Angnst 2 , 1894. 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
115 
dry by sunset. The autumn fruiters should be planted on hillocks or 
ridges, moderately firm, maintaining a moist and genial atmosphere, 
and they will grow and show fruit in plenty shortly, being far better 
for a supply of late summer and early autumn fruits than old plants, 
which produce knobbed, crooked, and otherwise inferior specimen at 
that season. 
THE FLOWER GARDEN. 
Carnations and Plcotees. —Those that either stood in the open 
ground through the winter or were planted out this spring were late in 
flowering, though they promise to be exceptionally floriferous. This 
will naturally hinder layering considerably, as it is scarcely advisable to 
interfere with them before they have ceased to produce flowers in 
quantity. It is of importance, though, that some plants of the best, 
and which, as a rule, are the most delicate forms, be propagated early, 
and this can be done by slipping off some or all the thinner side shoots, 
more especially those badly placed for layering later on. Draw these 
out of the sockets rather than cut them, and dibble them in hand-lights 
behind a north wall. They strike best in a gritty loamy soil, and in the 
warmer districts the hand-lights might even be dispensed with, always 
providing the cuttings can be sheltered from bright sunshine and drying 
winds, care also being taken to keep the soil moist. Any plants in pots 
that have done flowering should be planted out in a well-prepared bed, 
and all the shoots be layered. Cut them half through at a trimmed 
joint, then “ tongue ” them by giving an upward turn to the knife, and 
where this cut is made peg them down carefully and firmly to the soil. 
This is the surest way of securing early and strongly rooted plants, and 
which will flower well in either pots or borders next season. 
Pinks.— Propagation by cuttings or “ pipings ” should commence 
at once. It is the comparatively small and thin side shoots that should 
be selected, and these will strike readily in either a frame on a very 
mild hotbed located in a cool shady position, or in most districts quite 
as surely in hand-lights or frames at the foot of a north wall and without 
bottom beat. Some cuttings might also be dibbled-in and not covered, 
a cool moist site answering best. These also should have a gritty loamy 
compost, and be slipped ofi and dibbled-in firmly and moderately 
thickly. They will give some flowers next season. 
Propasratlngr Beg'onlas and Sabltas. —These can be easily pro¬ 
pagated at this time of the year. In both cases short flowerless shoots 
are the best; the hollow-stemmed tops will not do. Cut to a joint and 
trim off lower leaves. Begonia cuttings will root in the full sunshine 
and open borders, while a rather cooler moisty site should be given the 
Dahlias. Give them the benefit of a light sandy compost, also an occa¬ 
sional “ freshener ” during hot dry weather, and both the Begonias and 
Dahlias will form tubers before the tops die down or are injured by 
frosts. Such tubers may be easily wintered in boxes, and will start 
quite strongly next spring. If the seedling Begonia?, obtained by sow¬ 
ing in June, come up thickly prick them out as soon as they can be 
moved with a forked flat-pointed stick, and dibble them in 2 inches 
asunder in pans or boxes of fine sandy soil. Keep close, constantly 
moist, and shaded from bright sunshine till well established. After¬ 
wards keep in cold frames or even in the open till the tops die down 
or are injured by frost. These and any left thinly in the seed pans 
and boxes will form tiny bulbs, which can be wintered as they are 
where frost does not reach them. By next bedding out time all can be 
grown into strong flowering plants. 
Herbaceous Phloxes and Pentstemons.— Tops of the former 
that have been rooted in hand-lights should be planted out at once, and 
they will then form a fine head of bloom. Raised in this way they are 
very dwarf, and will make good plants for the back rows next season. 
If it is desirable to further increase the stock of choice varieties other 
than by division of the old clumps next autumn or spring take off the 
flowerless side growths, make them into cuttings, and put five or six in 
each 4-inch pot. Place in hand-lights or frame at the foot of north 
wall till struck and winter in cold frame. Each plant raised in this 
way and duly planted on a fairly rich border will give two or three 
strong flowering growths next season. Pentstemons are most simply 
raised from seed, and fine strains are supplied by the leading nursery¬ 
men. It is not yet too late to sow. The seedlings should be wintered 
in cold frames or pits, and planted out moderately early next spring. 
Cuttings made from flowerless shoots could be rooted in frames or hand- 
lights treated exactly the same as recommended in the case of Phloxes. 
Pyrethrums.— If these have been cut over and are not in a semi- 
starved condition they will give a fairly good second crop of flowers. 
To be successful with them a change of soil should be made every three 
years or so, and the best time to lift, divide, and replant is just when 
top growth commences in the spring. Slugs are very destructive among 
plants in the open border, and for this and other reasons it is a good 
practice to detach small p'eces of old plants with a few roots attached, 
and to place these in small pots. Keep in a frame or hand-light in a 
shady place till well established, and winter in a cold frame. 
Hoses. —Teas against walls, and more especially those that were 
freely cut from, are already blooming again with considerable freedom. 
Lightly fasten back the strong, sappy young growths, as these will 
branch and flower with great freedom. The Hybrid Perpetuals will 
soon be past their best, but will continue to give a few blooms if strong 
enough and well fed at the roots. Where some of the growths are long 
and the wood moderately fiim these would bloom again if cut back to 
about half their length. Very hard pruning has to be avoided, as this 
might force out the back buds. Those persons who are anxious to 
increase their stock of own-root Roses should form a bed of fresh loam 
and sharp sand at the foot of a north wall, fence, or hedge, and on this 
set hand-lights or bottomless boxes that can be covered with squares of 
glass. When these are ready select short side-shoots that have produced 
a bloom as w'ell as some of the weaker ones, take them off with a heel, 
or very short thin slice of the old wood attached, and shorten the tops to 
a length of about 4 inches. Dibble in firmly and not too thickly, taking 
care that the cutting touches the bottom of the hole made by the dibble, 
and well fix. Give a gentle watering, and keep close and shaded when 
necessary, till rooted. Strong sunshine must not be permitted to reach 
the cuttings for a few minutes even, or the leaves will most probably 
turn yellow and fall. Budding may now be proceeded with, and con¬ 
tinued during the next five weeks. The stocks and buds “ run ” well at 
present, but should dry hot weather alter this, the remedy lies in 
thoroughly soaking the ground about the stocks, more especially a day 
or two before attempting to bud them. 
Tulips and Ranuncaluses.— When the tops of these are quite 
dead the roots ought to be lifted, dried, and stored in boxes of dry sand, 
or the Tulips may be kept in bags. In either case they ought to be 
stored in a cool dry place and well protected from frosts. When left in 
the open ground the choicer Tulips and the bulk of the Ranunculuses 
either perish or fail to flower satisfactorily. Crocuses may also be safely 
lifted, harvested, and stored, though they keep well in the open ground, 
especially if not very near to the surface. Snowdrops and Daffodils are 
best left where they are. 
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APIARIAN NOTES. 
Although the past week did not come up to the bee-keeper’s 
ideal of fine weather, a marked improvement has taken place. On 
the 20 th the thermometer stood at 63° with a chilling wind. For 
about fifteen minutes the bees were carrying honey briskly, which 
proved the honey flow had commenced, but none was gathered 
until the 22nd, when the test swarm recorded 2 lbs., which were 
gathered in about two and a half hours. On the 23rd it gathered 
4 lbs. without any loss during the night. On the 24th the 
thermometer’s morning reading was 54°, remaining at 57° during 
the most of the day. It again stood at 54° on the morning of the 
25th, rising throughout the day to 65°. On the 26th it registered 
54° in the morning, rising to 70°. During the day the test hive 
gained 3 lbs. The highest night temperature of the whole year 
occurred during the night of the 26th, the temperature on the 
morning of the 27th being 57°, and rising throughout the day to 
74°. The 26th and the 27th were the two first days of the season 
our bees wrought and hummed as we like to see and hear them 
during the summer. 
Preparing for the Moors. 
The favourable change of the weather has rather upset my 
plans of taking the bees to the Heather so early as I expected. I 
may have full supers to remove, besides it is unsafe to move bees 
during a honey flow, even in the best prepared hives such as ours 
are, all with shallow combs and ample ventilation. When a 
cessation of honey gathering takes place I will embrace the oppor¬ 
tunity to remove the bees. A few seconds is ample time to 
prepare each hive for the journey. The alighting board and 
ladder, after the doorway is closed, are folded up in front and 
held rigid with a wire catch, and with the ventilator dropped the 
hives are ready for the journey of fifty miles. Not a bee can 
escape, nor will a comb collapse, nor the bees be overheated, 
although confined for about seventeen hours. 
As few of my hives have swarmed I may expect a busy time 
of it at the moors, but in the event of them swarming I will 
prevent increase by joining the swarms or swarm to one previously 
swarmed, on or after surplus queen cells have been excised. My 
hives all carry three cover of supers. I have therefore in ordinary 
seasons an abundant supply at hand. With these and the large 
hives they have space to rise 100 lbs. 
Hiving Bees. 
Hiving bees into their permanent hive in the evening after 
swarming, and not immediately thereafter, is not obsolete, although 
it ought to be. By delaying much valuable time is lost to the 
bees and profit to the bee-master. While shaking swarms in front 
of the hives with the expectation of the bees and queen assuredly 
taking to them, is another old system which ought to be abolished. 
One evening lately a bee-keeper near me had several swarms 
located in temporary hives. An adherent of the shaking system 
visited him, proffered his services to hive the bees into their 
permanent hives. Everything was prepared in the usual manner 
and the bees forthwith shaken on to the covered gangway for their 
ascent to the hive. Large pieces of comb that had been built in 
