126 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
February  11,  1897. 
early  spring,  I  will  state  as  briefly  as  possible  how  to  carry  it  out 
with  success.  Into  a  brass  preserving  pan,  or  enamelled  iron  one, 
put  6  lbs.  of  sugar  (fine  granulated),  one  pint  of  water,  and  one 
teaspoonful  of  cream  of  tartar.  Set  on  a  brisk  fire,  stirring  constantly 
to  prevent  burning  until  it  comes  to  the  boil.  Withdraw  slightly 
from  the  fire  to  prevent  boiling  over  until  the  mass  begins  to  settle 
down  to  boil,  which  is  readily  known  by  the  frothiness  leaving  it. 
Have  ready  a  teacup  of  cold  water,  and  with  a  teaspoon  lift  out  a 
little  syrup  and  drop  into  the  water.  If  it  lie  at  the  bottom  of 
the  teacup  so  as  to  lift  like  very  thick  paste  or  putty,  it  is  just  right 
and  ready  to  be  removed  from  the  fire.  If  too  much  boiled  the 
syrup  will  be  hard  and  crisp  in  the  water.  This  can  be  remedied 
by  adding  a  little  water  to  the  syrup  after  it  has  been  taken  from 
the  fire.  Two  minutes’  boiling  is  sufficient  for  the  above  quantity 
The  pan  should  then  be  placed  in  cold  water  to  hasten  the  cooling 
process.  Stir  the  mass  constantly  until  it  begins  to  get  greasy 
looking,  gradually  getting  whiter  and  stiffer.  It  should  then  be 
poured  into  shallow  dishes  and  allowed  to  cool.  The  result  will  be 
a  fine-grained,  moist,  soft  candy,  which  will  be  taken  readily  by  the 
bees.  With  a  little  practice  anyone  may  soon  become  an  adept  at 
making  it. — An  English  Bee-keeper. 
DOUBLING  HIVES. 
“  An  English  Bee-keeper  ”  says  that  twelve  frames  20  inches  by 
8J  are  not  so  large  as  the  hive  I  condemn  when  doubled.  Did  I  say  it 
was  1  Certainly  not.  My  question  at  the  first  was,  Is  a  hive  with  ten 
standard  frames  large  enough  for  the  requirements  of  a  prolific  queen 
laying  from  3000  to  4000  eggs  in  the  height  of  the  season  1  Let  ub  look 
at  the  hive  pure  and  simple,  not  only  for  the  summer,  but  for  the  whole 
year.  When  hives  are  doubled  it  cannot  be  called  the  produce  of  one 
hive,  for  we  have  the  progeny  of  two  queens — one  hive  robbed  to  make 
another  strong. 
My  contention  is  that  even  with  the  doubling  system  the  queen  has 
not  room  at  the  right  time.  I  maintain  if  the  queen  has  room  for  her 
laying  powers  previous  to  the  honey  flow,  say  12th  of  June,  we  should 
have  hives  that  need  no  doubling  supposing  the  season  is  suitable  ; 
besides,  with  the  doubling  system  we  need  more  hives.  I  prefer 
nucleus  hives  for  queen  rearing  say  we  want  about  thirty  young  queens. 
Again,  “An  E.  B.’’  says  “G.  H.”  cannot  be  serious  when  he  assumes 
that  it  was  owing  to  the  hive  having  standard  frames  in  the  same  apiary 
as  the  above — twelve  frames  20  inches  by  8J — that  no  surplus  was 
Btored.  Yes,  I  was  serious.  The  experiment  was  carried  out  by  Mr. 
Hall  of  Welham  Bridge  on  several  hives  in  his  apiary.  Had  not  the 
test  been  with  one  or  two  hives  there  might  have  been  room  for  doubt. 
The  test  was  so  marked  in  favour  of  the  large  brood  nests  that  Mr.  Hall 
has  sold  all  his  hives  with  ten  standard  frames,  and  such  has  been  my 
experience  with  large  hives.  This  summer  about  twenty-five  large  hives 
in  this  district  will  be  tested  by  more  than  a  hundred  hives  with  standard 
frames,  and  all  being  well  the  readers  of  this  Journal  shall  know  the 
result. — George  Howdenshire. 
All  correspondence  relating  to  editorial  matters  should  be 
directed  to  “  The  Editor.’’  Letters  addressed  personally  to 
Dr.  Hogg  or  members  of  the  staff  ofter  remain  unopened 
unavoidably.  We  request  that  no  one  will  write  privately 
to  any  of  our  correspondents,  as  doing  so  subjects  them  to 
unjustifiable  trouble  and  expense,  and  departmental  writers 
are  not  expected  to  answer  any  letters  they  may  receive,  on 
Gardening  and  Bee  subjects,  through  the  post. 
Correspondents  should  not  mix  up  on  the  same  sheet  questions 
relating  to  Gardening  and  those  on  Bee  subjects,  and  should 
never  send  more  than  two  or  three  questions  at  once.  All 
articles  intended  for  insertion  should  be  written  on  one  side  of 
the  paper  only.  We  cannot,  as  a  rule,  reply  to  questions 
through  the  post,  and  we  do  not  undertake  to  return  rejected 
communications . 
Propagating  Cryptomerla  elegans  ( Kenley ).  —  There  are  two 
methods.  1,  Of  cuttings  when  half  ripe,  placed  in  sandy  soil  and  under 
glass,  keeping  rather  close  until  rooted.  2,  By  cuttings  of  ripe  shoots 
taken  with  a  heel  in  autumn  (October  or  November),  inserting  in  sandy 
soil  under  a  hand-light,  or  inserting  in  pots  and  keeping  over  the  winter 
in  cool  quarters,  but  safe  from  frost,  and  in  spring  when  a  callus  has 
been  formed  placing  in  gentle  heat,  so  as  to  promote  the  formation  of 
roots.  Some,  however,  prefer  to  insert  the  cuttings  in  August  or  Sep¬ 
tember  under  a  hand-light,  and  root  entirely  under  cool  treatment. 
Soil  of  Pasture  land  (6r.  F.~). — The  soil  taken  6  inches  from  the 
surface  is  a  good  rather  unctuous  loam,  and  we  should  consider  it  to 
have  plenty  of  body — that  is,  naturally  of  considerable  fertility,  and 
holding  what  may  be  supplied,  so  that  it  would  not  be  an  expensive 
soil  as  regards  fertilisers.  Two  to  3  feet  depth  of  such  soil,  resting 
on  4  feet  of  gravel,  and  that  on  clay,  would  answer  well  for  Grape, 
Tomato,  and  Cucumber  growing,  as  it  will  be  naturally  well  drained. 
This,  however,  is  matter  for  consideration  on  the  spot,  as  also  is  the 
aspect  and  other  details  that  must  have  due  weight  in  deciding.  The 
turfy  top  spit  we  should  consider  very  suitable  for  Grapes  and  Cucumbers, 
but  would  probably  need  some  opening  material,  as  it  seems  of  a 
moisture-holding  nature,  there  not  being  much  grit  in  the  sample. 
There  would  not  be  any  harm  in  having  an  analysis,  but  it  is  in  most 
cases  only  money  wasted,  as  staple  and  other  considerations  are  of  more 
importance  from  a  practical  point  of  view.  Could  you  not  get  the 
opinion  of  a  grower  in  your  locality  ? 
Potatoes  Diseased  (J.  G\). — The  Potatoes  are  infested  by  the 
American  scab  fungus,  OoBpora  scabies,  a  very  malignant  form,  which 
causes  the  Potatoes  to  not  only  “  scab  ”  but  turn  black  and  decay,  in 
that  respect  differing  from  the  English  scab,  which,  though  a  disfigure¬ 
ment,  is  evidence  of  good  using  quality — i.e.,  mealiness.  We  have 
known  the  American  scab  for  over  twenty  years.  It  is  the  most  virulent 
in  heavy  soils  or  those  surcharged  with  much  organic  matter,  such  as 
very  heavy  manuring.  The  best  application  to  the  land  for  it  is  the 
lime  dressing  adv  sed  in  the  reply  to  “Young  Head,”  with  about  10  cwt. 
per  acre  of  gypsum  (sulphate  of  lime),  as  the  fungus  does  not  like 
sulphur,  besides  the  dressing  corrects  the  sourness  or  salinity  of  the  soil. 
The  “sets”  should  be  disinfected  before  planting,  dissolving  1  oz. 
corrosive  sublimate  (a  virulent  poison,  which  must  not  be  handled  in 
the  pure  state)  by  placing  it  in  a  wooden  (not  metal)  vessel,  and  pouring 
on  a  gallon  of  hot  water,  leaving  overnight.  In  the  morning  add 
6^  gallons  of  water,  or  rather  have  this  quantity  of  water  in  a  wooden 
vessel,  and  pour  in  the  1  gallon  solution,  allowing  to  stand  four  or  five 
hours,  stirring  several  times  during  that  time  to  insure  an  even  solution. 
In  this  immerse  the  seed  Potatoes,  washed  of  dirt,  for  1^  hour,  then 
remove  and  dry.  The  solution  will  answer  so  long  as  it  lasts  for  more 
Potatoes.  Tbey  are  easily  immersed  by  placing  in  a  coarse  sack.  It 
will  not  injure  the  hands  when  fully  diluted,  but  it  must  not  be  taken 
into  the  stomach,  therefore  all  treated  Potatoes  must  be  planted  or 
destroyed. 
Preparing  Soil  of  Tomato  House  for  Planting  Vines 
(J.  G.B.'). — There  is  nothing  better  for  mixing  with  the  soil  deficient 
in  organic  matter  than  good  London  manure,  which,  as  you  no  doubt 
know,  is  chiefly  that  of  stables.  This,  in  the  case  of  a  light  soil,  may  be 
used  to  the  extent  of  one-fifth  of  the  soil  moved  or  employed.  As  you 
have  2  feet  depth  of  soil  you  would  require  to  put  on  a  thickness  of 
6  inches,  then,  taking  out  a  trench  at  one  end,  turn  over  the  soil  and  mix 
the  manure  with  it  as  evenly  as  possible,  taking  small  spits  and  inter¬ 
mixing  as  well  and  evenly  as  practicable.  We  should  do  that  before 
adding  any  fertiliser,  letting  the  soil  rest  &  tew  days,  as  you  will  get 
a  sort  of  fermentation,  though  not  a  perceptible  one,  that  will  do  much 
to  get  the  manurial  matter  diffused.  Then  you  may  use  a  mixture  of 
fish  meal,  7  parts;  dissolved  raw  bones,  dry  and  crumbling,  3^  parts; 
and  double  sulphate  of  potash  and  magnesia,  3J  parts;  mix,  and  apply 
£  lb.  per  square  yard.  Then  turn  over  the  whole  border,  as  a  brick¬ 
layer’s  labourer  does  lime  and  saDd  for  making  mortar,  so  as  to  get  an 
even  blending  of  the  manure  and  the  other  material  with  the  soil. 
Before  planting  you  may  use  another  J  lb.  of  the  mixture  per  square 
yard,  and  point  this  into  the  soil  with  an  ordinary  digging  fork,  taking 
small  spits  and  not  going  deeply.  This  has  given  excellent  results  on 
soil  of  a  rather  light  character.  The  fish  meal  sho  dd  be  “white  fish,” 
and  the  double  sulphate  of  potash  and  magnesia  nuaranteed  to  contain 
48  to  52  per  cent,  of  sulphate  of  potaBh  and  25  to  30  per  cent,  of 
sulphate  of  magnesia,  while  the  dissolved  bones  should  contain  15  per 
cent,  soluble  and  23  per  cent,  insoluble  phosphate. 
Insects  In  Soil  ( Young  HecnT).~~ The  “insects”  are  the  snake 
centipede  (Geophilus  longicornis,  Leacli).  It  is  not  an  insect,  but 
belongs  to  the  Myriapoda,  section  Chilopoda,  family  Scolopendric’re, 
tribe  Geophilidse.  It  has  a  mouth  provided  with  foot  jaws,  and  is 
carnivorous,  harmless,  and  useful  by  devouring  “  springtails,”  especially 
Lipura  fimetaria,  which  is  a  vegetable  feeder,  making  holes  in  Potatoes, 
and  often  ’mining  vegetable  crops  of  all  kinds,  though  it  be  but  one- 
tenth  inch  in  length.  The  snake  centipede  is  very  common  in  Britain. 
It  is  like  a  long  yellowish  or  whitish  thread,  a  couple  of  inches  or  more 
in  length,  with  a  great  number  of  feet  on  each  side.  It  has  no  eyes,, 
but  moves  along  with  an  undulating  and  sinuous  motion.  The  female 
sits  upon  her  eggs,  coiling  herseif  round  them  in  a  little  cell  which  she 
makes  in  the  ground,  and  never  leaves  them  until  they  are  batched,  the 
period  of  incubation  being  a  fortnight  to  three  weeks.  You  could  not 
do  better  than  use  the  lime,  10  tons  per  acre  in  your  case  would  not  be 
too  much  ;  the  lime  being  freshly  burned,  placed  in  little  heaps  convenient 
for  spreading,  and  when  fallen,  yet  whilst  hot  and  floury,  spreading. 
This  is  beBt  done  in  a  dry  time,  or  when  the  land  is  in  good  working 
order,  as  it  -should  be  dug  in  shortly  afterwards  with  a  fork,  taking 
small  spits  so  as  to  incorporate  well  with  the  soil.  This  will  be  all  that 
is  required,  as  the  land  having  been  heavily  manured  will  not  need 
enrichment,  and  it  would  be  better  to  avoid  the  horse  manure  for  a, 
time,  or  only  use  it  as  a  mulch  in  summer  for  such  crops  as  Peas,  Runner 
Beans,  and  others  to  prevent  the  soil  cracking.  A  moderate  use  of  coal 
ashes  would  be  useful  in  rendering  the  soil  more  open  and  better  to 
work. 
