February 16, 1882.] JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
crops. The temperature of the house is kept as nearly as possible 
at 55°, and a moist atmosphere is secured by damping occasionally. 
Vines .—Forcing may be pushed forward, but it is not advisable 
to effect this by a high temperature at night or in dull weather, but 
raise the heat to the maximum day temperature early when there is 
a prospect of a fine day, and close early in the afternoon with plenty 
of moisture in the atmosphere. Ventilation and the application of 
moisture must have daily attention, regulating them according to 
the weather. Vines in pots should never be allowed to become dry, 
renewing the surface dressing, and supply tepid liquid manure freely. 
Allow the laterals moderate extension, securing a genial atmosphere 
by damping suitable surfaces about the house occasionally. All 
inside borders must be frequently examined, and when water is 
necessary afford it a few degrees warmer than the temperature of the 
border. Cuttings or eyes of Vines may now be inserted singly in 
3-inch pots, and if plunged in a bottom heat of 75° to 80° they will 
strike easily. When the pots are filled with roots transfer the young 
plants to 6 or 7-inch pots, and insure short-jointed vigorous growth 
by keeping the canes near the glass. Any that were not considered 
strong enough for forcing this season are not required for planting 
may be cut back to one or two eyes. Start them without bottom 
heat, and when the shoots have advanced repot in fresh material, 
and good canes may be obtained either for fruiting in pots or plant¬ 
ing. Vines in pots for planting out this spring should be kept in a 
house from which frost is excluded and allowed to start naturally, 
not planting them out until they have made growths 2 inches long. 
Cut-backs or Vines raised from eyes now will be suitable for planting 
out permanently in June. 
Figs .—Ventilation is necessary for houses of Fig trees, even if it 
cannot be effected without employing fire heat. Trees in pots started 
early in December are in active growth, and should still have the 
night temperature continued at 55° to 60° and 60° to G5 Q in the day¬ 
time, commencing to ventilate above G5°, allowing the temperature 
to rise to 75°, at and above which ventilate fully. Stop the shoots at 
the fifth or sixth leaf. Keep the bottom heat steady at 75°, affording 
water or liquid manure at that heat plentifully, and mulch the surface 
of the soil with a couple of inches depth of well-decomposed manure 
in a rough state. Syringing is needed morning and afternoon when 
the weather is favourable, but avoid a close moist atmosphere in dull 
weather. If a second batch of trees in pots be now started they will 
afford a succession. A night temperature of 50° and 55° in the day¬ 
time are sufficient to commence with, and GO 0 to 65° from sun heat> 
syringing the trees twice a day in bright weather. Bottom heat, though 
not so desirable as earlier in the season, is still beneficial, the heat 
around the pots not exceeding 70°. Trees permanently planted out 
in houses where the forcing commenced early in January are growing! 
and the shoots require pinching at the fifth joint, except extensions ; 
which should not be stopped so long as there is space. Remove 
superfluous growths, and tie in the young shoots to the trellis as they 
advance. Syringe twice a day in favourable weather, and lose no 
opportunity of affording ventilation. 
FLOWER GARDEN. 
Any alterations necessitating the removal and relaying of turf, or 
transplanting deciduous trees and shrubs, should be brought to a 
close as soon as possible. Evergreen shrubs should not be employed 
to the exclusion of deciduous shrubs, as some are very effective, and 
in autumn enhance the beauty of shrubberies by their richly tinted 
foliage. If lawns are mossy, as frequently occurs on poor soils, or if 
the grass be thin, a good top-dressing should now be applied. Rich 
vegetable soil is best for this purpose, to which should be added a 
good proportion of soot, wood ashes, and lime, and the moss will 
soon disappear. Grass is much improved by frequent sweeping and 
rolling. Walks, too, will require the frequent use of the roller, and 
where the gravel is discoloured it should be turned, a sprinkling of 
clean gravel on the surface being well rolled down. 
Borders containing herbaceous plants and bulbs must be forked 
neatly, as many plants are already starting. Reduce such as are too 
large, or divide and increase other choice and desirable kinds. Bulbs 
of Liliums may now be planted in shrubbery borders or among Rho¬ 
dodendrons, in the peat of which they thrive well. The bulbs should 
141 
be planted about G inches deep, and have a handful of sharp sand 
placed over them, which will keep them from decay. Gladioli for 
early flowering may be planted and treated similarly to the Liliums. 
Plant Ranunculuses and Anemones about 2 inches deep in rich deep 
soil, placing a little sand round them. Seed of Anemones can also 
now be sown, also sow Sweet Peas and Mignonette on a warm border. 
Roses and other climbers on walls and trellises should now be pruned, 
regulated, and tied in, and other Perpetual as well as summer Roses 
required to bloom early must be pruned. 
Proceed with the propagation of all bedding plants from 3tock plants 
placed in heat for the purpose. Most are better from spring-struck 
cuttings, and a sufficient number of these should be grown on so as 
to be able to discard the old stock plants. Tricolor and other choice 
Pelargoniums may be placed in a little heat to afford cuttings, which 
if partly severed and left on the plants a week or ten days, and then 
detached and potted singly, will form roots with certainty on shelves 
near the glass. Seed of Verbena venosa sown in heat will afford 
good plants for May. Place in heat roots of any choice Dahlias, 
plunging them in a bed of old leaves or tan, in either of which the 
young shoots root freely, and they can then be taken with safety and 
potted in loose vegetable soil. Pot off autumn-struck cuttings of 
Pelargoniums, Ageratums, and Heliotropes likely to suffer from 
being kept too long in store pots or pans. 
PLANT HOUSES. 
Plants of Urceolina aurea will start into growth shortly, and must 
be turned out of the pots, have the offsets removed, and the larger 
bulbs potted singly in 5 to 7-inch pots according to their size, using 
turfy loam with a little well-decayed manure. Flowering during the 
winter months, and the flowers being both graceful and beautiful, it 
should be grown by everyone having a stove. Hippeastrum pardinum 
should have the offsets removed, potting the old bulbs if they require 
it before much growth is made ; they succeed well in turfy loam, 
supplying them during growth will liquid manure. Amaryllises will 
be benefited by occasional applications of liquid manure. Pancra- 
tiums although now at rest must not lack water at the roots, and 
Eucharis m growth can hardly have liquid manure too copiously. 
Where stove climbers trained to the roof are planted in narrow 
borders the soil becomes exhausted in a season or two, in which case 
take out as much as can be removed without serious injury to the 
roots, and substitute good fresh soil. 
BEE-KEEPING FOR BEGINNERS.—No. 1. 
A correspondent of the Journal last week expressed a desire 
that some writer on bees would consider the difficulties of young 
apiarians and give them some simple lessons. His desire, doubt¬ 
less, is general amongst beginners, and the expression of it is quite 
natural. In reading and arithmetic first lessons are difficult for 
both teachers and scholars—that is to say, difficult to give and 
difficult to learn. The work becomes easier after the ABC and 
multiplicanon table have been mastered. So it is in bee-keeping 
and all branches of science. 
As bees have stiDgs and know how to use them, almost all 
beginners experience a natural shrinking from contact with them, 
and feel rather nervous in their first efforts to manipulate hives 
or examine them internally. This is common enough, and is not 
to be wondered at. Nobody likes to be stung. I often think 
that bees owe their continued existence in the lands of civilisation 
to their possession of weapons of defence. The treasures of a bee 
hive are tempting to men, animals of various kinds, creeping 
things, bees of other hives, and some kinds of insects. Both 
swallows and sparrows kill and divourbees at some seasons, or in 
times of brood-rearing. It will be seen, then, that bees use their 
stings in self-defence against enemies real and supposed, ami in 
thus acting the sweet treasures of their hives so much coveted 
are protected. Dogs, cats, sheep, hedgehogs, rats and mice, cocks 
and hens moving about amongst bee hives or living near them 
soon learn to let them alone or keep at a safe distance from them. 
In cold weather, while bees are sitting close together amongst their 
combs in a semi-dormant state, mice enter hives if their doors lA 
