166 
AMERICAN AGRICULTURIST. 
Transplanting Ruta-Bagas—Large Yield 
Wm. J. Pettee, Salisbury, Ct., writes that he 
has tried sowing ruta-baga turnips on a bed thick¬ 
ly, about the 10th of June, and when the plants 
are of proper size, transplanting them to the open 
field. He is pleased with the plan, as it saves the 
first weeding, and also the thinning.—Taking into 
account the labor involved in resetting, and the 
check they will receive in the process, it would 
not pay to do this upon a large scale, we suspect. 
The seed is cheap and may be sown freely, and 
the plants may then be easily thinned with a hoe 
after they have become well established. The 
plan would work better with plants having a 
shorter- tap-root. Mr. Pettee says he gathered 
900 bushels of ruta-bagas from an acre. The 
best quarter acre produced 325 bushels, or at the 
rate of 1,300 bushels tothe full acre. 
Lima Beans—Substitute for Poles. 
We have this year constructed a sort of trellis 
for our Lima beans which is cheap, and orna¬ 
mental withal. Two beds or ridges, 25 inches 
wide and 4£ feet apart, are rounded up for plant¬ 
ing the beans upon. The beaus are put in drills 
upon the summit of these ridges. A patch about 
two feet wide is left between the ridges, and a 
narrow path, one foot wide, is left upon the out¬ 
side. The center of each ridge is some 5 inches 
higher than the path, so that no water will stand 
upon them to rot the beans, which were planted 
as early as May 3d. (They came up May 9th.) 
For the trellis, a row of posts 8 feet above the 
surface and 2 feet in the ground, is set up in the 
center of each ridge at intervals of 61- feet—the 
posts in the two rows standing in pairs opposite 
to each f.i.h@r. These were of course set before 
forming the ridges of earth and planting the beans. 
Tho posts are sawn stuff, 2=) by 3-1 inches. Round 
timber would have been used, but was not as 
convenient to be got, or as cheap as the scantling 
or wall-pieces that cost but 8 cents apiece. 
Along the outside of the two rows of posts three 
horizontal strips (1 by 3 inches) are nailed on— 
one at the top, one 12 inches from the ground, 
and the other midway between the top and bot¬ 
tom strip. These strips are directly over the 
rows of beans which, by the way, are stuck down 
in double tiers or drills upon each ridge. Gross 
piccesbetween each pairof posts, are nailed across 
the top, to strengthen the structure. Small nails 
nre driven into the string pieces at intervals of 
5 or 6 inches, to which strong strings are tied. 
Each string is fastened to a nail in the bottom 
strip on one side, then carried to a nail in the 
middle piece and round it, then to the top piece, 
then over to the opposite side and down to the 
lower strip, and tied to a nail there. It is wound 
around a nail in each string piece. The running 
vines will be trained up these strings, and if desired, 
conducted across the top to form an arbor, though 
we intend to pinch them off when they reach the 
upper string piece on either side, lest the foliage 
if across the top should shut out the sun-light. 
The wood work is to be whitewashed, to give it 
a neat appearance. The structure will last for 
several years, and need not be taken down an¬ 
nually. We have found Lima beans to do well 
on the same ground from year to year. 
The expense of this arrangement is trifling. 
Our two rows measure together some 50 feet; 
which would have required say 16 poles, giving 
much less running space for vines. The posts and 
string pieces cost about, one dollar and a half. 
With the aid of two men, we cut out the pieces, 
dug the holes, put up the frames, made the ridges, 
and planted the beans in about three and-a-half 
hours. It resembles a grape-arbor with the ex¬ 
ception of an arch over-head, and when covered 
with a mass of vines will not be un-ornamental. 
The beans will doubtless yield better when thus 
spread out on a large surface, than if trained thick¬ 
ly around straight poles set 3 or 4 feet apart. 
Those who have already planted in hills, but 
have not yet procured poles, may easily set up a 
few posts, nail.on string pieces, and stretch per¬ 
pendicular strings for the vines to run upon. The 
more space a given amount of vines can be spread 
over, the better will they he exposed to sun and 
air, and the more perfect and abundant will be 
the product. 
Questions about Potato Rot. 
To the Editor of the American Agriculturist: 
For several years past my potato crop has been 
almost an entire failure. I had planted the same 
seed year after year, and on old ground. By- 
reading, studying, arid attending discussions, I 
was induced to try a different course. I pro¬ 
cured my seed 15 or 20 miles distant, and plant¬ 
ed without manure on dry pasture land, broken 
up in the Spring. When the potatoes were in 
bloom, I sowed broadcast on the tops thr^e or four 
bushels of ashes, with one-tenth part lime, per 
acre, repeating it in six or eight days. This was 
done during damp weather. Another piece was 
old mowing ground broken up, with strawy ma¬ 
nure applied in different ways. Both produced 
good crops, while many pieces in the neighbor¬ 
hood were nearly destroyed by rot. 
We know the potato vine is a great absorber 
of moisture. When other leaves are wet, those 
of the potato are often dry. Now does not this 
absorbing power, which the potato possesses in so 
great a degree, cause a super-abundance of 
water at the bulb in wet, foggy weather, stopping 
the healthy growth of the tuber ; and does not 
the action of the heat which frequently follows, 
produce the same effect that moisture and heat 
would on any other vegetable matter, viz., cause 
it to rot 1 Do not strong manures, by increasing 
the growth of the tops, extend the surface of the 
leaves, and consequently the absorbing power, 
and thereby increase the liability to rot? 
On the other hand, if straw or coarse manures 
are used, which do not rot quick enough to force 
a rapid growth of tops, and increase the absorb¬ 
ing power beyond a proper equilibrium ; or if old 
pastures are used, and the animal and vegetable 
manures do not exceed the mineral, does not the 
bulb keep pace with the top in growth, and need 
all the moisture absorbed by the tops in order to 
produce a healthy potato 1 Will not ashes and 
lime, sown on the leaves, make an alkali which, 
being absorbed by tho leaves and carried to the 
roots, neutralizes or prevents the acetous fermen¬ 
tation, which otherwise would take place and de¬ 
stroy the potato ? Orf.n O. Stewart. 
Lincoln Co., Me., 1859 . 
Hunting Wild Bees. 
We recently gave a chapter on this subject, 
(Vol. XVII, p. 363.) H L. Cousin, Oneida Co., 
N. Y., sends to the American Agriculturist a des¬ 
cription of a contrivance for catching the bees. 
It is simply a small box about three inches long, 
two inches wide, and two inches deep, open at the 
bottom. A partition, parallel with the bottom, di¬ 
vides the box into two parts. The top of the box 
is covered with a small square of glass. In the 
partition is an opening about an inch square, with 
a slide over it extending to the outside of the 
box, so that the hole in the partition may be 
opened or closed at pleasure. The bee-hunter 
provides himself with a basket containing the 
box, a few pieces of dry comb, and a vial of honey 
and water, mixed in equal quantities. 
Having found a bee at work upon a flower, 
the box is placed over him, and the bottom cov¬ 
ered with the hand, when the bee will pass up 
through the opening in the partition toward the 
light, to escape. The slide is then closed over the 
opening, and the bee is fairly caught. A little of 
the honey in the vial is then poured upon a piece 
of comb, on a board or dish, and the box set over 
it, with one edge raised a little to admit the light. 
Then if the slide be drawn and the top darkened 
with the hand the bee will descend, and coming 
in contact with the tempting morsel, will go 
straight to work to load up, for he generally has 
an eye to business, however he may be situated. 
The box may now be gently raised, and his flight 
observed. After catching and liberating several 
bees from the same locality, one line of direction 
is soon found. Then a number more maybe cap¬ 
tured and carried to some distance before freeing 
them, by whom another line is formed, crossing 
the first, or rather running to it. It is then only 
necessary to observe a few objects in each line of 
flight, to find where the two lines will meet, which 
will of course be at the point where the common 
store-house of the bees is located. 
Keeping Hew Swarms of Bees in the 
Hives. 
To the Editor of the American Agriculturist 
In your Basket , S. P. Campbell, of Minnesota, 
asks how to prevent swarms leaving after being 
hived. As experience has been my sole teacher i 
in the management of bees, and as young 
swarms never leave me, I cheerfully communi¬ 
cate my method of managing them, trusting that 
he and others may profit thereby. When a young 
swarm leaves the old hive, pay strict attention 
to the queen. Sire may be recognized by her ap¬ 
pearance ; she is much like the yellow wasp, be¬ 
ing longer than the common bee, and not as clum¬ 
sy as the drone. Her wings are comparatively 
short, and not calculated to sustain her very long 
in the air. If she flies off with the swarm, all 
is right, but if you find her on the plot before 
the stand, you may know that her wings are de¬ 
fective, or that she is too feeble to accompany 
the young swarm. Therefore take her up gently 
in your hand, and retain her till yon see the young j 
swarm make an effort to settle. Some time may j 
elapse before they make this effort, as the bees ! 
know that their queen is not with them, and | 
they will fly in every direction in search of her. I 
As soon, therefore, as they congregate around any i 
object, place the queen there, and they will at ! 
once settle around her—unless the bulk oi the 
swarm may have strayed off, and then they ' 
are apt to return to the old hive. Should this bo i 
the case, use a little tobacco smoke, and dispel j 
such as may have clustered around the queen ; • 
then take her and return her to the old stand, j' 
when the others will soon follow. But if the 
swarm settles to the queen, there is then full time j 
to prepare the hive. See to it, that it is clean, I 
and free from all offensive odors. Wash the inside 
slightly with water sweetened with honey or mo¬ 
lasses. Then proceed to the place where you ex¬ 
pect to hive the young swarm, place on the ground 
a white sheet, put down the bottom board, on that 
put two narrow strips of thin plank, and on these 
your hive. Have the end of the sheet where you 
expect to shake your bees on, extend about three 
or four feet. As soon as you have them ready, 
shake them tothe mouth of the hive, and take the 
end of the sheet and throw it over the top of 
