September 12.] 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
convenient structures only are required for the production of 
j such things in the best and most economical manner. Whe¬ 
ther they are constructed east and west, or north and south, 
I we find such as I am now recommending the best and most 
I economical. Formerly, great fear was entertained of expos¬ 
ing a surface of glass to any other than a southern aspect; 
but experience gained by those who have proved its fallacy, 
j and the improvement of glass and glazing, have to some 
! extent uprooted such ancient notions. 
The structures intended for peach and grape culture should 
have the foundation wall, the whole way round, arched 
to the surface of the intended border the trees are to be 
planted on, which will afford their roots space without limita- 
| tion, so needful for the production of first-rate grapes for 
! many successive years. The vines, peaches, and nectarines, 
I or any kind of fruit trees intended for house culture, should 
by all means be planted inside; by having arches in the 
| walls, their roots could be allowed to range outside. 
The system to be kept in view for mar ket gardening, or, 
indeed, for any other gardening purposes, whether public or 
private, may be summed up in a few words—adopt at the 
commencement of cultivation thorough drainage; deep cul¬ 
ture, regulated as mentioned in the foregoing directions; 
liberal manuring, so applied that the crop may at once 
obtain the greatest benefit from it; not as we have often 
seen in garden practice, more particularly amongst the old 
school in former days, to trench deep, burying the manure 
deep, and casting the sour stagnated bottom spit of subsoil 
over it, there to let the soil remain, instead of casting it into 
rough open ridges, so that it should receive the benefit of 
| atmospheric influences. In the after management, take 
( every opportunity, in suitable weather, of using the pick-axe 
i or strong fork ; and do not let the soil remain to get washed 
and run together by heavy rains, which will cause it to 
become surface bound, hard, and in every way unkind, caus¬ 
ing much extra labour and future disappointment. The 
main spring of all good culture after the foregoing system is 
adopted, is constant and systematic surface stirring, hoeing, 
and forking the earth's surface amongst and about all the 
crops, which it is impossible to perform too often in suitable 
weather. 
Sow everything you cultivate in drills; and shallow hoeing 
may be performed as soon as the plants can be seen; continue 
to follow up this most essential operation of surface-stirring, 
and deeper scarifying as the crops advance, as long as there 
can be found room for the operation with spirit; weeds have 
then no chance of appearing, and slugs, wire-worms, and 
other obnoxious garden pests are so constantly routed out 
of tbeir hiding places, that they and their broods are either 
destroyed with the constant operation, or fall a prey to birds. 
<£c.; the labour of the water-pot is saved in dry weather, the 
destructive ravages of frost are thereby much prevented, and 
every kind of vegetable is by such treatment advanced 
quickly in size and forwardness, as may very soon be proved 
by any one putting into practice the foregoing rules on one 
part of any kind of crop and leaving the other part undone. 
By thus keeping an open loose surface-soil amongst all 
kinds of crops, securing, at the same time, a good prepara¬ 
tion for all succeeding ones, there is no need at any time or 
season for rest, or fallowing the land, which is never ex¬ 
hausted by cropping if our instructions are well attended to, 
neither do the crops ever materially suffer either from 
drought, moisture, from severe frost, or vermin. Keeping 
also in view the trenching and forking over every spare 
piece of ground the moment the crop is off, and having at 
all times seed and plants waiting for a vacancy, instead of 
the soil waiting for seed or plants, it is astonishing how inch 
a return may be secured for our labour. James Barnes. 
A CONSULTATION ON BEE-KEEPING. 
J have derived so many enjoyments from a perusal of, 
and attention to, the instructions of The Cottage Gar¬ 
dener, that I feel it right, when the difficulties it has un¬ 
wittingly occasioned to others have been stated, to mention 
those pleasures which it has opened to myself. 
When a lad, I was always fond of gardening; the early 
portion of manhood was so fully occupied, that I could not 
give to it the requisite time, and of late years having no per¬ 
manent abode, 1 deferred its pursuit until I was settled upon 
my own land. Your publication, however, so revived and 
373 
invigorated my love for the early employment of my leisure 
hours, that at its commencement, although as far from 
being settled ns ever, I set to work in good earnest, and for 
the last two seasons have had, for its size, as gay and pretty 
a garden as any in my neighbourhood, that have not had 
the advantage of a greenhouse or warm-pit. 
Respecting the management of bees, I have been very 
troublesome to you, and feel, therefore, obligated to give you 
some account of the success which has attended my progress 
in this delightful pursuit. For many years 1 have been 
desirous of keeping these interesting creatures, but as I 
knew of no other way of obtaining their honey, except by 
their destruction, I never gratified my wish. Your periodical 
this year set me to work with a zeal and diligence perhaps 
even greater than it did to my garden, being not only myself 
much interested, but anxious to prevent the wanton des¬ 
truction of life by my poorer neighbours. Accordingly, in the 
spring of this year, I purchased two stocks (No. 1, and No. 2), 
for which I paid 10s each. The hives and boards wei’e 
in a very bad state ; boards cracked and warped; hives 
nearly falling to pieces. I had purchased them unseen. 
From No. 2, I have obtained 12f lb of comb, worked in 
small super hives; from No. 1, 4J lb, in the same manner. 
The board of this hive, as well as the hive itself, were so 
bad, that contrary to your advice, but with that of an old bee 
master, I determined to transfer it. This was done by 
fuming after the Oxford method, and its result, a loss of 
2 lb weight of bees, almost disheartened me, but having 
other hives doing well, I was encouraged to proceed. From 
this hive I obtained 15 lb of raw honey. The bees saved, 
were placed on the 12th July, in Neighbour’s No. 5 hive, 
which, by-the-bye, when I purchased it, 7 took for “ Payne’s 
Improved Cottage." They have since—feeding with about 
half a pint of liquid brown sugar every nigbt—been doing 
well. The hive is now three parts full of comb, and on the. 
22nd of August I added to it the bees given me by a neigh¬ 
bour, from a stock that had swarmed, cast, and colted. To 
No. 2, I have given a new floor-board, and am just about to 
remove an empty box that was placed between the hive and 
one partially filled, and to leave this stock, now weighing, I 
am told, including board, about 56 lb in its old hive for 
swarming next season. This hive swarmed on the 9th June, 
but not placing the swarm on its stand at once, it rose in 
about three hours and took up its abode in a tree, and when 
dislodged was so mutilated as to be of no use. On the lltli 
of June, 1 pr ocured another large swarm in its place (No. 5), 
and set it upon a doubling board; in eighteen days the hive 
was full of comb ; on the second of July, I gave it a second 
hive, the cold weather just then prevented the bees taking to 
it, and in ten days it was removed and a glass placed upon 
the top of the hive. This partially filled, I took off, finding 
the bees were eating the honey. It contained 1^ lb. 1 lid 1 
do right in removing it? (Yes.) On the 29th July, this 
hive, exclusive of hive and board, weighed 29,! fi,. Do you 
think I need weigh them again before winter, I cannot do 
it conveniently ? (No.) 
Anxious to know more about their work and to manage 
bees in the best manner, I was desirous of obtaining one of 
Taylor’s hives. Three guineas, however, was more than I 
could afford, and finding the inventor not interested in their 
sale, with the help of his very useful book, 4tli edition, and 
a good joiner, I constructed a stock box, super cover and 
pedestal, such as I think would do credit to the joiner who 
made the original. The only difference seems to be, that 
we have used the common screws for the crown board, and 
have not, what 1 took to be on inspecting the hive at Neigh¬ 
bours, a half-crown board to answer the purpose, 1 presume, 
of an adapting board ; I could not, however, see exactly its 
use, as my time was limited. For this hive, as no swarm 
could be procured, I spoke for two casts. On the 2nd of 
July, the first came in a common straw hive; on the 0th, the 
second, a very strong one, that arose the 16th day, came, in 
the same way; this latter one I transferred into the bar-hive 
the same evening, intending to put the other to it, but was 
overpersuaded by my old friend the bee-master to retain it 
in its own straw-hive, as my box would not hold the two. I 
have now convinced him we both were in error. As soon as 
I could procure a feeder, I began feeding it with liquid 
sugar and honey, and have been delighted for some time to 
find the hive full of comb, and those cells near the windows, 
