July 7 , 188T. ) 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
19 
protected from mice. All, however, are best left in the ground. Ane¬ 
mones ought not to be disturbed more than can possibly be avoided, 
8>ut if they must be taken up, store them in boxes of sand directly after 
they are ripened. Ranunculuses are apt to either keep badly or to start 
prematurely when left in the ground. After the leaves have turned 
yellow the roots may safely be lifted, dried, and stored on dry shelves. 
The various perennials used in the beds during the winter ought now 
to be attended to and largely increased, young plants in nearly every case 
being preferable to old and exhausted stock. Ajuga reptans rubra, an 
easily grown useful plant for the carpet beds, divides readily, and mav 
Ik; dibbled out at once in a cool place till wanted. Alyssum saxatile 
and varieties may frequently be split up, each division having a few 
roots attached, and dibbled out on a partially shaded border.” Small 
pieces of healthy, sturdy growth may be pulled off with a heel and 
dibbled in thickly in a handlight or at the foot of a north wall. Any 
light sandy soil suits them, and they should be watered in and shaded 
from bright sunshine where necessary. Arabises to be pulled to pieces 
and each division with or without roots be dibbled out firmly in good 
garden sod, watered in, and lightly shaded with branches of trees for a 
time. Aubrietias require exactly the same treatment. Daisies are often 
spoilt through being planted during the summer in a hot and dry 
position. A cool north border is the proper place for them, and now is 
the time to pull old plants to pieces and replant. Euonymus radicans 
variegata, a plant useful alike for winter and summer bedding, is propa¬ 
gated by means of cuttings in summer. They should be taken off about 
4 inches in length, dibbled closely into a bed of fine sandy soil, and 
covered with handlights. Shade from bright sunshine, and give water 
whenever the soil is at all dry. Gentians ought not to be disturbed fre¬ 
quently, or they will flower indifferently. Always move them with a 
good ball of soil about the roots and divide the strongest clumps only. 
Plant in a good sunny position. Hepaticas transplant readily, and may 
also be freely divided. Replant firmly in good light ground, and keep 
them well supplied with water in dry weather, lberises may be treated 
in every respect similar to the Alyssum. They are of somewhat slow 
growth, and good sized plants are most effective, being available for 
several seasons. Myosotises as a rule are raised from seed, this beino- 
sown early, or not later than the middle of June. The white and blue 
varieties of Myosotis dissitiflora are the most beautiful, and capital 
plants can be had by division of old stock, or small pieces may be pulled 
■off and dibbled, into handlights stood in a somewhat cool place. 
Primulas are quickly increased by division, it being possible to separate 
evei T crown with roots to each. These divisions should be 
dibbled out at the foot of a north wall or other cool shady position, a 
rather rich or moisture-holding soil suiting them. Saxifrages granulata 
nore-pleno, pyramidalis, and umbrosa are as easily propagated as 
Primulas. The first-named is increased by division of its grain-like 
roots, and the others by dividing the crowns. Plant out in rows on 
good ground. Violas and Pansies that have been lifted, trimmed in, and 
laid in by the heels in good ground are now pushing up numerous youno- 
shoots, and may be freely divided. Plant out these divisions on well- 
manured ground, and when the growths are well advanced, or say early 
in August, take off a number of cuttings and insert either under hand- 
lights or at the foot of a cool wall. 
i HE BEE-KEEPER. 
Jl 111 . 1 ~ ‘ - I 1 • 1 - , | - ! . I - q. | - 1 - , • i - i . i . | , , . | . | . , . j-v-j-j- 
PRACTICAL BEE-KEEPING. 
No. 14. 
It is comparatively easy to work an apiary ujion 
the swarming system ot management, because when once 
a swarm has been located in its new home successfully 
only gross neglect will cause it to send out a swarm that 
season ; while the old stock, after it has sent forth a cast, 
and that cast has been returned on the evening of the 
day it issued, will also give no further trouble that year. 
V lien once a stock has been allowed to gratify the swarm¬ 
ing desire no anxiety need be again entertained about 
either stock or swarm, except to watch for and return 
the cast which is sure to issue on or about the ninth day 
from the issue of the swarm, unless supering arrange¬ 
ments are most culpably neglected. 
Taking into consideration the length of the honey 
season it has been determined, let us say, to adopt the 
swarming system. This determination having been arrived 
at, great attention must be paid to one point of manage¬ 
ment. Ibis point is to discover, if possible, about what 
time the Clover will begin to bloom in the district, because 
by this all our efforts must be guided. When this date 
has been ascertained every effort must be made to have 
both swarms and stocks ready to work in supers by the 
time that the honey flow commences. The success or 
failure which attends these efforts will be the measure 
of success or failure to which we shall attain in our 
management. 
In the majority of English counties the Clover will 
begin to bloom during the first week of June, I think, 
and therefore we may take the 7th of June as a day when 
every colony should be ready for supering, whatever the 
system of management may be. If it were possible to 
insure that both the swarm and the stock would be strong 
enough to work in supers during the first week in June, 
a greater result would ensue than when no increase is 
allowed, except for one heavy drawback in the fact that 
during the short honey glut not only would the bees have 
to collect the honey, but they would also have to build 
the comb and cells in which to store it, which, when a 
hive is managed on the non-swarming system, are always 
ready to receive the honey which the bees may be expected 
to gather during the height of the season; but where 
there is no honey to be collected in the month of May 
the bees cannot work in supers even in drawing out comb. 
Therefore I say it is more profitable in such a case to 
take an increase, feed the swarm, and, if necessary, the 
stock, gently, and have two colonies ready to do what they 
are able while the Clover is in bloom. If, however, combs 
can by any means be given to the stock and swarm the 
result will be far in excess of that obtained from a stock 
not allowed to swarm. When, therefore, an extractor is 
used, and there are at hand four or five tiers of frames 
filled with comb—not foundation—the swarming system 
is the one which should be adopted. These frames of 
comb can be used year after year for the same jmrpose, 
and it is therefore profitable to make a special effort to 
obtain them in the manner to be afterwards pointed out. 
If honey in the comb is required increase must be pre¬ 
vented in order to obtain supers of comb by the time 
when the great honey flow sets in, but these supers of 
comb can only be obtained when there is a fair supply of 
honey to be collected in May. I may be permitted to 
say here that I have read Mr. Simmins’ “ Original Non- 
Swarming System ” with some interest, but fail to see 
many signs of originality in it, except perhaps in some 
trifling details. Iiis system is simply a scarcely veiled 
return to ekeing and supering, a system carried out 
with success years ago. The whole question, then, of 
choosing between these systems depends upon the simple 
fact whether we are able to obtain frames of comb and 
supers ol new white comb. If these can be obtained in 
an easy practical way the swarming system must be 
adopted. Frames of comb can generally be raised, supers 
of comb are obtained with difficult). When extracted 
honey is required the swarming system may generally be 
adopted. When comb honey is required the non-swarm- 
ing system must be adopted, unless the May honey flow is 
so small as to give no chance of the bees having an oppor¬ 
tunity of drawing out comb ready for the June flow, when 
the swarming system should be the one followed, because 
the bees may be kept in health and vigour, and will be 
ready for supering if properly managed by the 7th of 
June, even when one swarm has been taken from every 
stock. If no stock has empty combs to fill, a swarm and 
the stock from which it has issued will collect more honey 
and seal it than an old stock from which no increase has 
been taken. In addition to this, when honey is scarce bees 
are very anxious to swarm, and it is difficult to restrain 
them. 
By the 7th of June every swarm and stock must be 
