Sep'enilv 1 27. 1888. ] 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
301 
with horror. I could not see how bees could be kept from “ boiling out ” 
from the divisions in anger, and how to quiet them seemed an unsolved 
problem ; for though “ Lanarkshire ” and other Scotch authorities spoke 
often of lifting a super up and putting another under, no one has ever 
explained, to my knowledge, how with both hands holding a super, say 
30 lbs. weight, he kept the bees quiet in both super and stock. With 
this idea I decided to limit the brood frames in my long hives to about 
a cube, and place supers on the top, intending to work them from above 
as before. I was not long in noticing that the bees improved more 
rapidly in strength, more honey was stored in these supers than other 
stocks equally strong stored in unsupered long hives, and to my be¬ 
wilderment they began to show signs of requiring more room. With a 
cluster of bees hanging from the entrance as big as a bucket, the super 
full too, and the stock crossed Syrians, and rather cross, I quite ex¬ 
pected a lively time over putting that other super under the other. I 
decided that smoke or carbolic acid was out of the question till the 
work was done. I arranged my empty super, then I lifted the full one 
off, covered with the quilt, set it on the top, and then set the two 
on the top of the brood frames as quickly as possible. I never felt so 
surprised as to see the bees really frightened instead of angry, and not 
one took wing. This experience inspired me with confidence to do 
others likewise. I now began to see the beauty of the storifying or 
Stewarton system, and since then I have quite tested it, and I have 
always found that if a super is lifted off, covered with the quilt or 
other cover, the bees are more frightened both in the super and the 
hive below than they can possibly be by any other means. There is no 
“ boiling out,” and not a bee need be crushed. I am rather surprised 
those who have practised the Stewarton system have not made frequent 
notice of this. They have talked often enough about doing it, but 
never explained how easy it was, and I must candidly confess I never 
could regard it as a simple matter. I have lifted thousands of skep 
hives oS their stands, and opened many more moveable comb hives 
from above, and I always have found bees ready to resent abrupt inter¬ 
ference. So singular is this, I have been trying to think of a natural 
solution. Here is the way I explain it. It is natural for a hive to be 
turned over by a bear or other animal, or disturbed from the top, hence 
they are always ready for attack from these places, but to be suddenly 
divided in the middle of their home is not natural, and puts them in the 
greatest fright. 
Speaking of .the storifying system, a writer says in another journal 
That we have to pull the whole pile down to get at the bottom combs.” 
To show how far he is from the truth let us imagine a stock piled up 
ten storeys high and we want the middle comb out of any one, say the 
bottom one ; well, all we have to do is to lift off the nine top storeys at 
once, and we are at it in a moment. More than this, if we wish to know 
how they are going on in the middle—say to see if the young queen is 
laying, or if queen cells are being formed, we just turn up the upper 
storeys and see. No need of smoke, as the bees at once run to the honey 
to fill themselves, leaving the bottom edges of the combs bare. As the 
principle for a migratory bee hive it seems to be just the thing, as all 
superfluous storeys can be left at home. 
It is when we use the longitudinal hive for migratory purposes that 
we understand and comprehend the meaning of its name, “ Combination 
Hive.” We are bound to take more hives than the bees require ; this 
adds weight in lifting, loading, packing, and carriage ; it makes the hives 
even difficult to pack on drays for safe riding. Then there is the packing 
up ; probably the dummy has shrunk, and the hive walls expanded 
through wet, or the floor board has warped a little ; and it so there is a 
job of'caulking the crevices with rags and the screw-driver to keep in 
the bees. And when all have been carefully done the chances are that 
bees will be found escaping in at least three out of every twenty as soon 
as the dray begins to move. Its name is very appropriate, as it combines 
the maximum of trouble and expense with the minimum of returns. 
This is what I am convinced of much against my will. I have not 
found placing the frames across the entrance to make the least difference, 
either in winter or summer, so long as the queen was well bred ; but it 
is easier to get ill-bred queens in these hives than good ones, hence the 
apparent difference by those who have tested the two systems, right- 
angled combs v. crossways combs to entrance. 
Allow me in conclusion to point out that in a few years every bee¬ 
keeper will send his bees to the Heather ; that being so, the one who is 
thinking of buying a hive will be wise to look round for one adapted 
for migratory purposes. Certain it is the necessary qualities will not 
be found in the “ Combination ” or “ Long Idea ” type.— A Hallam- 
SHIRE BEE-KEEPER. 
Bees. — A Query. —Can any of your bee-keeping readers say whether 
single Dahlia blossoms are injurious to bees 1 I have heard they are 
very bad for bees. I have quantities of Dahlias and Tritomas, and the 
blossoms are always full of bees.— Milward, Lavistown, Kilkenny. 
INTRODUCING QUEENS BY THE HALLAMSHIRE 
LAW. 
I AGREE with “ Felix ” that the past season has been a poor one for 
queen-rearing, and one that has been unfit for much manipulation ; but 
I feel disappointed that he has not thoroughly tested the Hallamshire 
law; and as the time is near when it may be tried by exchanging every 
queen in one’s apiary, I will undertake to replace every queen he loses 
in making the experiments. Each queen shall be bred in 1888 or 1887. 
Also, should anyone desire to test the law, and loses a queen over it, T 
will undeitake to furnish a queen, as above, for each one lost in strictly 
obeying the rules laid down in the Hallamshire law. 
Note.— The authorities (?) say it is next to impossible to introduce 
queens in the fall.—A Hallamshire Bee-keeper. 
TRADE CATALOGUES RECEIVED. 
Lambert & Reiter, Tihves.— General Catalogue. 
L. Spath, Berlin.— General Catalogue. 
Webb & Sons, Wordsley, Stourbridge.— Catalogue of Selected Seed 
Corn, 1SS8-1SS9. 
%* 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 un¬ 
avoidably. We request that no one will write privately 
to any of our correspondents, as doing so subjects them ta 
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. 
Tea Boses (T. IF.).—The information you require will appear in 
an early issue of this Journal. You will be able to grow them readily 
as you suggest. 
mushroom Spawn (T. R-T —It appears to be good spawn. You 
cannot do better than follow the instructions you have already received p 
the information in the book is thoroughly reliable. 
Ferns In Case (E. D.). —Too much light and too little ventilation 
will make the fronds turn brown. Our Fern case never has the sun 
shining upon it, and has the sides slightly open all the day and 
night. 
Mildew (Anxious)— Probably the other plants will be affected 
also, and the best plan would be to remove those already attacked if it 
is convenient to do so. You do not say what plants you have, nor where 
they are growing. 
Cracked Pears (G. J. S. and IF. M.~). —The cracking of fruit has 
been unusually prevalent this season, and is no doubt due to the con¬ 
tinuous rainfall. There is no remedy for injury already done, and it is; 
to be hoped that another season the weather may be more favourable. 
Cost of Preparing- Land and Planting Fruit Trees ( G. J/.) 
—The cost of trees for an acre of land obviously depends on the kinds- 
and numbers intended to be planted. Mr. Rivers, in his Conference 
paper, states the number of trees of different kinds for planting a rood 
of land (see page 235), and their cost can be obtained from catalogues. 
In the same paper the cost of preparing land for their reception is also 
given by the rod and rood, and you can easily calculate the amount per 
acre on the data there given. 
Beans in Pods (,/. IF.).—The old story of Beans “ growing wrong 
end upwards in pods this year ” is repeated every season, but no samples 
are sent. When the pods point upwards the eyes of the Beans are 
naturally in the same direction, and when the pods hang down the eyes 
look down too ; but they are quite right all the same, just as those of 
their observers are, whether they turn them upwards to the sky or down¬ 
wards to the earth. The pods of some varieties grow more or less erect, 
while others as naturally hang down to a greater or less extent, the 
drooping tendency increasing with age ; but there is nothing unnatural 
or abnormal about any that have come under our observation. 
Edging Plants (IF R. S.').— The following are good edgiDg. 
plants :—Ajuga reptans rubra, dark purple leaves ; Arabis alpina 
variegata aurea, Aubrietia purpurea variegata, Cerastium tomentosum, 
Euonymus radicans variegatus, Iberis semperflorens fol. var., Sedum acre 
variegata, Sempervivum californicum, Stachys lanata, Stellaria graminea 
aurea, and Thymus citriodorus aureus, all of which are hardy. The fol¬ 
lowing are more or less tender:—Iresine Lindeni, Peristrophe angusti- 
folia aureo-variegata, Sedum Sieboldi medio-picta, Mesembryanthemum- 
cordifolium variegatum, Gnaphalium lanatum, Leucophyton Browni, 
Alternantheras, Echeveria secunda glauca, E. pumila, Alyssum variega¬ 
tum, with Lobelias and Golden Feather Pyrethrum. 
