216 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND C011AGE GARDENER . 
[ Sepfember 3, 1885. 
the first. Meanwhile I had one bar-frame stock filling sections, another 
working well in a glass, and another working both above and at the 
rear. This latter I had bought in an Abbott’s combination standard, and 
on examination found they had been allowed to follow their own will, 
and had built across the bars. I determined to leave these till the fall, 
and then hive these, but I put a Crystal Palace super overhead, 
and eight 2 lb. sections in the rear. They soon set to work, and so 
far as I can tell these are the only stocks that have not swarmed. 
I have taken one set of four 2 lb. sections from the rear, having 
another nearly complete, replacing with an empty, which I have not 
yet examined. They are sealing the front and rear combs of the Crystal 
Palace super, about 20 lbs., and this I lifted, snd placed an empty one 
under, in which they are steadily working, so that their stock will 
probably yield over 40 lbs. 
The stock working in a super of sections, after filling some 25 lbs., 
swarmed and ceased super work, though I have since taken two bars 
of honey. Meanwhile, a stock working well in a mahogany and glass 
super I was anxious to exhibit, swarmed and ceased work aloft. This 
was a great disappointment to me. When getting home on most days 
there was a swarm from one or other of the stocks, but there being no one 
at home to watch them, one or more got away ; but the plan I adopted was 
to add them after supplying scented syrup to one of the other swarms, 
so that I obtained two that were very strong. 
The plan I adopt, and I have found it the most successful, is this. 
I have a large bottle of syrup, thin ; in this I put one of the aphis spray 
producers, with a flexible tube to the mouthpiece; then in the evening 
I smoke the stock, and taking bar by bar spray them well with the 
syrup, also any separated bees not on the bars ; then, serving the swarm 
which has been hived in a skep and safely tied down in the same way, 
I throw them in at the back of the hive. 
This plan has succeeded capitally, scarcely any quarrelling, and I 
was anticipating great things, but it does not do to weigh your honey 
before you have it, any more than to count your chickens before they are 
hatched. I placed the mahogany super on a stock made up of three 
swarms. The bees took possession, and my mind was easy, but after a little, 
though the super was hot, the bees were not, and the honey already in 
the super did not appear to increase. Then I felt convinced that this 
mixed swarm must have swarmed, for there were fewer bees at the mouth 
of the hive and fewer in the super ; so, being very anxious to get this 
mahogany super filled, I removed it. But two bars were nearly finished. 
I placed this on another mixed swarm, and two or three more bars were 
filled up, but our season is over, and I failed as to exhibiting this super. 
Soon after I removed it from its second place—the mixed swarm—I felt 
convinced that there was something wrong. The bees crowded the 
entrance ; true, the weather was hot, then they hung out. This increased 
greatly. They swarmed down one leg of the hive, then they formed a 
mass on the ground. At that time I was very busy, had scarcely a moment 
to look at them. However, just before bedtime the evening that I had 
noticed them in a bunch on the ground I took a light to them to see if 
those on the ground had gone up. No, there they were. Glancing at the 
entrance I saw that the bees seemed crowded all round it, and on 
placing the light down found the alighting board a mass of honey and 
drowned bees. The explanation was of course that some accident to the 
bars had occurred. The following day I opened the hive. The second, 
third, fourth, and fifth bars had all given way—whether one had suc¬ 
ceeded in breaking down the others, or they had all given way with the 
heat, and the floor of the hive was a mass of honey and dead bees. I 
immediately got another hive, and the bars were taken out, bees brushed 
off, kc. Meanwhile the broken pieces of comb were piled on a dish, taken 
indoors, and placed on a counter. Near this dish was a small box of 
scales and weights. There they were left, the bees transferred to their 
clean hive, and hopes that the queen was all safe, &c. Three or four 
hours, the broken pieces were taken away to the extractor ; then my assist¬ 
ant, accidentally going to the box of weights, lifted the lid, but as 
suddenly retreated, for a bee, of which he has a mortal horror, issued from 
the same. “ Oh 1” I said, " you need not be afraid, only a drone,” and 
was just going to give the supposed gentleman a coup de grace, when I 
recognised her majesty. How she got into the box of scales was a 
mystery. I caught her, and placing her on the feeding hole, she quickly 
varnished. Three days after I found eggs in the new comb, and the hive 
has been rapidly repairing damages since. Scarcely a dozen bees were 
taken in with tbe pieces of comb, and it is singular that amongst these 
should have been the most important. Still more singular that she should 
have got into the box which was close at hand, certainly, but how she got 
in and shut down the lid is a much stranger affair. But there she was 
ready to issue from it as soon as the lid was lifted, as I saw myself. 
To those who think bees should take care of themselves I think the 
late winter must have been disastrous. The bees were often on tbe wing, 
hence consuming more of their stores. Then May here was bitterly cold, 
and very little honey to be found. So among the cottagers I have not 
been surprised to hear they were busy and strong in April and then died 
away, some of them having lost several. To those who have been able 
to devote plenty of time to their little workers I cannot but think the 
harvest has been fair, if not abundant. I think about my neighbourhood 
the latter.—Y. B. A. Z. 
TRADE CATALOGUES RECEIVED. 
B. S. "Williams, Victoria and Paradise Nurseries, Upper Holloway, 
London.— Descriptive Catalogue of Bulbs, Fruit Trees, die. 
Edmund Philip Dixon, Yorkshire Seed Establishment, Hull .—Catalogue 
of Bulbs, Spring-flowering Plants, Strawberries, d;c. 
*** 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 unavoidably. We 
request that no one will write privately to any of our correspon¬ 
dents, as doing so subjects them to unjustifiable trouble and 
expense. 
Correspondents should not mix up on the same sheet questions relat¬ 
ing to Gardening and those on Bee subjects, and should never 
send more than two or three questions at once. All articles in¬ 
tended 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. 
Abnormal Leaf ( Thos. Meredith). —We are glad to see the monstrosity, 
which differs somewhat from others of the same nature that occur in 
gardens. It appears to be a twin leaf, the force of the sap having divided 
tbe stalk and, as it were, split the blade, and its expansion having been 
thereby arrested a secondary purse-like leaf has pushed from the midrib. It 
is a very singular example of malformation. 
Root-pruning {F. J.). —You had better not prune the trees till the crop 
is gathered, which you say will be in October. The remarks on root-pruning 
in September are, as you intimate, sound and clear, but they apply to fruit¬ 
less trees of luxuriant growth. Yours, it appears, are not quite fruitless, 
yet are growing too freely, and you will not err by root-pruning in October, 
or immediately the fruit is gathered. 
Top-dressing Chrysanthemums ( Cambridge ).—You cannot do better 
than top-dress your plants at once, which will assist in keeping the roots 
active and supplying the plants with the necessary food to enable them to 
develope their flower buds. It is surprising what assistance a top-dressing 
of rich material proves to the plants in their latter stages, after the roots 
inside the pots have taken full possession of the whole of the soil. A 
system of top-dressing is practised by the majority of those who grow large 
flowers for exhibition. You will find equal parts of good fibry loam and 
cow manure with a little soot, say a 6-inch potful to half a bushel of soil, 
an excellent top-dressing for your plants, and the roots will not be long 
before they take possession of it. Some first-rate cultivators top-dress their 
plants with cow manure only, but we prefer the compost advised above. 
Ranunculuses from Seed {Amateur), —Keep the seeds you have saved 
in a dry cool place. Early in spring mix a compost of strong loam and leaf 
mould, and fill some boxes or seed pans, well drained, very nearly full; sift 
a portion of it and place a thin layer over the rough compost, and press it very 
gently down. Mix the seed with some fine soil, rubbing the seed and the soil 
well together till the seeds are separated from each other. Sow this mixture 
upon the soil in the boxes or shallow pans ; press it down level, and with a 
fine sieve sift some of the compost evenly over it the thickness of a shilling; 
then with a watering pot, the nozzle of which has the finest holes, give a 
gentle watering. Place the seed pans under glass in a cold frame or pit, or 
in front of a low wall facing the east, and contrive a covering or shelter of 
some kind to protect them from heavy showers. Whenever the soil appears 
dry give water with the fine-rosed water pot, and in strong sunshine place 
a shade over them till the seedlings appear above ground and have attained 
a leaf or two to each plant. Search well about where the boxes or seed pans 
stand, and even lift them up and examine under them to see if any slugs or 
woodlice have crept there to hide themselves. Continue this attention till 
the leaves begin to decay and then cease watering, but keep the plants clear 
of weeds. When the leaves are all decayed and winter is approaching place 
the pans of seedlings in some very cool place where no rain can fall upon 
them, and keep them there till spring. About the middle of April bring 
them out and give them a good watering. Sift over the soil a thin layer of 
fresh compost, and repeat the care and attention with regard to watering, 
looking after insects, and keeping clear of weeds as in the previous season. 
This second year, when the leaves fall and the plants are at rest, the tubers 
will have attained some size. They should now be taken out of the soil, 
and the surest way to accomplish this without losing any roots is to sift 
the upper part of the soil through a fine sieve, fine enough to catch even 
the smallest roots. Store them away in a cool dry room, and in the spring 
plant them out. 
Young Vines (An Amateur). —It is difficult for us to say why the berries 
of your Grapes are small from the information supplied to us. The size 
both of the bunches and berries depends in a very large measure upon the 
growth the Vines made last year, and also upon the condition of the wood, 
whether thoroughly ripened or not. It is impossible to expect Vines with 
unripened wood that possess neither strength nor vigour, whether young or 
old, to produce berries of a large size. Young Vines very frequently pro¬ 
duce large-sized bunches, but the berries are often smaller than from 
vigorous Vines of a greater age. This is not always the case, for much can 
be done in swelling the berries to a large size by good cultivation, which 
under inferior treatment would only be small. The pruning would have 
nothing to do with the size of the berries. You cannot expect us to answer 
your other question about the soil, for you have not said one word whether 
you made special preparations for your Vines, or in what compost they are 
growing. If your letter had been less brief we might probably have given 
you a more useful answer. 
Plan of Rose Garden (A Lady Gardener). —We have no design exactly 
adapted to the peculiar form for your lawn, and you can scarcely expect us 
