May 1 ,1830. ] 
JOURXAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
869 
Cherky House. —When the stoning is completed the fruit will 
commence colouring. The temperature must not exceed 05° by artificial 
means, and 50° to 00° at night, with a little ventilation, increasing it at 
<0°, and not allowing the heat to rise above 75° without full ventilation, 
closing at 70°, subject to the leaving of a little air on constantly at the 
top of the house. From the commencement of the colouring of the 
fruit until the trees are cleared of the fruit the syringing must cease or 
the fruit will crack, but a good moisture should be maintained in the 
house by kMping the surface of the border moist, or if the trees are in 
pots damping the floors two or three times a day, avoiding, however, 
a stagnant atmosphere. Aphides must be kept under by fumigation ; 
their presence for any length of time disfigures the fruit. See that the 
borders do not want water, and liquid manure should be liberally 
supplied to trees in pots. 
i IGS. —Earliest Forced Trees in Puts .—The fruit will now be ripe 
or nearly so, hence the supply of water at the roots must be diminished, 
syringing being discontinued and a free circulation of warm dry air 
aflfordc^, leaving the top ventilators open a little at night. Although less 
water is advised daring the ripening of the fruit the soil must be kept 
moist, and a moderate moisture in the atmosphere secured by an 
occasional damping of available surfaces, but this will only be necessary 
in very bright weather. As soon as the first crop is gathered syringe the 
trees twice daily, renewing the top dressing, and watering at the roots 
with weak liquid manure. If the second crop of fruit be very abundant 
they must be thinned out so as not to overtax the trees for early forcing 
next season. It is only the very early varieties to which the syringing 
and thinning apply at present. 
Eirly-forced Planted-out Trees. —The fruit will be in the last stages 
of swelling and will soon commence ripening. The border must be 
examined, and if necessary given a thorough supply of water or liquid 
manure. Cease syringing the trees when the fruit commences ripening, 
avoiding a superabundance of moisture about the house, having a little 
ventilation at the top of the sashes constantly and a free circulation 
until the fruit is all gathered. Do not gather the fruit until it is 
thoroughly ripe unless it has to be packed. 
Succession Houses .—Frequent attention must be given to stopping 
the shewts at the fifth joint, and subsequently to one or two, but too 
many side shoots must not be encouraged, as the fruit and wood require 
light and air for maturation. Train extensions in their full length, 
thinning or removing strong growths so as to admit light and air to the 
fruit. Attend daily to syringing the trees, and supply water as necessary 
to maintain thorough moisture at the roots. Renew the mulching if 
necessary, and keep it moist so as to encourage the roots to and keep 
them near the surface. 
KITCHEN GARDEN. 
Tomatoes. —Cut the fruit off the early plants as soon as it indicates 
ripening, and let it^mature on the shelf in the house. This will allow 
the later fruits to swell and ripen much sooner than if they were all 
left on until they were quite ripe, and the earlier the fruit can be 
secur^ now the better, especially for market purposes when the prices 
are high. Plants that are bearing heavily should have a thin surface 
dressing of soil and manure placed over the roots. They should also 
receive copious supplies of liquid manure, but do not overfeed any 
plants that have not commenced bearing. Restrict the plants to one or 
two main stems. They require attention in this way twice weekly when 
in active growth. The fruit does not form freely in a damp atmosphere. 
It is a great advantage to have very forward plants for the open air, 
and as they cannot be planted until the end of May backward plants 
should still be kept in a warm genial atmosphere. They should be 
in 6-inch pots, and if moved into a cool place by the middle of May, 
and planted out in a fortnight or three weeks afterwards, success may 
be expected. 
Asparagus. —Prevent the surface of the beds becoming a mass of 
weeds by hoeing or salting. Do not cut from roots that are under three 
years old. The very small heads that are not sufficiently strong for use 
may be allowed to grow, but all that can be used should be cut when 
from 6 inches to 10 inches in length. This may be done until the latter 
end of May. The heads may be cut level with the ground or a little 
below it, and care must be taken that those which are still invisible are 
not injured before they come above ground, as they sometimes are by 
the feet or knives of careless workmen. Seed may be sown now to 
produce new roots. 
Peas. —Those who grow their Peas without stakes will find them 
fail to yield so freely as those that have supports, and, if possible, they 
should all be staked. Where the ordinary wood stakes cannot be pro¬ 
cured, wire netting 4 or 5 feet high, and with meshes 4 inches wide, 
may be used. If this is put up on each side of the row, and fixed to a 
stake here and there, it will be found to form an admirable support for 
the Peas. Store seed of the main crop varieties should now be sown. 
These will furnish gatherings about the end of July, a time when the 
first flush of the supply is getting over, and when pods are often scarce 
and inferior. Many persons find well manured Celery-like trenches 
good for the production of succulent Peas during times of very hot dry 
weather. 
Slugs AKD Snails. —As there are now many tender young seed¬ 
ling vegetables in the garden the above pests are very active and 
destructive, especially after rain and in humid weather. A sprinkling 
of fine fresh lime if thrown over the surface after dark when the slugs 
are feeding as often as necessary will be found effectual, and benefit the 
ground at the same time. 
Salsafy and Scorzoner.y. —These are generally sown and grown 
together, but the former is the more useful. They are apt to “ bolt ” 
before gaining maturity if sown too early in the season, but this is not 
likely to occur by sowing at the present time. Break the soil up well, 
do not put any long littery manure into it, see that it is over 1 foot 
in depth, sow the seed thinly in drills 15 inches apart and 2 inches deep. 
Sterile Seeds. —There are more of these than we anticipated after 
such a good season as was experienced in 1889. Some of the Onions are 
particularly bad. A few sorts have proved a failure, while others from 
the sa<he seed firm are as good as usual. When it is ascertained beyond 
all doubt that some kinds have failed the sooner new and good seed is- 
obtained and sown the better, as the loss of a few weeks in sowing^ 
Onions will affect the weight of the crop materially. This also applies 
to Carrots, Parsnips, and all roots and bulbs requiring a long season to 
gain maturity. 
Large Leeks. —Those large Leeks seen at shows <and elsewhere in 
the autumn are not the result of sowing seed in the usual way in the- 
open, but the plants are raised and grown for a time under glass. 
They are hardened like tender bedding plants, and planted out in the 
open early in May. Many of them are now ready for planting ia 
trenches similar to those required by Celery. 
Large Spring Onions. —The large spring Onions, many of which 
were shown in the autumn of 1889 of unusual size, are raised in the 
same way and planted out about the same time as the Leeks, but on 
level ground made very rich near the surface, and in the sunniest of 
positions. 
Miscellaneous. —Withdraw Vegetable Marrow and Ridge Cu¬ 
cumber plants from heat, and harden them to make them fit for planting 
in the open air shortly. Sow Radish seed in small quantity once a fort¬ 
night, and only raise Lettuce in small batches. Earth up early Potatoes, 
and sow more Round Spinach seed. 
NOTES ON BEES. 
The Apiary. 
If the bees had a splendid beginning from the 1st to the 6 tb 
April it has been the opposite since. For nearly three weeks the 
gathering of honey and pollen has been almost entirely stopped, 
while the Plum and Gooseberry blossoms are nearly past. The 
latter do not look as if they will hold well, many being yellowed. 
Many bees have been lost, and weak hives have suffered more in 
this respect than strong ones, and hives where feeding has been 
delayed are now in a critical state. 
The Sycamores are the succeeding honey yielders, and should 
the weather prevent the bees getting them there will be no 
alternative but to feed until the Clover and fine weather come ; 
and if a honey harvest is expected it is imperative that they be 
fed, and that liberally. It is not the first time that bees have had 
to be fed the whole summer to tide them over another winter, so 
we need not despair nor neglect to perform all the work necessary 
to profitable bee keeping. The season is young yet, and although 
the first chance of honey gathering has been lost most hives are in 
excellent condition to secure honey in the second gathering should 
the weather permit. This will put them in the best of order for 
the Clover, only they must not be allowed to suffer from insufificient 
feeding. 
Young Queens. 
These are the first and principal essentials to secure whatever 
the season may be, whether it be for the present or next year’s 
work. When these are raised and fertilised early in the season it 
is a double advantage in more ways than one over those raised 
late in the season. 
May Swarms. 
If the weather is favourable swarms in May will be the rule 
this year. In districts where the honey gathering ends with the 
middle of June, with no prospect of Lime or Heather honey, means 
should be taken to prevent swarming as much as possible ; but 
when they do swarm ia spite of all precautions join two together. 
Where Heather abounds the opposite course may be pursued, 
and Nature may be allowed to take its course with advantage to 
the bee-keeper. Those who practise the above will in some years, 
from the extra material or hives in hand, find it greatly to his 
advantage to reduce his number by joining two or more together, 
taking the honeycombs that can be spared and joining the brood 
ones. By so building the hives are in the best possible condition 
for the Heather harvest, and with a young and fertile queen m a 
large hive the chances of swarming are reduced to a minimum and 
the profit raised to the maximum. 
Details in many cases might be advisable, but the foregoing; 
outline will enable any practical bee-keeper to understand what to 
do and how it should be done, and the p.ages are open for answer¬ 
ing novices any query they may put, so as to enable them to 
perform the necessary work as well as the more advanced. Some 
of the more important manipulations will be described in future 
