April  29,  189f. 
JOURNAL  OP  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
375 
Large  Hives. 
"  Gk  H.”  has  turned  on  the  search  light  to  some  purpose,  and  is 
advancing  in  theory  if  not  in  practice.  In  his  notes  (page  327) 
he  makes  a  confession  that  the  prodigious  weight  of  honey 
(350  lbs.)  from  a  single  hive  had  not  been  obtained  in  his  own 
apiary,  nor  in  the  locality  where  he  resides.  If  it  had  one  might 
reasonably  have  expected  him  to  speak  with  some  authority  on  the 
subject.  Instead  of  this,  however,  he  owns  to  having  read  in  the 
back  numbers  of  the  Journal  of  a  wonderful  yield  of  honey  in 
Scotland.  It  may  perhaps  interest  “  G.  H.”  to  know  that  I  spent  a 
few  years  of  my  life  over  the  border.  In  fact  I  received  my  first 
lessons  in  bee-keeping  there,  and  knowing  what  I  do  of  that 
delightful  country  I  am  convinced  that  it  is  not  impossible  to 
obtain  a  heavy  yield  of  honey  if  the  all-important  factor  in  bee¬ 
keeping — the  weather — is  favourable.  This  is  only  likely  to  happen 
once  in  a  lifetime,  which  is  as  often  as  350  lbs.  of  honey  may 
reasonably  be  expected  from  a  single  stock  of  bees. 
It  may  be  consoling  to  your  correspondent  to  know  that  having 
experimented  with  various  sized  frames  and  hives  I  have  never 
reached  the  above  figures,  neither  do  I  expect  to  do  so.  But  if  I 
were  anxious  to  do  so  it  would  not  be  an  impossibility  in  this 
county  of  broad  acres,  where  our  chief  harvest  is  obtained  from 
field  Beans  and  White  Clover,  as  it  is  a  fact  well  known  to  all  bee¬ 
keepers  that  half  a  dozen  weak  stocks  will  not  store  a  surplus  ;  but 
make  two  strong  colonies  of  them,  and  if  the  weather  is  favourable 
they  will  commence  at  once  to  work  in  supers  ;  and  this  principle 
may  be  followed  out  if  the  bee-keeper  is  desirous  of  obtaining  a 
large  surplus  from  one  hive  to  the  detriment  of  others.  This  plan 
I  do  not  recommend.  It  is  much  better  to  have  as  many  stocks  as 
is  possible  in  good  condition  when  the  honey  flow  comes,  and  be 
satisfied  with  a  good  all-round  average. 
Large  Frames. 
I  do  not  agree  with  “  G.  H.”  that  to  be  successful  in  bee-keeping 
it  is  necessary  to  have  frames  of  extra  length  and  depth,  and  the 
hives  of  extra  siza  to  hold  them.  I  have  proved  times  out  of 
number  that  it  is  immaterial  whether  the  frames  are  14  inches  or 
24  inches  in  length  if  they  are  worked  on  rational  lines.  It  is  a 
great  advantage  to  have  frames  all  of  one  size  in  an  apiary,  and 
whatever  size  a  bee-keeper  starts  with  lie  will  be  wise  to  keep  to  if 
his  bees  progress  satisfactorily,  unless  he  is  trying  experiments. 
Shallow  frames  are  more  useful  than  those  that  are  deep,  and  any¬ 
thing  over  9  inches  I  consider  too  deep.  The  bees  will  store  an 
extra  quantity  of  honey  instead  of  filling  them  with  brood.  But 
as  the  frames  are  required  for  winter  stores  as  well  as  for  breeding 
in  the  summer,  I  find  the  standard  frame,  which  is  84  inches  in 
depth,  a  suitable  size.  The  great  advantage  to  be  derived  from  the 
modern  frame  hive  is  the  freedom  by  which  the  frames  may  be 
manipulated.  If  the  frames  are  of  an  extra  length  they  are  not 
handled  so  easily  as  those  of  a  more  convenient  size. 
Number  of  Bees  in  a  Hive, 
In  a  previous  issue  (page  240)  “G.  H.”  says,  “At  the  meeting 
of  our  Association,  March  3rd,  one  of  our  members  stated  that 
day  he  had  examined  one  of  his  hives,  which  has  twelve  frames 
18  inches  by  9  deep  ;  the  bees  covered  nine  frames.”  Again  on 
page  327  he  says,  referring  to  the  above  stock,  “  The  hive  has  a 
vigorous  queen,  plenty  of  hatching  brood,  I  should  think  by  the 
end  of  April  or  the  first  week  in  May  will  crowd  the  hive.”  In 
some  previous  notes  on  the  subject  he  stated  the  fact  of  his  queens 
laying  from  3000  to  4000  eggs  per  day. 
I  would  like  to  ask  him  what  has  become  of  the  bees.  If  on 
March  3.-d  the  bees  covered  nine  frames,  according  to  his  own 
showing  they  will  only  cover  twelve  frames  by  the  first  week  in 
May.  From  March  3rd  to  that  date  is  eight  weeks  ;  3500  eggs  laid 
daily  will  amount  to  196,000.  Truly  this  is  prodigious,  but  wfiere  are 
the  bees  ?  Are  they  holding  themselves  in  reserve  for  that  cake 
of  honey  for  surplus  and  stores  ?  Perhaps  “G.  H.”  will  explain, 
as  it  is  quite  beyond  my  comprehension  to  know  how  many  bees 
there  will  be  in  that  hive  by  the  end  of  June. 
I  am  inclined  to  think  a  mistake  was  made  when  the  stock 
was  examined  early  in  March.  If  the  day  were  warm  the  bees 
would  spread  over  the  combs,  but  when  it  became  cool  in  the 
evening  they  would  probably  not  cover  three  frames.  Thus  quite 
innocently  a  man  may  make  a  false  statement,  and  instead  of 
having  Lis  hive  nearly  full  of  bees  by  the  middle  of  March  it 
would  not  be  in  that  happy  position  till  probably  two  months 
later.— An  English  Bee-keeper. 
All  correspondence  relating  to  editorial  matters  should,  until 
further  notice,  be  directed  to  “  The  Editor,’’  8,  Rose  Hill 
Road,  Wandsworth,  London,  S.  W.  It  is  requested  that  no 
one  will  write  privately  to  any  of  our  correspondents,  seeking 
information  on  matters  discussed  in  this  Journal,  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.  If  information  be  desired  on  any  particular  subject  from 
any  particular  authority  who  may  be  named,  endeavour  will  be 
made  to  obtain  it  by  the  Editor. 
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  communications 
which,  for  any  reason,  cannot  be  inserted. 
R.H.S.  Journal  (Operator). — The  Journal  of  the  Royal  Horti¬ 
cultural  Society  may  be  procured  from  the  Secretary,  R.H.S.,  117, 
Victoria  Street,  Westminster,  London,  S.W.  The  price  is  5's.,  and  the 
postage  would  probably  be  4£d. 
Rhubarb  (T.Hill). — It  would  be  impossible  for  even  an  assemblage 
of  members  of  the  Fruit  and  Vegetable  Committee  of  the  Royal  Horti- 
cultural  Society  to  name  the  variety  from  two  sections  of  a  stalk  each 
2  inches  long.  The  portions  are  the  colour  of,  and  sharply  ribbed-like, 
the  London  Early  Red.  If  half  a  dozen  Btalks  with  leaves  arrived  in  a  fresh 
state  the  variety  might  possibly  be  named  by  comparison  in  the  collec¬ 
tion  at  Chiswick.  We  are  unable  to  inform  you  from  whom  the  variety 
Elford  Rose  can  be  obtained,  but  mention  it  in  case  any  of  our  readers 
can  supply  the  information.  The  favourite  variety  for  increase  by 
many  extensive  growers  of  Rhubarb  for  the  supply  of  London  is 
Hawke’s  Champagne.  It  is  early,  pink  when  cooked,  and  of  excellent 
quality.  The  work  on  gardening  you  mentioned  has  been  long  out  of 
print,  as  have  also  the  numbers  of  the  Journal  of  Horticulture  about 
which  you  inquire. 
Collapse  of  Cucumber  Plant  ( J .  G.). — The  stem  is  split  above 
the  soil,  and  more  or  less  decayed  to  a  height  of  6  inches,  being  quite 
rotten  at  itB  junction  with  the  soil,  thus  cutting  off  the  supplies  of  sap 
and  causing  the  collapse  of  the  plant.  Part  of  the  root-stem  is  also 
destroyed,  but  only  to  the  extent  of  about  2  inches,  the  radical  root  and 
the  side  roots  being  perfectly  healthy.  There  are  not  any  nodosities  on 
the  roots,  such  a3  are  caused  by  eel  worm,  and  even  the  ioot-stem  is  not 
swollen,  as  usually  occurs  under  attacks  of  nematoid  worms.  The  cause 
of  the  misfortune  is,  therefore,  the  decay  of  the  stem  at  the  collar.  This 
is  usually  attributed  to  canker  caused  by  damp,  and  the  preventive  and 
repressive  measures  prescribed  in  such  cases  are  keeping  water  from  the 
stem  and  rubbing  quicklime  into  the  affected  part.  This  acts  well  if 
taken  in  time.  In  the  present  case,  as  no  attacking  foe  was  visible  to 
the  naked  eye,  the  microscope  was  brought  into  operation.  On  the  part 
infected  above  ground  nothing  was  found  in  the  shape  of  outgrowths, 
but  in  the  tissues  the  mycelial  threads  of  a  fungus  were  visible  enough, 
penetrating  the  living  tissues,  ascending  the  stem,  and  causing  the  cells  to 
become  brown  and  dead.  This  was  the  cause  of  the  mischief,  and  the 
parasite  had  entered  the  plant  at  the  point  on  the  root-stem  where  the 
radicle  issues  from  the  seed.  The  hyphae,  or  young  mycelial  threads  of  the 
fungus,  in  the  living  tissues  are  those  of  Botrytis  cinerea  var.  sclero- 
tiophila,  Saco.,  which  in  fructitying  form  springs  from  an  externally 
black  sclerotium,  once  called  Sclerotium  durum.  It  is  the  active  form 
of  the  smother  fungus,  Sclerotinia  sclerotiorum,  Hass.,  and  one  of  tte 
most  malignant  to  Beet,  Carrots,  Potatoes,  and  Turnips  outdoors, 
Cucumbers,  Melons,  and  Tomatoes  inside.  This,  then,  and  this  only, 
has  been  the  cause  of  your  plant  decaying  in  the  stem.  In  the  decayed 
parts  of  the  root-stem,  however,  were  found  some  eelworms,  the  blunt¬ 
shaped  species,  Tylenchus  obtusus,  Bastian,  but  not  in  living  tissues,  the 
roots  not  infested  by  the  fungus  being  perfectly  normal  and  healthy. 
There  was  also  a  mite,  the  true  root-mite,  Rhizoglyphus  echinopus,  Clap  , 
but  this  was  not  connected  with  the  living  tissues  of  the  roots.  It  was 
the  perfect  eight-legged  form,  which  is  far  more  difficult  to  kill  than  the 
six-legged  or  larval  form — -indeed,  it  lived  a  considerable  time  in  a 
solution  of  aniline,  1  in  20  parts  water,  and  is  mentioned  as  showing  the 
importance  of  early  treatment.  The  compost  was  also  examined,  and 
found  to  consist  largely  of  vegetable  matter  in  a  state  of  decay,  and, 
despite  the  baking  before  using,  contained  the  sclerotia  of  the  fungus, 
