300 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
t September 28, 1893. 
probably one of their queens is saved; usually old or swarmed 
stocks have young queens. 
There have been many mishaps in feeding bees with syrup 
made after a recipe in the “ B. B. J.; ” it is by far too thick. The 
proportions of the best cane sugar and water should be equal in 
weight. For various reasons I neither spend time nor money on 
the paper mentioned, so cannot help inquirers outside of the 
columns of the Journal of Horticulture. —A. L. B, K.] 
Carniolan Bees. 
An error has occurred on page 278. The matter should read, 
I am perhaps prejudiced in favour (not against) of the pure 
Carniolans free from the yellow bands, but cannot help admiring 
their good qualities in honey gathering, purity of comb, and mild 
temper, or, in other words, after disproving by actual trial and 
experiment nearly all that has been written elsewhere against 
Punics, I prefer Carniolans.—A. L. B. K, 
The Ingenuity of Bees. 
Can bees learn to tell the time of day as well as a clock ? A 
correspondent of ‘‘ Science Siftings ” lately noticed that a large 
number of bees were frequenting the flowers on his lawn, and 
every day when he came home to lunch he put a lump of sugar on 
a brick in the garden for them. They soon learned the time when 
they might expect the sugar, and now, when he goes out at noon, 
he finds about 100 bees sitting around waiting for their lunch. 
•**A11 correspondence should be directed either to “ The 
Editor” or to “The Publisher.” Letters addressed to 
Dr. Hogg or members of the stafE 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 communications. 
Calla aethloplca Seedlings (71 W. W .').—Calla asthiopica is 
popularly known as the Arum Lily, but seedlings vary somewhat in 
foliage as well as in form of spathes, and you can only ascertain the 
character of your plants by flowering them. 
Cobeea scandens alba (77. R. Richards ').— We have not seen 
flowers so nearly approaching pure white as those you have sent, nor 
does Mr. G. Nicholson, of Kew, remember seeing any quite so white as 
these specimens of yours which he has examined. 
Insecticides (71 A .).—We have not a doubt that what you say is 
correct, but your letter is written in a form that brings it distinctly 
within the category of advertisements, and could only appear by an 
arrangement with the publisher on the usual business lines. 
Culture of Erythrlnas {Ymmg Gardener ).—The following hintS) 
written by a most successful cultivator of these plants, exactly answer 
your question :—“ Erythrinas are very handsome easily grown plants, 
and we strongly recommend them to those whose accommodation for 
growing plants is limited, because they may be kept all the winter 
in any kind of place where frost does not penetrate ; after they are 
started in spring may be wholly grown outside, and only removed to the 
greenhouse as they come into flower. They are remarkably profuse 
flowering plants, and their wants are few. A mixture of loam and leaf 
soil, with a good dash of sand and a few pieces of charcoal, suits 
them admirably. An annual potting just as they start will be 
BufScient for ordinarily large plants, and an annual pruning—which 
consists in cutting ofi all the summer’s growth down to the rim of 
the pot—coupled with such treatment as we have hinted at, will 
insure success. We advise a little heat for starting them in, though, 
because they start more regularly than if left outside. If put in a 
warm temperature we advise careful hardening-off and placing outside 
early in June; their removal inside when the first flowers show them¬ 
selves. After they are cut down they should be kept rather dry and 
away from frost. E. crista-galli is the best known, and a fine plant it 
is. It is hardy in the warmer districts of England and Ireland, but must 
rank as an easily grown greenhouse plant in the less favoured districts 
of these islands.” 
Thin Runner Beans {T. W.). —The variety sent is of a different 
type to the ordinary Scarlet Runner, the pods being, as a rule, less fleshy, 
but more delicate in flavour. Those you send are too old for cooking, 
and the older they are the more “skinny” they become. The season 
has been very unfavourable for Runner Beans, and the produce has, in 
consequence, not been so good as usual, though dearer in the markets, 
and we suspect that ripe seed will be much above the average price in 
bulk. We think you should send samples of the Bean to the introducers 
of the variety and the vendors of seed, and hear what they have to say 
on the subject. 
Destroying- Ants (7)).—As you have fruit about and the ant^ 
visit it, it would not be safe to use poison. There is no better plan than 
to procure some partially picked meat bones and place them near their 
haunts. In a short time the ants will cover the bones, which can be 
placed in a bucket of boiling water. Another set of bones should then 
be laid, and more ants will visit them, often covering them in their 
eagerness to appropriate the flesh. In the meantime the bones first 
used should be placed in a sieve to dry, and then may be used again as 
baits. This simple plan will soon clear off thousands of ants provided it 
is persistently practised. 
Euphorbia splendens QR. P. S.). — The plant of which you 
sent a specimen is Euphorbia splendens. It is of easy culture, requiring 
a stove temperature and a soil of fibrous loam and sand, with a small 
proportion of lime rubbish. The pots should be well drained, as any 
stagnant moisture is especially injurious to the plants, as their stems 
are very succulent. When the plants are growing freely water may be 
liberally supplied, liquid manure being also beneficial occasionally. 
Although succeeding well in pots this Euphorbia is more useful if 
planted out in a border against a wall in the stove, where flowers will 
be freely produced, during a considerable portion of the year. 
Sambucus nigra aurea (^Elder). —You are right, this is more 
golden than the old Gold-variegated Elder (Sambucus nigra variegata), 
being quite yellow in the matured growths, and which it retains to the 
close of the season. It is of very free growth, and though Elder may be 
common it is fit to take rank with the choicest of variegated shrubs, not 
the least |of the merits of Elders being that of their thriving in the 
vitiated atmosphere of manufacturing localities, and they do well near 
the sea ; in fact, screens of Elder are the best as screens or shelter 
from sea breezes for choicer plants—choicer simply because less free- 
growing and less common. The Silver-variegated Elder (Sambucus 
nigra argentea) is not nearly so effective as this ; still it is a desirable 
shrub or small tree, and especially as it will grow anywhere. 
Tbe Eady Apple (IF. 31.). —The Apple to which you refer is the 
Api of pomologists, and the following description and history from the 
“ Fruit Manual ” may be of interest to you :—“ A beautiful little dessert 
Apple ; in use from October to April. It should be eaten with the skin 
on, as it is there that the perfume is contained. The skin is very sen¬ 
sitive of shade, and any device may be formed upon it by causing pieces 
of paper, in the form of the design required, to adhere on the side ex¬ 
posed to the sun before it has attained its deep red colour. The tree is 
of a pyramidal habit of growth, healthy, and an abundant bearer. It 
succeeds well in almost any situation provided the soil is rich, loamy, 
and not too light or dry, and may be grown with equal success either 
on the Doucin or Crab stock. When worked on the French Paradise it 
is well adapted for pot culture. The fruit is firmly attached to the 
spurs, and forcibly resists the effects of high winds. According to 
Merlet the Api was first discovered as a wilding in the Forest of Api, in 
Brittany. It has been asserted that this Apple was brought from 
Peloponessus to Rome by Appius Claudius. Whether this be true or not 
there can be no doubt it is of great antiquity, as all the oldest authors 
regard it as the production of an age prior to their own. Although 
mentioned by most of the early continental writers, the Api does not 
appear to have been known in this country till towards the end of the 
seventeenth century. It is first mentioned by Worlidge, who calls it 
‘ Pomme Appease, a curious Apple, lately propagated ; the fruit is small 
and pleasant, which the Madams of France carry in their pockets, by 
reason they yield no unpleasant scent.’ Lister, in his ‘Journey to Paris, 
1698,’ speaking of this as being one of the Apples served up in the 
dessert, says, ‘ Also the Pome d’Apis, which is served here more for show 
than for use ; being a small flat Apple, very beautiful, and very red on 
one side and pale or white on the other, and may serve the ladies at 
their toilets as a pattern to paint by.’ De Quintinye calls it ‘ Une 
Pomme des damoiselles et de bonne compagnie.’ Under the name of 
Lady Apple large quantities of the Api are annually imported to this 
country from the United States, where it is grown to a great extent, and 
produces a considerable return to the growers, as it always commands 
the highest price of any other fancy Apple in the market. In the winter 
months they may be seen encircled with various coloured tissue papers 
adorning the windows of the fruiterers in Covent Garden Market.” 
/ M'axnes of Fruits. — Notice. —We have pleasure in naming good 
typical fruits (when the names are discoverable) for the convenience of 
regular subscribers, who are the growers of such fruit, and not col¬ 
lectors of specimens from non-subscribers. This latter procedure is 
wholly irregular, and we trust that none of our readers will allow 
themselves to be made the mediums in infringing our rules. Special 
attention is directed to the following decision, the object of which is 
to discourage the growth of inferior and promote the culture of superior 
varieties. In consequence of the large numher of worthless Apples and 
Pears sent to this office to ie named., it has been decided to name only 
