386 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ November 1, 18SS. 
elegans, Erica herbacea carnea and vulgaris aurea, Euonymus japonicus 
and its silver and golden-variegated varieties, E. radicans variegatus, 
golden and silver-variegated Ivies, Juniperus tamariscifolia, Laurustinus, 
Japanese Privet, Mahonia aquifolia, CLmanthus in variety, Pernettya 
well berried and in variety, Retinosporas ericoides, obtusa, aurea nana, 
plumosa, argentea, aurea, and squarrosa, these being among the best of 
plants for the purpose ; Skimmia japonica, Taxus baccata elegantissima, 
Veronicas decussata and Traversii, Vinca elegantissima, and Yucca 
recurva, this being well adapted for a central position^both with spring 
and summer bedding plants. 
Hardy Carpet Beds. —Those who employed hardy plants either for 
lining out or forming the groundwork of the designs may with but little 
trouble preserve a good appearance during the winter. The Alter- 
nantheras can be replaced by Ajuga reptans rubra, Iresines by the 
smallest Beetroot procurable from the kitchen garden ; while the creamy 
variegated Arabis, golden-variegated Daisies, Golden Thyme, Stellaria 
graminea aurea, Golden Pyretbrum, Stachys lanata, Festuca glauca, and 
Dactylis glomerata can all be worked in. Large pieces had in most 
cases be better divided, and any long straggling leaves trimmed off. A 
well-established piece of Iris fcetidissima vanegata may be easily divided, 
and small pieces be used as dot plants. So also may be employed small 
plants of Yucca recurva and the variegated Retinosporas. 
Dahlias. —There are thousands of seedling single Dahlias that are 
not worth preserving, and those, therefore, who have raised a lot should 
look them over at once and mark the best. The labels or other dis¬ 
tinctive marks attached to the named doubles and singles should also be 
renewed in order to avoid confusion in the spring. 
ROBBING AND ITS REMEDY. 
The following letter has been forwarded, to which we append 
the reply of an experienced apiarian, the subject being of general 
interest. 
“ I have been feeding my bees from the middle of August to near the 
end of September, when, seeing that honey was stored near the windows, 
I wrapped up the hives for winter. About two weeks ago I noticed robbing 
going on, so closed alternately the hives of robbers and robbed, opening 
them on alternate days. Last week on a sunny day, not seeing any bees 
from the hive that had been robbed, I lifted it to "examine and found it 
empty, only very few dead bees on floorboard. The combs are very dark, 
and mostly filled with what I take to be bee bread, and not room for much 
honey, of which there was none. The hive has been in use since 1880. It 
threw off two swarms in the spring, and I had only one glass super con¬ 
taining about 3 lbs. of honey. Can you give me any advice for future 
guidance, and the bees having once robbed will they be always robbers ? 
I find I did very wrong in allowing them to clear some honey from a plate 
outside the hives. Wasps have been very troublesome. Could they have 
had anything to do with loss of bees 1— E. S. W.” 
“ E. S. W.” acted wisely in feeding the bees during the latter 
part of August and through September, also in making the 
hives snug when October came and bees settle down into winter 
quarters. We do not gather how many hives of bees are kept 
by “ E. S. W.,” but whether only two or more, one hive was 
attacked and the stores carried off by the robbers. When 
examined, the pillaged stock was found to be without honey 
or bees; and since no mention is made of brocd, we conclude 
that that was also entirely ab ent. The combs were dark—they 
naturally would be so after three seasons’ use, and contained 
quantities of pollen. This hive had sent forth two swarms 
during the current season and had given a small glass super 
of honey. This super was doubtless tilled during the time 
between the departure of the first and second swarms. 
It will be remembered that, although the early spring was 
most promising, the weather became very wet and stormy 
towards midsummer. The usual consequence of such inclement 
weather in the height of summer is that many hives become 
either queenless, or young queens fail in bringing their matri¬ 
monial advances to a successful issue, and so remain drone- 
layers only. In either case the chances are that the hive dies 
out or becomes the prey of its stronger neighbours. Should 
the young queen be lost on her honeymoon excursion the bees 
may be able to raise another queen after the issue of the first 
swarm; but this is impossible should she be lost after the cast 
or second swarm goes forth, for by that time all the eggs left 
by the old mother queen, who led off the prime swarm, will 
either have hatched out or become grubs in a state too far 
advanced to be fed so as to develope the perfect queen. 
We have entered fully on this explanation in order to support 
our opinion that the robbed hive was previously queenless and 
had been so for a long time, and this is most likely the correct 
cause why it so easily succumbed to its enemies. We do not 
think that wasps destroyed it. We have often heard of wasps 
destroying stocks of bees, but have never yet met with any 
positive proof that such was the case. Certainly if a hive 
escape the searching inquiries made by r bber bees it might 
so dwindle and dwindle that at length the few remaining bees 
might be destroyed by wasps. But our own experience is that 
weak hive3 invariably yield to the superior force of strong ones, 
and after making a poor and ineffectual resistance, generally join 
with the robbers in removing the spoil, and so survive with the 
fittest. “E. S. W.” is quite right in supposing that the robbery 
may have been begun through honey having been set in a plate 
to be taken by the bee\ We have had gallons of liquid honey 
standing in the open garden during a honey glut, and the bees 
have left it unnoticed, while we have continued extracting close 
to the hive?. But in a bad season, and more especially towards^ 
the close of the season, the bees are thoroughly demoralised if 
once they get the scent of honey in proximity to their hives; 
and although robbing is so easily started, it is not so readily put 
an end to. We, however, still hold to our opinion that the 
attacked colony was queenless. A hive, even when weak, with 
a queen at its head, and with perhaps brood as well as stores 
to protect, will fight much more fiercely than the one in question 
seems to have done, since “ very few dead bees ” were to be seen 
on the floorboard. 
We found on one occasion that carbolic acid was an excellent 
weapon to use against robber bees. Many years ago, when we 
kept a number of straw skeps, very large ones, we had an 
accident while overhauling a stock. It slipped from our hands, 
and the blow against the floorboard brought down several slabs 
of newly stored comb. There was a complete smash, and a 
thick stream of honey was soon running down the posts which 
supported the stand. It was late in the season, and before we 
could collect and clean up the honey a cloud of bees from some 
twenty hives was about us. We could only remove the stock to- 
a distance and confine the bees left in it. Ultimately the colony 
was saved and did well another year; but we shall never forget 
the battle we had to fight with the other stocks, and but for the 
aid of the carbolic acid there would have been a civil war of 
extermination. The tumult was quieted thus. Eirst we very 
much sprinkled the position first attacked with the dilute acid. 
It was applied pretty strong, however, for we found that out by 
the appearance of the skin on our hands wherever the solution 
had touched it. After several attempts the bees began to fight, 
shy of the b dewed spot, and then we soon found that the 
neighbouring hives were being systematically attacked. With 
a feather a magic circle was drawn before the entrance of every 
hive that seemed weak, and, so far as we can now recall the 
event, nearly every hive had to be protected one after the other 
in the same manner. Entrances were reduced, and by the 
vigorous application of “ the mixture ” the enemy was repelled, 
while the inmates of the several hives ran the gaunt’et as shades 
of evening fell, and at last all was quieted by the darkness. We 
renewed the application early next day, but the attack was feeble 
and the danger had passed. When any bee-keeper has a bad 
attack of the robbing mania among his bees let him try a 
solution of carbolic acid. 
Because “ E. S. W.’s ” bees have once robbed there is no> 
reason to suppose that they will always do so. We do not see 
how the theory of evolution will so act as to cause the next, 
summer's occupants of a robbing hive to become more deter¬ 
mined marauders. Neither the queen nor drones assist in the 
assault, and the bees which rob in late summer will have little 
chance of remaining long on the scene next season. The first 
hard work of the new year will soon remove them, and young- 
bees will take their places which will know nothing of robbery, 
unless ill-gotten gains stored by their forerunners develope the 
piratical instinct in them as they consume them.— P. H. P. 
Bee Farming. —The publication of an interesting letter on this 
subject in answer to a series of questions on page 365 is unavoidably 
postponed. 
TRADE CATALOGUES RECEIVED. 
Dickson & Robinson, 12, Old Hillgate, Manchester.— Catalogue of Select 
Fruit Trees. 
William Meadmore, Romford, Essex .—Catalogue of Boses. 
Waite, Nash, Huggins, & Co , 79, Southwark St., London, S.E.— List of 
Flower and Vegetable Seeds. 
J. Cheat & Sons, Crawley, Sussex.— Catalogue of Trees , Shrubs, and Fruit 
Trees. 
