they were nearly adults. If we were com- 

 pelled to answer the question of its being hereditary, we should be in a great 

 difficulty. We could only say, like Sir Eoger de Coverley, " Much may be 

 said on both sides of the question." We should prefer breeding from a clean- 

 legged hen ; but if one with scaly legs possessed points or properties about 

 which we were anxious, we should breed from her. An entirely milk diet is 

 said to cure elephantiasis. We should like to have it tried for scaly legs. 



Decks for Exhibition {E. B.). — If you are in a Duck country 6 lbs. is 

 not heavy enough. You do not state the breed, but a3 you say they are well 

 marked, we suppose they are Bouens. They should weigh 15 lbs. the pair. 

 Accurate marking is, however, a great point. 



Bctf Cochins {T. S.). — Have birds of an even colour, and free from 

 vulture hocks, combs well serrated, strictly straight and upright, well-feathered 

 legs. If the cock's tail is of the same colour as his body, so much the better. 

 If it is black it cannot be helped. The pullet should have no black on the 

 points of the hackle. They should be short-legged and well fluffed. 



Gas Tar on Fowls' Plumage {G. E. S.).— We know nothing that will 

 remove tar from the plumage of fowls or Pigeons. 



Feeding Fowls (T., Sydenham). — We cannot answer your question 

 properly, because you do not tell us the breed of your fowls. Some lay earlier 

 than others. Those hatched in April should lay next month, those in Hay in 

 January. We should not think the hens will lay yet. You must be guided 

 by observation as to the quantity of food. If you can get ground oats, give 

 them slaked oats morning and evening, a feed of Indian corn whole at mid- 

 day. If you want eggs, they must also be well provided with road grit, and 

 with large heavy sods of growing grass. Give s^me kitchen scraps in bad 

 weather instead of the maize. 



Water for Fowls, &c. (TF. S.).— If it is supplied fresh daily, it matters 

 not whether it be hard or soft. 



Ground Colocr and Markings of an Almond Tumbler {M. Green). — 

 The ground colour should resemble that of the inside of the shell of the 

 almond nut. Having this as the ground colour, the whole of the body should 

 be neatly and evenly pencilled, not splashed or spangled, with a clear black. 

 This should he particularly the case on the neck and rump. Each feather in 

 the flights and tail should be evenly and distinctly broken with the three 

 colours — black, white, and the yellow or ground colour. Such is the descrip- 

 tion given by the Birmingham Columbarian Society in an admirable article 

 in our number for August 11th, lt*70, which see for further information on 

 this beautiful variety. 



Hives under a Boofed Stand ( ). — Your bees exposed to strong winds 



prevailing from south-west, on a stand with a roof and close ends, may be 

 closed in front if you leave a hole to correspond with the entrance of the hive 

 itself. It will never do to close it entirely, allowing them to find their way out 

 at the back. You would lose half your bees before March. You may certainly 



close the entrances in very stormy weather, provided you open a hole afc the 

 top, and cover it with a cap or box for ventilation. Bo careful, however, to 

 re-open them early in the day whenever the storms are over. You may con- 

 tinue this treatment until March without injury — rather with much benefit to 

 the hive?. Do not turn them to the east. Ln very severe frost, or when snow 

 is lying about, we would shut them in in the same manner. 



Skeleton Leaves.— " A Subscriber" asks if a book on this subject is 

 published, and " L. M. E." says that a very comprehensive little pamphlet is 

 published by John Eaye, Mason View, Didsbury, near Manchester. 



METEOBOLOGICAL OBSERVATIONS, 



Camden Square, London. 



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



Date. 







A.M. 







Ik ti 



Shade Tem- 

 perature. 



IE DAT. 







1872. 



. 2, <* 



Hv^Tome- 

 ter. 



1! 







Radiation 

 Temperature 



i 



53 



a 











In 



On 







a-= J Dry. 1 Wet. 



3° 





Mas. 



Min. 



sun. 



grass 







Inches.! deg. deg. 





deg. 



deg. 



deg. 



deg. 



deg. 



In. 





30.P59 ! 86. 5 34.2 



N.E. 



43.3 



41.8 



33.8 



S2.3 



29.9 



0.14O 



Th. 14 



29.683 1 36 2 36.2 



N.E. 



42.3 



41.5 



33.3 



71.5 



32.2 



0.290 



Fri. 15 



29.911 



37.1 36.1 



N. 



42.2 



428 



34.4 



45 8 



30.1 



0.162 



Sat. 16 



29.491 



37.9 



36 9 



N. 



42.6 



40.8 



36.6 



46.1 



363 





Sun. 17 



29.729 



35.7 



35.6 



S.W. 



424 



39 6 



32.0 



54.6 



33.1 







Ho. IS 



29.5S2 



33.2 



33 



w. 



41.6 



40.4 



31.7 



45.2 



29.2 



0.160 



Tu. 19 



29.195 3S.2 



35.7 



w. 



41.8 



46.3 



33 2 



45 9 



34.3 



090 



Means 



29.712 36.1 



35.4 





42.3 



41.9 



S3.6 



55.9 



320 



1.142 



REMABES. 



13th. — Very fine till noon, then clouded over; rain at 2.40 p.m., then bright 

 again. Bain recommenced about 8 p.m., and continued more or less all 

 the evening and night. 



14th. — Snow at 9 a.m., fine in the middle of the day, rainy after 3 p.m. 



15th. — Bain at short intervals all day, with boisterous north wind during the 

 evening and night. 



16th. — A very dull day, neither sunshine nor rain, but hazy and dark through- 

 out. 



17th. — Bather finer day, a little sunshine about noon, but rain between 3 and 

 4 p.m., and occasionally af terwards. 



18th. — Bain at 9.30 am., and at intervals all day, and very dark. 



19th. — Very fine all the forenoon, but dark and damp though not rainy after 

 till late in the evening. 

 Mean 9 a.m. temperature, 9^ less than last week, and ground temperature 



5.6 = lower, being a more rapid decrease than has coeurred for many months. 



Barometer oscillating very much and low. Bainfall again in excess, the total 



amount being over 1 inch. — G. J. Symons. 



COYENT GARDEN MARKET.— November 20. 

 So little change has taken place both in supply and demand, that former 

 quotations are quite applicable to the present condition of the markets. 

 Good sound Begent Potatoes have slightly advanced in consequence of a 

 better demand, but it is not a general thing. 



s. d. s. d. | 



Apples £ sieve 3 to 5 



Apricots doz. 



Cherries perlb. 0] 



Chestnuts bushel 12 20 i 



Currants A sieve 0| 



Black do. Oi 



Figs doz. 



Filberts lb. 1 16 



Cobs lb. 1 2 



Gooseberries quart 



Grapes, hothouse lb. 2 5 0' 



Lemons ^100 6 10 



Melons each 2 5 0. 



Mulberries =p-lb. 



Nectarines doz. 



Oranges ^100 6 



Peaches doz. 



Pears, kitchen doz. 1 



dessert doz. 2 



Pine Apples lb. 4 



Plums £ sieve 6 



Quinces doz. 1 



Raspberries lb. 



Strawberries 'P'lb. 



Walnuts bushel 15 



' ditto £*100 3 



s. d, s. d 



12 

 



VEGETABLES. 



Artichokes doz. 



Asparagus p-100 



Beans, Kidney ^100 



Broad bushel 



Beet, Bed doz. 



Broccoli bundle 



Cabbage doz. 



Capsicums ^-lGO 



Carrots bunch 



Cauliflower doz. 



Celery bundle 



Coleworts.. doz. bunches 

 Cucumbers ...each 



pickling ."..doz. 



Endive doz. 



Fennel bunch 



Garlic lb. 



Herbs bunch 



Horseradish bundle 



Leeks bunch 



Lettuce doz. 



s. d. s. d. I 



2 to 4 1 



Mushrooms pottle 



Mustard & Cress. .punnet 

 Onions ^ bushel 



pickling quart 



Parsley per doz. bunches 



Parsnips doz. 



Peas quart 



Potatoes.. bushel 



Kidney do. 



Bound do. 



Radishes., doz. bunches 



Rhubarb bundle 



Salsafy ^-bundle 



Savoys doz. 



Scorzonera .... ^ bundle 



Sea-kale basket 



Shallots lb. 



Spinach bushel 



Tomatoes doz. 



Turnips bunch 



Vegetable Marrows., doz. 



i. d. s. 



1 OtoS 

 



4 

 6 

 3 

 9 1 

 



2 



POULTRY MARKET.— November 20. 

 "We have a full market and rather heavy trade. Pheasants are coming in 

 more plentifully. Hares remain scarce, and so are young Partridges. 



s. d. b. d. s. d. s. d 



Large Fowls 36 to 4 Hares S to 3 6 



Smallerditto 2 6 3 Rabbits 15 1 « 



Chickens 2 2 3 "Wild ditto 9 19 



Geese 6 7 6 Pigeons 10 10 



Ducks 2 2 6 Pheasants 2 6 3 



Grouse 19 2 Partridges 2 2 6 



