April 14, 1892. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
285 
and moist. Any that have been already struck should, before they are 
root-bound, be given a shift into 5-inch pots and kept in gentle heat for 
a time. Seedlings raised early may be grown sufficiently strong to 
flower late in summer, but they must be kept steadily growing till they 
are planted out in well prepared borders. 
Sweet Peas. —These are highly valued, and more than ordinary 
pains have to be taken in raising a supply of plants. This season the 
seed is of an inferior character, that of choice varieties germinating 
badly, even in heat, and it is so expensive that it is unwise to risk 
sowing it in the open, unless the soil is of a warm light character. 
Plants raised early should be hardened, and more seed sown in 3-inch 
pots. A group of from five to eight plants well isolated and duly 
supported will thrive and flower far better than when crowded into 
rows. Make a successional sowing of common varieties where they are 
to flower. Give them plenty of manure at the roots, water freely in 
dry weather, and they will continue to flower abundantly till frosts 
intervene. 
Sunflowers. —There are now quite a large number of annual Sun¬ 
flowers, including both single and double flowering, tall and dwarf 
varieties. The more robust of them may be sown where the plants are 
to flower, this being done late in April; but as they transplant readily, 
raising under glass is the plan generally adopted, and is really the 
best for the more delicate varieties, including the charming New 
Miniature. Sow the seed thinly now or before the end of April in 
pans or boxes, placing these in gentle heat. Raised thinly and not 
unduly forced the plants will be sturdy, and there will be no necessity 
to pot them oflf. 
Balsams, Ricinuses, Grasses. —The first named can be raised in 
the open, the seed being sown thinly in patches where the plants are 
to flower not later than the first week in May. A stock will, however, 
be obtained with greater certainty by sowing the seed in pans and 
placing these on a warm greenhouse shelf. If the soil is shaded and 
uniformly moist the plants will soon appear in a sturdy form for potting 
singly. Ricinuses are also easily raised, and a few of these noble plants 
are very effective in the pleasure grounds. From the middle to the 
end of April is soon enough to sow the seed, as it germinates in a few 
days, strong plants being easily prepared for the open in a month. 
Sow singly in 3-inch pots, place in heat, and keep the plants near the 
glass. Give a shift before they become root-bound. Ornamental 
Grasses may be sown now thinly in patches where they are to grow, 
and according to their respective heights, or they may be raised in boxes 
in gentle heat, and duly moved out in patches. Their requirements 
are of the simplest description, crowding the plants being the mistake 
most often made. Now is a good time to sow Zinnias under glass. 
Sowing Hardy Annuals. —-If the borders were duly manured and 
in good condition there should be no further delay in sowing hardy 
annuals, including Alyssum, Candytuft, Collinsia, Chrysanthemums, 
Convolvuluses, Calliopsis, Godetias, Helichrysums, Larkspurs, Linums, 
Malopes, Mignonette, Nasturtiums, Nemophilas, Poppies, Sweet Sultans, 
Tropseolums, Venus’ Looking Glass, Virginian Stock, Hibiscus, and such 
like. Fine down the soil, moisten it if at all dry, form circular patches, 
and sow the seed thinly, according to the catalogue heights of the 
varieties. Place a peg or label to each, and cover with fine sifted soil. 
Keep a good look out for slugs, trapping or otherwise destroying these 
before they play havoc with the seedlings. 
APIARIAN NOTES. 
The Apiary. 
I never had hives in better condition at this season of the 
year than they are now, yet the bees had not more than four 
days’ working till April 8th. A day or two more will expand 
the blossoms of the (Gooseberry, and another week of fine weather 
will bring feeding to an end. In two or three weeks swarming 
will begin if fine weather continue. Already some of my stocks 
are on the eve of swarming, the earliness cf the season being the 
only preventive. 
Punic fxojKS. 
These are in prime condition. A fiiind less than a mile 
distant from me says he has a sto'-k quite crowded enough to 
swarm. Early swarming will certainly be the rule this year 
should the weather continue favourable. Much, however depends, 
on that. 
Another bee-keeper lately told me that his Punic stock had, 
contrary to the theory of “ A. H. B. K.,” suffered much from 
dysentery, and, strange to say, it was the strongest hive he had 
In regard to dysentery I am convinced that all Varieties of bees 
are subject to it, much depending upon the stores and the con¬ 
struction of the hives, yet some varieties, such as the Carniolan, 
have a greater immunity than others. 
As I was greatly interested in this gentleman’s statement I 
visited him on the 7th inst. When I entered his garden the 
temperature would be about 48°, with a chilling easterly wind. 
The Punics were busy, and the only bees then flying. The hive is 
a double-cased standard one, and the crown over the bees was not 
properly covered. The floor is a fixture, and mostly solid. It is 
simply one of our modern prize hives. The death of the bees was 
due to the interior of the hive being damp, and not to dysentery at 
all. It was simply one of the many cases in which the “ hooked 
wire ” has to be called into requisition, and the hive being still the 
strongest is proof positive that when bee-keepers adopt hives of 
proper construction we have in the Punic bee qualities that will 
surpass all others and yet surprise many bee-keepers of the modern 
school.—A Lanarkshire Bee-keeper. 
Foul Brood and Nostrums. 
Mr. John M. Hooker takes “ A L. B.-K.” to task respecting 
napthaline and napthol beta as cures for foul brood. These sub¬ 
stances are advertised and sold by his friends, and are claimed to 
be “ sure cures ” for foul brood. We have had from the same 
quarter the following “ sure cures : ” Salicylic acid, phenol, 
formic acid, menthol, thymol, and now it is napthol beta. I 
am leaving out other nostrums that have been boomed to cure 
the disease, and yet I challenge either Mr. Hooker or anyone 
else to produce even one case that has been really cured by any 
one of these nostrums. After all the much-vaunted “ cures,” it is 
significant that foul brood was never so common before as now. 
When bee-keepers have got tired of spending their money on 
one thing another appears to have been put forward and 
boomed. 
This Journal has always advocated one plan to cure foul brood 
that has never failed, i.e., by purging. I succeeded in improving the 
system by feeding the bees and allowing them their liberty, instead 
of starving them in confinement. Foul brood can never be 
cured by physic, that I am positive of, nor can disinfecting stamp 
it out. I have given both these a fair and thorough test. I put 
seven new foul-broody combs, uncapped, in an air-tight box, put a 
woollen cloth in the bottom soaked with carbolic acid, fumigated 
them from time to time with sulphur and carbolic acid, did all 
this for two years, then put in healthy bees, and the first batch of 
brood was affected. 
Some time ago my neighbourhood was rampant with foul 
brood, partly owing to trying to cure it by the nostrums recom¬ 
mended. I now keep a sharp eye on my own apiary and also on 
others round me, and when I find a case of foul brood I insist on 
being allowed to cure it. Autumn is a favourite time to make my 
examinations, as I can tell, or rather suspect, by the weight of a 
skep whether it is diseased. If everyone was to work on these 
lines the disease could soon be stamped out. I occasionally meet 
with people who are suspicious that I want to get the best of them, 
but this idea is soon disposed of by the offer to give them a good 
sound stock in exchange for their diseased one. This generally 
acts like magic, and I am allowed to do as I like. I then take it in 
hand and clear out the disease. When this is done I am mostly 
asked how much they have to pay. “ Nothing,” I reply, “ as it is 
to my advantage and interest to keep the disease as far off my own 
bees as possible. Your one stock might infect all mine. 1 have 
had them all infected once, and I don’t want them diseased 
again.” 
This is how I keep the disease at arm’s length all round after 
stamping it out of my own apiary six years ago. The system 
means work, not talk ; it is the way I stamp foul brood out. 
What have Mr. Hooker and his friends done to stamp it out ? 
I deny that any stock of bees has ever been cured permanently 
with any physic without destroying the infected combs, and I 
again challenge Mr. Hooker or anyone else to name a case. We 
want something to benefit bee-keepers, not mutual admiration 
associations.—A Hallamshire Bee-keeper. 
TEADE CATALOGUES RECEIVED. 
Messrs. W. Paul & Son, Waltham Cross, Herts.— New Roses and 
Florists' Flowers. 
Messrs. Ellwanger & Barry, Mount Hope Nurseries, Rochester, 
N.Y.— General Plants. 
Mr. F. A. Haage, jun., Erfurt, Germany.— Cactuses aiid Succulent 
Plants. 
Messrs. J. Cheal & Son, Lowfield Nurseries, Crawley, Sussex.— 
Dahlias, Chrysanthemums, Bedding Plants, ^'O. 
Mr. H. J. Jones, Ryecroft Nursery, Hither Green, Lewisham.— 
Chrysanthemums. 
The Tottenham [Nurseries, Limited, Dedemsvaart, near Zwolle, 
Netherlands.— Coniferce, Rhododendrons, Roses, Fruit Trees, Perennials, 
kc. (wholesale'). 
