204 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
r March 8,1888 
in houses where there is gentle heat, and others may be placed in cool 
houses where they will come on gradually. In all cases it is necessary 
to examine the drainage, removing any moss or other matter from the 
Burface of the soil, and wash the pots, surfacing with horse droppings 
rubbed through a sieve, which prevents the soil leaving the si4es of the 
pots and encourages action at the surface. Until the trusses are show¬ 
ing it is well if the temperature does not exceed 50° by artificial means, 
and between that and the flowering and setting 55° is safe, advancing 
to 65° by day with free ventilation. The Strawberry also likes plenty 
of light until the fruits are set, but afterwards they are apt to become 
dried, hence they swell best in positions where the sun’s rays are not so 
strong at midday. After the fruit is set and swelling a temperature of 
60° to 65° at night, 70° to 75° by day (with an advance from sun heat 
to 80°, 85°, or 00°) is necessary, affording copious supplies of water and 
liquid manure until the fruit shows indications of ripening, when a 
somewhat drier and more airy atmosphere with diminished supplies of 
moisture at the roots will afford large well-swelled fruit of good flavour. 
Thinning the fruit must be attended to as soon as the setting is com¬ 
pleted, removing the smallest and deformed fruit ; and on no account 
must there be insufficient water at the roots during the swelling, but 
during flowering the soil must be kept moist, avoiding extremes either 
way. The chief object in Strawberry forcing is to secure an early and 
unbroken supply until those in the open ground come in, and this where 
there is a number of houses started at intervals will admit of its being 
done without much trouble or change of plants, whilst in others some 
tact will be necessary to meet the requirements. 
PLANT HOUSES. 
Tree Ctirnnt/on.i .—To obtain plants for flowering next autumn and 
winter cuttings should be inserted at once. To insure their striking 
with certainty select short-jointed, sturdy growths from plants that 
have been in a cool, airy structure. Cuttings from plants that have 
been kept in a close atmosphere are almost certain to damp. Carnations 
root readily if the cuttings are good. They may either be inserted singly 
in sandy soil in small pots, or a number may bo inserted together in 
larger pots or pans; in either case they should be covered with bell- 
glasses, or placed under handlights that can be rendered airtight. In 
making the cuttings a clean cut only is needed at the b.ase, none of the 
foliage need be removed. Give a good watering after insertion, and 
plunge where gentle bottom heat can be given, and the temperature of 
the structure is not lower than 60° at night. When numerous cuttings 
are inserted together, pot them singly directly they are rooted, and grow 
them afterwards in the same temperature for a fortnight, then gradually 
harden them until they will bear cool treatment. In the process of 
hardening be careful not to check them. 
Itiehardiii (Pthlupiia .—Where it is necessary to increase the stock of 
these for another year, all the small suckers may be carefully removed 
from the base. If possible, remove them with a portion of root attached. 
This cannot always be done without turning out the plants and carefully 
dividing them. With care, however, many can be taken with a portion 
■of root. These, if inserted in small pots, will soon advance in a moist 
atmosphere and a temperature of 50° to 55°. When well rooted they 
‘Can be placed into 6-inch pots and be grown perfectly cool until the end 
of May, when they can be planted outside. These plants will during 
the se.ison attain an enormous strength and produce spathes of large 
size in early autumn. Plants raised by this means will flower long before 
old plants that are divided and planted out about the same time. 
Iviantephyllinns .—Where these are grown for decoration in from 
5 to 8-inch pots they should be repotted annually to keep them in pre- 
■sentable condition. If this is not done they become crowded with 
roots and lift themselves out of their pots. Potting should be done 
as the plants cease flowering, the whole of the soil being shaken from the 
roots, a few of the lower leaves being removed as well as the suckers. By 
the removal of a portion of foliage the plants can he potted lower, which 
adds to their appearance. If they possess too many roots to allow of 
this being done, a good portion of the lower ones may be removed. 
These plants are free rooting, and if all the roots are removed it does 
•not appear to injure them in the least. If placed afterwards in a warm 
vinery they are not long before they commence rooting freely and growing 
vigorously. Keep plants that are being retarded in a cool house 
rather dry at their roots, or else the ends of the foliage will turn 
■yellow and spoil the appearance of the plants. Injury to the tips of 
■the leaves is a sure indication of too much water during their season'of 
rest. These plants do well in fibry loam, one-seventh of manure, and 
land. The soil should be pressed firmly into the pots. 
FLOWER GARDEN. 
CLE1IATI.-5E3 require good attention, or they soon become matted 
together and unsightly. Those that flower in May, June, and July, and 
which comprise the Florida and Patens types, to be thinned out and 
lightly shortened only, the bloom being protliiced from last season’s wood. 
The Jackmanni and lanuginosa types arc of very different habit, the 
bloom being principally formed on the current ye.ir’s growths. Cut 
these freely back, or to within three or four joints of their last starting 
point. Honeysuckles, including the small Japanese variety, pay for 
thinning out and shortening back. .Jasmiiium nudiflorum to be 
•cut closely back after flowering, and the common Jessamine at once, 
the former flowering on ripened wood, and the latter on the newly 
formed growths. P'orsythia viridissima is of the same habit as Jasminum 
nudiflorum, only later in flowering. Cut these back after flowering; 
■also spur back Chimonanthus fragrans and the Pyrus japonica. Wis¬ 
tarias to be treated somewhat similarly to Pears. Spur back all long 
lateral growths, but do not touch the short spurs. Passifloras flower 
on the young growths, and in order to get plenty of these cut all last 
season’s wood hard back to the main branches. Ivies ought to be kept 
closely trimmed in, or they soon become unsightly. The stronger 
growers, and especially the common Ivy, may well have all the old 
leaves as well as loose growths trimmed, the fresh foliage following 
being the most ornamental. 
NOTES ON BEES. 
INTRODUCING A QUEEN. 
After the deposition comes the still more important part, the 
introduction of a successor, and we must use every precaution that 
no harm comes to her afterwards. In order to make this intelli¬ 
gible it may be advisable to reproduce a few things in connection 
with queen introduction since the Ligurian bee was introduced. It 
will still be remembered by many how many failures there were in 
introducing Ligurian queens during the time Mr. Woodbury was 
at the head of bee affairs, and how, owing to that, he advised pro¬ 
curing stocks instead of queens alone. In a private letter from Mr. 
Woodbury he said, “ The only sure method of introducing queens 
to strange bees is to deprive them of the power of raising a suc¬ 
cessor,” an opinion I held from the first, as many years before I had 
a lesson to my loss by allowing a bee-master to kill the old queens 
(of the first hive I possessed) and to introduce the young queen with¬ 
out ceremony. Next spring my hives were queenless, and I was 
bee-less. According to later experiments, which I never saw fail, 
had he introduced the dead queen along with the living one the 
latter would have been safe. 
Owing to the many failures to introduce alien queens to native 
bees cages were invented, and some precautions were taken to insure 
the safety of valuable queens. Pipe covers were called into re¬ 
quisition, and a Mauchline bee-keeper described a cage so as to 
cause the bees to fraternise with the queen, and so as to liberate 
her in a quiet minner. The description and uses of this cage 
which differs in no material way from the “Raynor,” appeared in 
this Journal some time ago. Shortly after that appeared “ A 
Stewarton Bee-keeper ” gave similar instructions, but it was not 
until “A Renfrewshire Bee-keeper” took active steps and pre¬ 
sented large numbers of these cages to bee-keeping friends that 
their utility became known. These cages were in use long before 
the Raynor cage was heard of. Good as these cages are, I never 
quite approved of them, being selfish a little of my own invention 
“The Safety Cage.” ' It is used safely upon the top of the hive, 
the bee-keeper having at all times bees and queen under his eye, 
and from their appe'arance and conduct towards the queen know 
the time to liberate when she will be well received. “ Felix ” at page 
34 speaks highly of “ Alley’s ” queen cage on the grounds of it having 
a safe retreat for the queen against angry bees. Now my safety 
cage possesses a safe retreat against the most infuriated bees, while 
it is kept at a proper temperature on the top of the hive until the 
time of release, and if desirable she should be removed for a time, 
only requires to be lifted and put in the pocket or in a warm place. 
But while the queen has a safe retreat the cage has a large space 
covered with gauze, where many bees can fraternise, and if a bit of 
honeycomb is taken from the hive she is to be introduced to and 
put in the cage it will give the qu6en an odour more accept¬ 
able to the bees than anything else. Several of these cages were 
sent to the first Crystal Palace Bee and Honey Show along with 
the other intended exhibits, but like them shared the same fate—• 
“ exclusion.” 
After the cages many plans were tried to insure safe intro¬ 
duction. One person deprived the bees of their queen, then the 
moment the commotion commenced the bees were confined, the 
top of the hive was laid bare, and a cloth was thrown over it. 
