92 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY GENTLEMAN, May 11, 1858. 
the shoots, harden them off by degrees, and by July or 
August they will do in cold pits, or out of doors, but m the 
latter case the pots should be defended from the sun’s rays. 
House again in October. Peat and fibry loam suit them well. 
Rhododendrons should be kept close in the greenhouse 
whilst forming their wood after blooming. Obtain full light 
and more air as the young shoots approach completion. 
When knotted at the points, and beginning to swell, remove 
them out of doors, and keep them shaded from full sun at 
first, and in about a fortnight place them full in the sun, and 
protect the roots with a piece of mat round the pots, or a 
I piece of turf put against them. The great thing is, first to secure 
the flower-buds, and then to prevent that bud bursting again 
into a shoot. If you have plenty of room, they will do well 
in an open, light, airy greenhouse all the summer.—R. Fish.] 
BEES NOT WORKING. 
“ I have two hives of bees, which I purchased last autumn. 
For weeks past the bees of one have been very busy bringing 
in pollen ; whereas I have very rarely seen a bee enter the 
other with it. On examining them to-day, the former hive was 
completely full of bees ; whereas those o'i the latter appeared 
not to fill a tenth part of the hive, and not to be more nu¬ 
merous than a fortnight ago. Part of the comb of this hive 
is of a good colour; but the bees have, when examined, 
always been clustering in a part where the comb is of eccentric 
form from the cross bar, and is very black. Now, I presume, 
this hive either has lost its queen, or she is old. It is weighty, 
and must, I should think, contain some honey. I am the 
more disposed to think this is the case, as the bees have been 
very indifferent to the food which lias been given them during 
the last few w T eeks. 
“ Will you also advise me as to the beat kind of hive to 
keep for general purposes, but without requiring great nicety 
1 of treatment ?”—A Beginhek. 
[Your account of the state of the inactive stock hive would 
lead us to believe that it is old and worn out, with, probably, 
an unfertile queen. As regards weight, that may, in part, arise 
i from an accumulation of old pollen, especially as many of 
i the combs are dark with age, and, consequently, less fit for the 
purpose of receiving brood. This is the more likely, as you 
say the bees are indifferent to the food offered to them. It is not 
very probable that you will derive profit from a stock thus 
situated; and, unless a speedy change takes place in the ap¬ 
pearance of matters, we should be inclined to take possession 
i of what stock of honey it may contain. Fumigation might 
| enable you to form a better opinion; turning up the hive, and 
j removing the worst of the combs, so as to leave space for the 
bees to make new ones, if so disposed. As to the common 
kind of hives, they are described in most of the works on bees. 
Perhaps those recommended by Mr. Payne, or Mr. Taylor, 
I would best answer your purpose. The latter are illustrated 
I in the “ Bee-Keeper’s Manual.”] 
I 
j 
NOTES ON NEW OR RARE PLANTS. 
Passiflora RACEMOSA. Protero. Nat. ord., Passifio- 
racece. —Native of Brazil, discovered and introduced by Mr. 
Woodford. Stem climbing, moderately strong, extending far 
and branching freely. Leaves on petioles of moderate length, 
# three-lobed, quite smooth. Stipules cordate, rather elongated ; 
entire. Peduncles in pairs, in the axils of the leaves. Involucre 
three-leaved, falling off before the expanding of the flowers. 
Calyx winged and keeled ; presenting, in the bud, a very 
distinct appearance, delicate crimson. Corolla of fire petals; 
broadly lanceolate, of the same colour as calyx. Rays, or 
corona, short, and not very striking. 
This may justly be considered one of the finest of the family 
to which it belongs. It has been named racemosa on account 
of its frequently producing its flowers in terminal and axillary 
racemes; but as this is no permanent character, the name 
conveys little satisfactory meaning. Princeps is the name by 
which it is commonly known in gardens, given it by Loddiges, 
who first possessed the stock of it in this country. It blooms 
! in March and April, and is remarkably free flowering. It 
prefers a compost of good rich loam and peat; about two 
parts ol the former to one of the latter, and a little sand. 
Propagates freely from cuttings in heat. It may be grown 
successfully in a pot, but succeeds best planted out in the 
stove. 
Acacia hispidissiita. Pec. Nat. ord., Leguminosa .— 
Native of the Swan River, and introduced by Drummond. 
Habit bushy and compact. Younger branches thickly clothed 
with short soft hairs. Spines axillary, awl-shaped, longer 
than the leaves. Leaves produced in pairs, on very short 
petioles ; pinnate, with five or seven pairs of linear, smooth, 
or roughly ciliated leaflets. Heads of flower globose, in pairs 
(frequently singly), axillary; bright orange yellow. 
A beautiful early and free-flowering species of Acacia. 
Loam of good quality, with a little peat and sand, form the best 
compost for it. It blooms in March, and lasts through April. 
Ripens seeds freely, thus presenting an easy mode of pro¬ 
pagation. 
Bigkoria capreolata. Lab. Nat. ord., Pignoniacece. 
Native of the southern parts of N. America. Stem strong, 
climbing. Branches numerous, smooth and flexible. Leaves 
conjugate ; oblong lanceolate, subcordate at the base, smooth, 
entire, margins slightly waved. Petioles short and rigid, with 
a tendril-like appendage. Flowers produced sometimes singly, 
but more frequently in numbers, in the axils of the leaves. 
Peduncles about an inch and a half long, flexuose. Calyx 
entire, or obscurely five-toothed, angular. Corolla large, 
trumpet shaped, with a limb of five deep, obtusely ovate, 
segments : dark red tinged with orange. 
A very desirable hardy greenhouse climber. It produces 
its flowers as early as April. A good mellow loam, and a 
little peat and sand form the best compost for it. Pruning 
should be dispensed with as much as possible, as it only 
induces to more robust growth, and that destroys its otherwise 
free-flowering character. Propagates readily by cuttings. 
Melaleuca squaiuiosa. Lin. Nat. ord., Myrtacece. — 
Native of New Holland. Shrub, about five feet high, with 
somewhat lax habit. Branches four-angled. Leaves small, 
opposite, or scattered, broadly ovate, acute, sessile, or on very 
short petioles. Flowers produced in whorled spikes. Bracts 
foliaceou3 and numerous. Calyx very minute, of five small 
teeth. Petals small, nearly round, and concave. Stamens 
very numerous, arranged five bundles ; creamy wdiite. 
An excellent early and free-flowering greenhouse plant. 
Loam, and peat, and sand form the best compost for it. Pro¬ 
pagates freely from cuttings. The flowers are very fragrant, 
and are produced in April and May.—S. G. W. 
EARLY SHAW POTATO. 
This kind has been a favourite in Norfolk many years, and 
more so since the Murrain appeared; for, like other second 
early sorts, the Shaw is better for a general crop than either 
the more early or#later ones. The produce from the first 
being less, and the late kinds are more apt to be diseased 
before they come to maturity. The Shaw is very prolific, and 
is as good during winter as that of any of the later kinds. 
This does not accord with a writer’s account of it in the last 
vol., page 398. He says, that it is “ a large, coarse, hollow-eyed, 
yellowish fleshed Potato . . . not a good cropper, liable to 
disease.” By this, it seems, that the Potato he speaks of is not 
the same kind as the Shaiv, so well known in this quarter. 
Indeed, the one he describes must be a late sort, at least his 
account of its having hollow eyes does not accord with the 
general rule that early Potatoes have flat ones.— J. Wighton. 
TO CORRESPONDENTS. 
Hives {Alpha ).—We are using those you refer to, and find them 
good. There are small windows in them; but if you wish to inspect 
the bees fully, you must have a hive made entirely of glass, like that in 
the Zoological Gardens. For a description of cheap hives, refer to 
“Bee-keeping for the Many,” published at our office, price fourpence. 
Hybridwing Fruit (J. M. Jape ).—There is no separate work upon 
this subject. The process is just the same as for Pelargoniums, and 
other flowers, as detailed in our pages. 
Sesamum Cake for Bf.es (G. It. Meaby ).—You will find all we know 
upon the subject in our 47.1st and 473rd numbers. 
Sediment of sewage reservoir (An Amateur Gardener) — Dig it 
into the soil of your kitchen garden, between rows of the Cabbage- 
worts, about Sea-kale, and Rhubarb, and into Asparagus beds. The 
best way of applying it is to open a trench, pour in the sediment, and 
return the earth over it. The earth will soon deodorize it. 
! 
: 
! 
