THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY GENTLEMAN, May 4, 1858. 
1 parts of Kent. I have seen enormous crops of it at Wildcr- 
1 nesse Park, where it was grown exclusively for the parlour- 
table, and I think, at that time, it could not possibly be 
surpassed for flavour by any other variety. It is a large, 
white Potato, with rather deep eye, and strong haulm. It is, 
round this part, very liable to the disease. 
Webber’s Kidney. —This is a very clear, smooth-skin 
variety ; the one end is large, and tapers gradually off to a 
point. It is an early Potato, with an excellent even eye, good 
cropper, moderate haulm, and generally free from disease. 
This is a good variety. 
Fietyfold Kidney. —This variety was sent out by Mr. 
! Lake, of Bridgwater, Somerset. It is a heavy cropper, with 
shallow eye, and moderate haulm. 
Early Blue. —This old favourite Potato is now, in con¬ 
sequence of its being so very liable to the disease, fast going 
out of date ; it is, however, a good variety, with an excellent 
eye, early, short haulm, fair-sized tubers, and tolerable cropper. 
1 have been tempted to plant a few bushels of it again this 
season. 
Sheward’s Seedling.— This variety was raised by Mr. 
Sheward, late gardener to John Freeman, Esq., Gaines, near 
Worcester. It resembles the -Early Manly , both in shape 
and colour. It is a very heavy cropper, good eye, moderate 
haulm, tubers rather small, and of a yellowish colour. 
Alstone Kidney. —This variety is termed by many the 
Cheltenham Pet. The size this Potato attains there is 
really astonishing. It is quite a distinct variety, and ex¬ 
cellent for exhibition. The skin is very thin and white ; it is 
full size, with a very good eye for a large Potato. It is a 
strong grower, enormous cropper, and a late variety ; there¬ 
fore, it should not be planted too closely. It is an excel¬ 
lent Potato for the table, and keeps good very late in the 
season. It has, however, one drawback—which is the case 
with many late varieties—it is very liable to be attacked by 
disease. To those who wish for a large, showy Potato, I 
recommend the above. 
Elmley Ball is a large yellow variety, resembling the 
Parly Shaw. Deep eye, early, good cropper, and short 
haulm. 
Old Red. —This Potato, twenty years ago, was to be found 
at every potato-warehouse, and on every potato-stall in the 
market-places of London. The different varieties of lieyents 
have now superseded them, and this old mottled, deep-eyed, 
deformed red, will, I have no doubt, ere long, be quite extinct 
in the market. It is a strong-growing late variety, and very 
liable to be attacked by disease. 
Orkney Red, alias Orkney Blue. —This Potato is exten¬ 
sively grown in the Orkney Islands, and large quantities are 
annually imported into our markets at the present day. It is 
rather a long sort of kidney-shaped red Potato, with deep eyes 
regularly distributed all over it. It is a variety that delights 
in a change of soil, more so than any other variety I know; 
it is then an enormous cropper; in fact, the largest crop of 
Potatoes I ever saw was of this variety. The seed came direct 
from the Orkney Islands, and was planted in light loamy 
land. It is a close, dry-eating Potato, rather late, and a strong 
grower ; should be planted rather wide apart. This is an 
| excellent keeping variety, and generally free from disease.— 
■ Edward Bennett, Perdiswell. 
{To he continued.') 
NOTES ON RECENT BEE ARTICLES. 
Those who remember the articles on bee-keeping in The 
Cottage Gardener, some few years back, by “ The 
Country Curate,” will, I am sure, rejoice with me at seeing 
the writer’s productions again, and give them a cordial welcome 
under whatever signature they may be put forth. In reply to 
that gentleman’s inquiry regarding the effect of placing the 
swarm in the place of the old stock, my experience of the 
practice, which is now rather extensive, is, that in the greater 
number of cases (but not in all) it prevents second swarms, 
and I think so favourably of it, that I shall put it in force 
generally this year. 
During the last few years, I have been making very many 
experiments as to the manufacture of a good and cheap hive, 
and, amongst other materials, I tried tubs as recommended by 
“ P. Y. M. F.,” at page 10, having them made of sound Oak one 
inch in thickness. My idea was, that possibly the moisture 
given out by the bees woidd prevent shrinking in very dry 
weather, but, in this, I was mistaken, the staves shrunk so 
much in summer that the hoops became loose and fell down; 
the tubs being used as bee-hives with the large ends upwards. 
IIow far wrapping them round with a stout rope would 
answer, I hardly know; but I should doubt whether a straw 
band would be effectual. My own tub-liives have had bottoms 
put in, and are now doing duty in the kitchen as pails and 
washing tubs. 
The page following contains a communication from Mr. 
Wighton, which I really much regretted to see in print, it is so 
purely personal, that I am quite sure it cannot be interesting 
to the readers of The Cottage Gardener. I have no wish 
to prolong so useless a discussion as to whether Warder or 
Richardson be the better authority; but of two sentences I 
must complain. When Mr. Wighton places my statement of 
more than £50 having been cleared last season by the sale of 
honey and wax from 70 hives, as no more worthy of belief, 
than Richardson’s falsehood of £17 profit having been obtained 
in one season from a single hive, he pays me a very poor com¬ 
pliment ; and the insinuation in his concluding paragraph, that 
I have studied bees less in hives than in books, is neither 
courteous nor correct. 
I have perused many of Mr. Wighton’s communications to 
The Cottage Gardener with pleasure and profit ; his work 
on bees I have read through more than once with interest and 
advantage, and I regret that a discussion of such a character 
should have arisen between us.—W. B. Tegetmeier, Mus- 
well Hill , N. 
PRESERVING FRUIT WITHOUT SUGAR. 
I subjoin a receipt, which I have tested for two years, and 
found it most valuable, as it has provided a family of twelve 
with a constant supply of varied puddings and tarts at the 
price of plana suet-dumplings! Of course, if bought , the 
price of the fruit must be reckoned; but even then the sugar, 
the expensive item in preserving, is saved, and the flavour of 
the fresh fruit is retained. The bottles once purchased, my 
winter stock of fruit costs nothing. 
To preserve fruit fresh for winter use, put the fruit in 
bottles, fill them up with cold spring water, tie down with 
bladder tightly ; put them in a kettle, or copper, of cold 
water up to the neck of the bottles, with hay to steady them ; 
let them simmer for a quarter of an hour, but not boil; let 
them cool in the water; wipe the bottles, and put away in a 
dry place. On no account open them till their contents are 
wanted for eating.— Rose Caroline. 
MANAGEMENT OF BEES BY COTTAGERS. 
Lately a correspondent invited criticism on what he in¬ 
tended to communicate on bees ; therefore, we trust' that he 
will not take offence at the following remarks on his advice to 
cottagers. Wo need hardly observe, that he speaks to them 
in plain language, at page 10, on the swarming plan, with j 
some slight modifications. Amongst other things, he obseiwes 
that “ every cottager should keep at least ten stock hives over 
the winter,” and says, “ why should he not? ” We,refer the j 
reader to his answer to this, and reply that, except in some 
localities, there is not sufficient food for the offspring, or 
swarms, from so many stocks ; nay, with our bad seasons, it ! 
would be hard even to keep up that number of old hives, 
although they vvere managed as he describes, by adding the 
brood to the stocks “ after getting rid of the old bees.” But 
why call these old, when they are nearly, of course, of the j 
same mixture, or age, as those in the old hives ? Likewise, 
why not say whether the bees are destroyed upon the cot¬ 
tager’s plan ; for, if so, they seldom spare the sulphur, the 
fumes of which affect the brood in some measure as well as 
the perfect insects. Moreover, if we mistake not, the larva 
are bred with their mouths downwards, or fronting the floor 
ot the hive; and w T e question, if they can come to proper 
maturity in a reversed position ? We give this, however, with 
some diffidence, and will notice it again in connection with 
another matter. 
