538 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
t Jane 80, 1887 
if this work )6 left to the autumn, but once well coloured they can be 
kept in that condition all winter by preventing fresh growth. 
Erica *.—Softwooded varieties that have started freely into growth 
will, after they are thoroughly hardened, be better outside than in cold 
frames. All in a backward state of growth should be retained under cool 
frame treatment for some weeks longer until they are growing freely, 
when they are better outside than under glass. When the plants are 
plunged outside give each one plenty of room. By such treatment the 
plants make sturdy growth, which will become thoroughly ripened and 
is certain to flower profusely. Every care should be exercised in water¬ 
ing the plants ; the soil must not be saturated, while on the other hand 
they must not be allowed to suffer by an insufficient supply. Syringe 
the plants twice daily on all favourable occasions, and keep the material 
upon which they are standing or plunged in a moist condition. Hard- 
wooded plants must have abundance of air. All plants that it is intended 
to retard for flowering as late as possible in the season should be stood 
on ashes outside where not directly exposed to the sun. These should 
be sheltered with lights, so that thorough protection from heavy rains 
can be given them. Light shade can be applied beneficially to all 
making their growth, but directlv it is completed harden the plants and 
place them outside to ripen. A good crop of flowers depends upon the 
state of the wood. While they are outside care must be taken that the 
sun does not strike directly upon their pots, or their fine silk-like roots 
will be destroyed. The pots can either be plunged or shaded by sacks 
or matting bound about them on the sunny side. 
Epacrti .—Plants that have been pushed into growth in a close atmo¬ 
sphere should be at once placed into cold frames. These should be 
slightly shaded from the sun and the frames kept moderately close for 
ten days or a fortnight, so as to guard against the plants receiving any 
check. After this time gradually give air more freely until the lights 
can be removed or the plants stood or plunged outside. 
Cytisus racemosus .—This and other varieties may now be stood out¬ 
side provided they have been thoroughly hardened for the purpose. 
Plants that have only just ceased flowering may be cut back and induced 
to break into growth in a cold frame, after which they may be 
hardened outside. 
CJioisya ternata.— Those plants that flowered early by being brought 
forward in gentle warmth may now be placed outside. Those that have 
only just flowered may be pruned back and induced to make fresh 
growth in cold frames. They must be pushed forward rapidly, or they 
will not have time to make their growth and ripen it for flowering 
another year. 
THE FLOWER GARDEN AND PLEASURE GROUND. 
TJot Weather and the khrvlberies .—June has been a very trying 
month for the shrubberies, more especially those newly formed. In 
order to keep many transplanted trees and shrubs alive it has been 
necessary to water them copiously both overhead and at the root. Nor 
must this treatment be discontinued for some time to come, as it is very 
rarely indeed that summer rains are sufficiently heavy to thoroughly 
moisten the balls of newly planted trees. Ordinary waterings also are 
of little avail, these merely damping the surface, but seldom reach the 
roots. Prior to watering a tree or shrub the surface soil should be care¬ 
fully loosened with a fork, and a basin formed so as to retain all the 
water poured about each. If on examination it is found that the old 
ball cannot be moistened in this fashion, it should be pierced rather 
thickly with a pointed iron rod, after which the water will not fail to 
find its way into the centre. It should be remembered that transplanted 
trees have for some time to depend entirely upon what support they 
derive from the small quantity of roots preserved unbroken, and if these 
are not kept supplied with water failure is the natural consequence 
Much good may be effected by mulchings, these preventing the loss of 
much moisture from the soil by evaporation. Strawy manure being 
considered unsightly, the next best thing is the grass from the mowing 
machine. Not only is this usually wasted material good for mulching 
new plantations, but it also greatly benefits those well established. 
Rhododendrons, whether in beds or isolated, are greatly improved by 
these mulchings of short grass. In addition to preserving the much- 
needed moisture it eventually decays and affords a good supply of food 
for the roots, therefore distribute the grass among the shrubberies as fast 
as it is cut. 
Rose *.—These are improving rapidly, and the dwarfs that are not 
badly injured by frosts promise abundance of fine blooms. We always 
thin out first the shoots and then the buds, too many of either being so 
much wasted strength ; nor do we hesitate to cut the blooms freely, this 
apparently wasteful practice, at least when several buds are cut with 
the blooms, really resulting in a much earlier successional supply. In 
order to prolong the supply of early blooms it is a good plan to remove 
a good many of the central buds, especially when these are at all mal¬ 
formed, and this strengthens the later buds. If extra fine blooms are 
desired plenty of water and liquid manure must be applied to the roots. 
Blooms obtained from plants growing in a semi-starred state are never 
so durable or brightly coloured as those produced by liberally treated 
plants. The mest generally neglected are those growing against sunny 
walls, these being very frequently more of an eyesore than an orna¬ 
ment. Now is the time to loosen the surface, to well soak the ground 
first with water, and then liquid manure. Then if they are further 
mulched with manure, and this covered with soil, new life will quickly 
be imparted into the trees. The free-flowering and good old Gloire de 
Dijon is usually the last to survive starvation treatment, but even this 
will give out sooner or later unless assisted at the roots. 
NOTES OF THE SEASON. 
THE WEATHER AND .SWARMING. 
The weather took a favourable change here on the 
14th inst., and on June 18th the temperature was 87° 
Fahr. in the shade. On the 17th, with the sun obscured, 
the thermometer stood at 86°. The weather, although 
fine, is rather too warm for bees making much weight. 
Then another thing against that is the short time we have 
had fine weather. Previous to the 14th the weather was 
unfavourable, and hives in general had little honey in 
them, and the bees had not secreted wax. They are now 
doing so, and the building and drawing out of combs will 
go on apace. Swarming commenced in this district on 
the 17th of May, but it is only become general about the 
16th of June. No comb to speak of was made till the 
14th of June, and some bees swarmed that had their 
hives only half full of combs. The Hawthorn blossom 
has helped the bees much this season, and the hives have 
quite an aroma of the blossom. Although our bees had 
not done much until the 14th inst., less than three miles 
distant bee flight, near extensive orchards and willows,, 
during the end of April and beginning of May the bees, 
in that district made much comb and stored abundance 
of honey. 
FOREIGN BEES. 
Owing to the excessive and protracted cold the pure 
Syrian race lost many adult bees, but are again recover¬ 
ing, and will no doubt make up shortly what they lost by 
the decimation in May, only they are not the farthest 
ahead at the present time. 
The first, as usual, are the crossed Cyprians. On the 
14th June, the first day 1 interfered with them since 
September, I found that one in a compound frame hive- 
had built out two full combs, 17£ inches deep and 
12 inches wide, and had much sealed honey, the contents, 
of the hive, bees and combs weighing 10 lbs.; on the 16th 
it rose in weight 12 lbs., and on the 17th 8 lbs. Its 
total weight of contents of hive is now 105 lbs. Had the 
weather not changed many of the other hives would have- 
required feeding, but these Cyprians could give a surplus. 
The Carniolians are also in good order, and were as a 
rule better provisioned than common stocks hereabouts* 
The crossed Cyprians have supers well advanced, while 
others are only taking to them yet. All of the same 
breed I distributed amongst bee-keepers are in a similarly 
advanced state. Many people have witnessed these bees, 
and their doings, and should the weather be favourable 
for two or three weeks during the profuse bloom of Char¬ 
lock, Beans, and Clover they will be heavy hives. 
Regarding the working qualities of foreign bees when 
honey is abundant there is no doubt they far excel our 
old British bee, but I fear many people have not estimated 
them properly, nor given them a chance to prove their 
superiority. They have in some cases judged them by- 
appearance, and in others expected more from them than, 
bees could do, and so were disappointed, expecting half¬ 
sized colonies to fill full-sized supers, and to work on> 
days that other bees could not. 
Their superiority exists in their breeding earlier, being- 
always in advance of others, having a great?r disposition, 
owing to their structure, to gather honey when others, 
cannot find it, or when they are in search of something 
else, and the large hives give the pressure and stimulus 
