JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. t November io, issi. 
436 
immediate bad results, yet it causes the loss of the roots, especially if 
the soil be moist; in fact store-flowering plants of such kinds as Ixorasi 
Dipladenias, and Allamandas are often injured by resting in too low a 
temperature. Rest is best effected by keeping the roots moderately 
dry, and the atmosphere correspondingly so,reducing the temperature 
to 60° to G5° at night, with an advance by day in bright weather to 75°. 
Tropical plants do not need cold to induce rest, but dryness to harden 
the growth. Some of the strongest plants of Poinsettia should be 
placed in the stove to bring them into flower; also Euphorbia jac- 
quiniasflora, keeping the latter near the glass, as the colour is then 
not only brighter but the sprays last much longer in a cut state. 
Orchids. —Aerides, Phalamopses, Saccolabiums, Yandas, and similar 
kinds will, owing to the gradual lowering of the temperature, be in a 
partial state of rest, and will only need sufficient water at the roots 
to keep the moss damp ; if allowed to become too dry the lower leaves 
are apt to shrivel and fall. Prevent premature growth by keeping 
the house comparatively cool and dry ; moisture, however, must not 
be neglected, a little water being poured over the pathways when the 
temperature is rising in the morning, completing all watering and 
syringing by noon, so as to have the house dry before the temperature 
lowers. Air should be admitted by the bottom ventilators, only a 
little being necessary to keep the temperature from rising too high. 
Imported plants not having completed their growth must be kept in 
a moist atmosphere and watered, and plants growing on blocks must 
be examined and watered as they require it. Plants of Dendro- 
bium nobile that have completed their growth and have the buds 
swelling may be placed in the East India house, and they will be in 
flower by the new year. Cattleyas require a long rest, the pseudo¬ 
bulbs not being allowed to shrivel, but very little water will keep 
them plump. C. Warscewiczi now starting will make a fine display 
during the winter. Ladia purpurata which has not completed its 
growth should have a good position at the warmest end of the house. 
Calanthe vestita coming into flower must have very little water, and 
to prevent the buds falling keep the plants fully exposed in the 
driest part of the house. Cypripediums require water liberally at all 
seasons. Many Odontoglossums and Masdevallias are still growing, 
and must be kept moist at the roots. 
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HE BEE-KEEPER. 1 
BEST TIME OF COMMENCING BEE-KEEPING. 
In districts where bees are extensively kept bee-keeping may 
be commenced at any time of the year, for in such districts there 
is no difficulty in finding people ready to sell part of their stock. 
In the month of September, generally speaking, bee-farmers take 
their honey and finish their harvest. In doing this their hives 
are lessened in number about one-half. Hives at this season may 
be readily obtained at low rates, say a trifle more than the value 
of their honey. At the time of harvest clever bee-farmers mark 
the hives most suitable for maintaining the number usually kept, 
and take the honey from the rest, carefully preserving the bees 
and young queens of the honey hives to strengthen and perfect 
those kept for stock. If any of the bees require feeding, syrup 
is given them in September. This is simply the routine work 
of well-managed apiaries. Hives so prepared are valuable and 
can be confidently trusted, and, therefore, are worth more than 
their honey value ; indeed, their value increases as their honey 
is eaten. As autumn and winter pass away and spring appears 
stocks of bees rise in value, and continue rising till the time 
of swarming. Buyers then want swarms. In our opinion the 
best time to commence bee-keeping is during the dull months 
of autumn and winter—say any time between September and 
March inclusive. During November, December, and January 
hives may be safely removed from one garden to another with¬ 
out much risk of losing bees by the change. In February bees 
begin to fly farther from home, and therefore there is some risk 
in changing hives in February, March, and September. 
From March the September bees know the pasturage and coun¬ 
try well for a mile and a half in all directions around their hives. 
Swarms only on being hived can be safely removed a short dis¬ 
tance at this busy season. As we generally advise those who 
consult us as to how bee-keeping should be commenced to pur¬ 
chase hives near home if they can find them, we would like all 
to remember that the best time to buy hives near home is in the 
dull months of winter. In purchasing hives at a distance from 
home and having them sent there is no risk of loss of bee«, but 
the expense of carriage may be a consideration. In the autumn 
and winter months there is little if any risk at all in losing bees 
by suffocation in being removed from distant places. At this 
time of the year hives can be removed from one end of the land 
to the other without loss of bees or breakage of combs. To those 
who have resolved to have bees in their gardens next year, let me 
advise them to look around them for hives at their earliest 
convenience. Those who do not know the difference between 
a good and a bad one, a strong and a weak one, should apply 
to a respectable bee-keeper for a stock or two, or instruct 
a trustworthy agent to do the work of buying for them. Many 
ladies and gentlemen have failed at the commencement of bee¬ 
keeping by having worthless hives, and some have failed by 
some mishap with a good hive. When failure happens in 
the first year of commencement it is a great misfortune and 
disappointment. To prevent the possibility of misfortune to 
beginners we have advised those able to buy two hives to begin 
with them ; and we believe that those who followed the advice 
given have not regretted doing so. If any unexpected misfortune 
fall on one hive, the other hive may produce results so satisfac¬ 
tory as to makeihe owner fear no failure in the future. After one 
season of success bee-keepers seldom dream of failures in the 
future. 
As to the price of hives we cannot speak with confidence, for 
in different localities the prices vary so much. In bad seasons 
hives are lower in price than in good seasons ; and this is easily 
understood, for bees in bad seasons are dear at any price, and in 
good seasons good hives are cheap at any price less than £3 each. 
In Ireland and in some counties in England where bee-keeping is 
not well understood, hives are small and low-priced—from 10s. to 
20.?. each. Stock hives range from 30.?. to 10,?. each. Swarms 
in May and June range in price between 10,?. to 30 s. each accord¬ 
ing to locality and size. We have always thought it the better 
way to make a commencement with a stock hive, so that there is 
a chance of having a return from it the first year or a multipli¬ 
cation of stock.—A. Pettigrew, Bowdon. 
LIGURIANISING. 
I have been experimenting of late with Ligurian bees. Having 
lost an Euglish queen through old age, and as I intended to 
replace her with an imported Ligurian queen, I wanted to make 
sure she was not in the hive, so I gave them some Ligurian eggs, 
and the queenless bees at once built queen cells and sealed up 
three queen cells in a short time. This having removed my 
doubts, I cut out two of the queen cells and placed them in a 
small bar-frame hive (one that a queen came in from Italy) with 
over one hundred bees. One of the cells did not come to maturity, 
and the other queen was born without a wing, so that if she had 
been needed or bom in another hive she would have been no use, 
as she could not have been mated, not being able to fly. I de¬ 
stroyed her, and gave the same bees a piece of comb containing 
Ligurian eggs on the 12th ult., and on the 17th they had one 
queen cell built and sealed, and on this morning, October 25th, 
the queen is hatched. This is only about twelve clear days from 
the bees received the eggs. But it is only fair to state that it was 
all done in a warm glass house. 
I want to know if I can make my queen a drone-breeder in 
spring by supplying her with as much brood as will keep up the 
numbers ? I have already three Ligurian queens, and by raising 
a number of young queens early in the season this plan would 
produce early drones to fertilise them. Perhaps some of your 
readers have tried it successfully. If it is practicable, any number 
of queens could be raised in these little boxes in spring and given 
to black colonies, and then be fertilised by the drone-breeder’s 
progeny, and so ligurianise an apiary without loss of time to the 
bees.— Comber. 
BEE SHOWS AND BEES IN IRELAND. 
I quite agree with Mr. Edwards that Mr. Pettigrew’s remarks 
on the bee tent ought not to pass unnoticed, and am glad to see 
the article from ‘^Combsr” on the subject, as, far from the 
manipulations in the tent frightening spectators, I know of in¬ 
stances where persons previously afraid to touch bees have, from 
the instruction received at the recent show near Dublin, driven 
many hives successfully unaided and without gloves. I think 
this is sufficient proof that the shows tend to the advancement of 
bee-keeping. 
I fear the wintering of stocks this year will be bad, as they 
