143 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
August 14 , 1890 , 
APIARIAN NOTES. 
The Weather. 
A decided improvement lias taken place, the temperature 
having risen considerably. History has it that our parish is a cold 
one. One thing is certain—namely, that we have been in the track 
of storms the whole summer, and I observed that the severe gales 
at times covered a narrow field. Some days the temperature never 
rose with us above 58° Fahr. with a strong wind, a leaden sky, and 
not a bee ventured abroad. In the beginning of April we had 
several serene days, but none since ; and no better proof of this, to 
those who were not present, is, after the summer is past, a large 
per-centage of young queens are still sterile. 
Weighing Hives. 
We have been defeated in our intention of comparing the 
gathering of different races of bees by colonies of great strength, 
but the day is fine, and bees appear to be working well. We 
must be careful neither to deceive others nor ourselves. A Punic 
stock is suspended upon a balance ; it rose in weight 3 lbs. upon 
the 25th July, and 1 lb. on the 28th ; in two “ rushes ” of one and a 
half hour 3 lbs. of bees left the hive to gather honey. Out of 
the 4 lbs. gathered, after evaporation 1 lb. only remained. This 
working for little or nothing wears out the bees in a short time, 
and is on a par with spring stimulative feeding, and, what is worse, 
the old practice revived of feeding outside with syrup. 
Preparing for Winter. 
Those bee-keepers situated south of the Tweed may not have 
the same difficulty to contend with in the want of young fertile 
queens as we have. Owing to the temperature being higher in 
England unmated queens will be fewer in number, and where these 
are breeding may be encouraged longer than where the queens of 
last year are still regnant. Where bees are numerous enough in 
the hive during August, it is unnecessary and inadvisable to en¬ 
courage breeding. It exhausts the queen, and often great numbers 
of eggs are deposited that are never hatched ; and encouraging 
queens to lay which have done duty since January is courting 
failure, as queens over-bred are liable to be deposed in spring, when 
it is impossible to get them replaced. Queens have laid an unusually 
large number of eggs this season, and already I hear that many 
queens have been deposed. If it were not for the Heather I should 
at once finish up my hives for the year without further disturbance. 
A queen that might continue laying till swarming time by giving 
her the necessary repose now, runs a greater chance of being 
deposed in March cr April, if laying now be encouraged. 
Early and Late Situations. 
Our system of management is alike for all districts, and our 
hives suit both. Late districts are more unfavourable to tiding 
over hives with queens that have done much laying than earlier 
ones, but weaker hives may be brought up to the standard of 
strength at less expense than the former. In early districts it is 
necessary, if profit is to be expected, to go into winter quarters 
with strong hives and youthful queens, so that breeding may be 
started early and maintained till the flowers and honey appear. 
In fine seasons late districts have greater advantages than early 
ones, especially where Heather abounds, but there is more wear 
and tear of bee and queen life. In neither case is it advisable to 
keep other than fertile queens of the current year. 
Young and Old Queens. 
I have had queens do good service for three, four, five and 
even six years, but I have had too many losses of queens above 
a year old dying at a time they could not be replaced, or failing 
to fill a proper sized hive with sufficient bees to be profitable, to 
recommend queens a year old or upwards to be kept as stocks. I 
may be compelled to keep a number of last year’s queens, but I 
shall take care that they are neither stimulated nor kept in too large 
hives, so that early swarming will be encouraged. But the large 
sized hives I have had so long will be the only ones employed as 
non-swarmers. I am writing this on 1st August, the mildest day 
we have had this year, and a queen nine weeks old has this day 
become fertile, and I doubt not others will have shared the same 
fate, so that bee-keepers may yet have all their stocks in a normal 
state for 1891 and headed by young queens.—A Lanarkshire 
Bee-keeper. 
TRADE CATALOGUES RECEIYED. 
Wm. Paul & Son, Waltham Cross.— Catalogue of Bulls and Winter 
Flowers. 
Dicksons & Co., 1, Waterloo Place, Edinburgh.— Catalogue oj Flower 
B oots. 
W. Cutbush & Sons, Highgate, London.— Descriptive Catalogue of 
Hyacinths, Tulips, and other Bulls. 
John Laing& Sons, Forest Hill, London, S.E. —Descriptive Catalogue 
af Bulbous Roots, Fruit Trees, Boses, Begonias, J)'c. 
James Veitch & Sons. 544, King’s Road, Chelsea, London, S.W.— 
Catalogues of Hyacinths and other Bullous Roots, and Fruits. 
Yilmorin, Andrieux, et Cie., 4, Quaie de la Mdgisserie, Paris.— Cata¬ 
logue of Bulls, Flowers and Strawberries. 
All correspondence should be directed either to “ The 
Editor ” or to “ The Publisher.” Letters addressed to 
Dr. Hogg or members of the staff often remain unopened 
unavoidably. We request that no one will write privately 
to any of our correspondents, as doing so subjects them to 
unjustifiable trouble and expense. 
Correspondents should not mix up on the same sheet questions 
relating to Gardening and those on Bee subjects, and should 
never send more than two or three questions at once. All 
articles intended for insertion should be written on one side of 
the paper only. We cannot reply to questions through the 
post, and we do not undertake to return rejected communica¬ 
tions. 
Auricula Treatise (II. S.). —A very good treatise on the Auricula, 
by the Rev. F. D. Horner, Lowfields, Kirkby Lonsdale, is published, with 
articles on other flowers, in a small work for amateurs, but we do not 
remember its price nor the address of the publishers. Mr. Horner will 
doubtless give you the information if you write to him and enclose a 
stamped addressed envelope for the reply. 
Strawberries in Bight Soil (C. <I.) — If the soil is made firm 
before planting and it is mulched with manure, and the surface further 
thickly covered with straw or other littery material as soon as the 
plants commence flowering, to keep the ground cool and moist, you may 
succeed in your object. Three suitable varieties for your purpose are 
Vicomtesse Hericart de Thury, President, and Waterloo. 
Pansies Tailing (B. C .').—It is not always the fault of the soil 
when Pansies “ go off ” in the manner you describe. Many failures are 
the result of too late and shallow planting. When the soil is in fault 
heavy applications of lime have proved beneficial, and you cannot err 
by using as much fresh loam as you can obtain, incorporating with it 
some friable cow manure and wood ashes. 
American Blight (J . RI). —Your trees are infested with this insect. 
Syringe them with a strong solution of softsoap, 6 ozs. of soap being 
dissolved in a gallon of water, to which may be added half an ounce of 
petroleum. A solution of nicotine soap of the same strength will also 
destroy the pest. In the winter, scrub the trees with brine, applying 
also petroleum with a brush to those parts where the insects most abound, 
but not dressing the smooth bark of the trees with the oil, or it may 
seriously injure the trees. 
Gladioluses SJying (Medians').— They are, we fear, attacked by 
the disease that is often so destructive to these flowers. We know of no 
remedy, and we can only suggest that you procure healthy corms from 
a fresh source, and keep them separate from your own stock, and also 
plant them in a fresh place. The disease appears more pronounced in 
rich highly manured soil than in ground well worked and sweetened, 
but only moderately fertile in character. 
Walnut Trees not Bearing (II. T. II.'). —When free bearing trees 
of good varieties are desired seedlings should be grafted when young 
with such varieties. Seedlings are extremely variable both in respect 
