May  is,  189?. 
JOURNAL  OP  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
399 
frames  until  they  are  growing  and  rooting  freely,  when  they  can  be 
hardened  and  planted  outBide  or  placed  into  larger  pots  and  plunged  in 
an  open  sunny  position.  Where  plants  are  needed  in  G  and  7-inch  pots 
insert  cuttings  at  once.  They  root  quickly  in  hand-lightB  in  a  vinery  or 
similar  structure.  Directly  they  are  rooted  pot  singly  and  place  the 
plants  in  a  cool  frame,  and  finally  outside. 
Chrysanthemums. — Those  that  are  being  grown  on  the  single-stem 
principle  are  becoming  too  tall  for  frames.  Harden  them  and  place 
them  outside  in  a  sheltered  position.  As  they  are  placed  out  supply 
each  plant  with  a  stake,  for  strong  winds  and  heavy  rains  may  break 
them.  If  these  plants  have  been  in  6-inch  pots  for  some  time  and  are 
well  rooted  place  them  into  their  largest  pots,  but  be  careful  not  to 
overwater  them.  Those  that  were  rooted  later  may  still  have  the 
protection  of  frames,  but  give  them  abundance  of  air  to  prevent  their 
drawing  up  weakly.  The  object  to  be  aimed  at  is  a  firm  sturdy  growth. 
Gradually  harderf  those  that  are  still  in  small  pots,  so  that  they  can  be 
placed  outside  as  they  are  potted.  In  potting  be  careful  that  the  soil  is 
in  a  suitable  condition  for  moisture.  If  wet  the  plants  seldom  succeed 
satisfactorily  afterwards.  Water  carefully  and  syringe  freely.  Remove 
the  laterals  from  the  axils  of  the  leaves  as  they  appear  from  those  that 
are  grown  for  the  production  of  large  blooms.  Some  of  the  earliest  plants 
will  show  signs  of  branching  near  the  top  ;  help  them  out  of  this 
condition  by  pinching  the  shoots  to  a  lateral  that  is  showing 
prominently.  Early  flowering  varieties  may  be  allowed  to  branch  in 
a  natural  manner,  when  the  required  number  of  shoots  for  leading 
upwards  may  be  selected  and  the  remainder  removed,  the  necessary 
supply  of  stakes  being  collected  together  in  readiness. 
Ivy-leaved  Pelargoniums. — Plants  that  are  rooted  for  autumn 
and  winter  flowering  may  be  potted  singly  in  8-inch  pots.  When  they 
are  rooting  freely  place  thorn  in  cool  frames  to  induce  sturdy  growth. 
Cuttings  may  still  be  rooted,  and  the  plants  will  be  useful  for  winter 
flowering.  At  this  season  these  should  be  rooted  singly  in  small  pots,  so 
that  they  can  be  repotted  without  checking  them. 
Zonal  Varieties. — Cuttings  may  still  be  rooted  in  quantity  for 
winter  flowering  on  the  same  principle  as  advised  for  Ivy-leaved 
varieties.  Those  well  rooted  in  3 -inch  pots  may  be  pinched  and  placed 
into  6-inch  pots.  Press  the  soil  firmly  into  the  pots,  and  use  a  compost 
of  loam,  one-seventh  of  manure  and  sand.  Place  the  plants  as  they 
are  potted  into  cold  frames ;  keep  them  close  for  a  time  until  they 
are  rooting  freely,  when  they  may  be  hardened  and  stood  in  a  sunny 
place  outside 
Frencb  and  Fancy  Varieties.— Give  those  that  are  throwing  up 
their  flower  trusses  liquid  manure  in  a  weak  state  every  time  they  need 
water.  Soot  water  is  very  stimulating  to  these  plants,  and  acts  quickly. 
A  suitable  artificial  manure  applied  to  the  surface  of  the  soil  is  the  safest 
and  quickest  method  of  feeding  these  plants.  Keep  later  plants  perfectly 
cool  and  give  them  abundance  of  air.  The  closer  the  glass  these  plants 
can  be  kept  and  the  more  air  admitted  the  sturdier  they  grow  and  the 
finer  are  their  flowers.  Plants  that  were  rooted  late  and  are  weak  and 
puny  in  appearance  will,  if  well  cared  for,  make  grand  early  flowering 
plants  for  another  year.  Those  that  some  would  throw  away  have  a 
good  start  of  cuttings  inserted  even  now,  and  will,  with  care  and  proper 
treatment,  make  plants  2  feet  through  them  by  next  spring.  Stop  the 
shoots  until  the  plants  are  well  established  in  4  or  5-inch  pots,  then 
allow  them  to  grow,  without  pinching,  outside,  keeping  them  somewhat 
dry  until  the  middle  of  July,  when  they  may  be  partially  shortened 
back,  and  when  they  have  broken  into  growth  potted  and  kept  growing 
on.  These  plants  may  be  pinched  once  afterwards  and  placed  in  their 
largest  pots  early  in  January  and  allowed  to  lengthen  out  their  shoots 
and  flower.  They  should  never  be  really  dried  up.  Old  stool  plants 
may  be  cut  up  for  cuttings  ;  insert  wood  that  has  a  moderate  amount  of 
firmness  about  it.  Wood  of  this  nature  soon  roots,  and  plants  of  a  large 
size  may  be  pio  laced  for  early  flowering  next  spring. 
p-i-j  -  j  \  |  j  i 
S 
Hi 
IF  BEE-KEEPER 
LX1U - -.Mill*.!  -  1  •  l-  1  -  i  -  i  -  i  -  i  ■  t  -  i  -  1  -  1  -  1  -  1  -  J  -  1-J  -  i  «  i  -  i  -j  .  \  r  fj?  L  Utl 
SEASONABLE  NOTES. 
Bee-keepers  probably  observe  the  changes  in  the  weather 
more  than  the  majority  of  people,  as  it  has  an  important  bearing  on 
successful  bee-keeping.  Arrangements  must  be  made  beforehand, 
but  if  the  weather  is  unfavourable  the  best  laid  plans  will  often  go 
astray.  How  often  one  hears  the  remark,  “If  the  weather  had 
been  warm  and  bright  what  a  grand  harvest  of  honey  I  should  have 
had,  instead  of  which  I  have  to  feed  my  bees  to  prevent  them 
f  tarving." 
It  is  yet  too  soon  to  speak  with  any  certainty  as  to  what  the 
present  season  will  be,  but  up  to  the  end  of  April,  with  four  months 
of  the  year  gone,  the  outlook  is  certainly  not  promising,  from  a 
bee-keeper’s  point  of  view.  We  shall  have  to  go  back  several  years 
to  find  a  spring  in  which  the  bees  have  done  so  badly.  The  first 
few  days  of  April  were  heralded  in  with  snow,  hail,  and  rain, 
accompanied  by  cold  north  or  east  wind,  and  this  has  continued 
throughout  the  month.  Bees  have  made  little  headway,  the 
brood  nest  has  been  contracted,  and  bee-keepers  who  expected  to 
have  their  bees  at  the  swarming  point  at  this  date  will  probably 
find  them  much  weaker  than  they  expected.  This  is  not  owing  to 
any  fault  in  management,  but  may  be  put  down  solely  to  the 
weather.  In  South  Yorkshire  there  have  not  been  more  than  three 
days  during  the  past  month  in  which  the  beeB  have  been  able  to  go 
any  distance  from  their  hives.  This  is  tantalising  to  the  bee-keeper, 
who  has  had  to  supply  his  bees  artificially  with  what  could  have 
been  obtained  naturally  if  the  weather  had  been  favourable. 
Two  Queens  in  a  Hive. 
This  is  not  an  impossibility,  though  uncommon.  I  do  not  refer 
to  the  double-queened  hive,  in  which  there  is  a  division  board  to 
keep  the  bees  separate  in  the  brood  nest,  although  the  workers 
amalgamate  in  the  supers,  but  when  treated  in  this  manner  it  is 
two  stocks  pure  and  simple.  I  allude  to  an  ordinary  single  colony, 
at  the  entrance  of  which  a  queen  was  observed  to  be  balled,  on  one 
of  the  few  fine  days  experienced  a  fortnight  ago.  She  was  at  once 
liberated,  but  was  again  balled  by  the  bees.  As  this  was  an  unusual 
occurrence  so  early  in  the  season,  she  was  placed  in  a  box,  and  the 
colony  examined.  It  was  a  strong  stock  with  brood  in  various 
stages  of  development,  and  as  I  expected,  a  queen  was  found  on 
one  of  ^he  combs.  Before  examining  them  I  was  convinced  such  was 
the  case,  for  had  they  not  a  queen,  and  no  means  of  raising  one, 
the  bees  would  joyfully  have  accepted  a  queen  from  whatever 
source  she  came,  and  would  not  have  balled  her  at  the  entrance. 
But  where  did  the  strange  queen  come  from  ?  Was  she  turned 
out  of  the  hive  on  the  floor  board  of  which  she  was  found,  or  had 
she  come  with  a  starvation  swarm  which  had  been  tempted  to 
leave  their  home  whilst  the  sun  was  shining  brightly,  and  had 
joined  the  inmates  of  the  hive  in  which  she  was  found  ?  Such,  I 
believe,  was  the  true  history  of  the  case.  The  rightful  owners 
would  accept  the  workers,  but  not  the  queen,  who  was  seized  and 
balled  before  she  could  gain  admittance.  This  I  consider  is  the 
correct  theory,  as  I  afterwards  introduced  her  to  a  colony  which 
had  not  a  satisfactory  queen,  and  which  has  since  been  fed  with 
warm  syrup  daily.  She  has  filled  several  frames  with  brood,  and 
is  an  active  prolific  queen.  The,queen,  too,  in  the  stock  in  which 
she  was  found  is  equally  prolific,  being  a  young  one  hatched  in 
June  of  last  year. — An  English  Bee-keeper. 
350  LBS.  OF  HONEY  FROM  ONE  HIYE. 
I  fancy  I  am  able  to  throw  the  searchlight  of  the  destructive 
criticism  upon  the  extraordinary  yield  of  honey  commented  on  by 
your  correspondents.  The  paragraph  went  the  round  of  the  Scotch 
papers  uncontradicted,  but  it  bad  arisen  from  the  ignorance  of  a 
reporter.  The  amount  of  honey  (350  lbs.)  was  not  taken  from  a 
single  hive,  but  was  taken  off  in  a  week  by  the  owner  of  an  apiary 
of  some  twenty  hives,  who,  being  one  of  those  bee-keepers  who 
cannot  resist  the  opportunity  of  making  their  fellows  turn  green 
with  envy,  suffered  the  statement  to  be  spread  abroad  unchecked, 
although,  doubtless,  he  chuckled  over  the  reporter’s  stupidity  in 
secret.  I  am  able  to  say  these  things  with  certainty,  as  the  incident 
occurred  quite  in  my  own  neighbourhood,  and  also  to  certify  that 
it  was  the  occasion  of  much  merriment  among  all  those  who  knew 
the  true  circumstances  of  the  case,  and  who  know  too  well  that 
such  a  phenomenal  yield  is  beyond  even  the  fondest  dreams  of  an 
enthusiast.— A  Border  Bee-keeper. 
CLEANSING  COMBS. 
I  SHOULD  be  glad  to  know  the  best  way  to  purify  or  disinfect  combs 
in  a  bar-frame  hive  in  readiness  for  the  coming  season,  from  which 
stocks  have  died. — R.  T.  W. 
[If  the  bees  died  owing  to  shortness  of  stores  or  from  queenlessness, 
and  the  combs  are  clean,  they  may  again  be  used  with  advantage.  They 
will  probably  have  a  small  quantity  of  dry  pollen  in  the  cells,  which 
the  bees  will  remove  with  impunity.  But  if  the  dry  pollen  is  extensive, 
which  is  often  the  case  when  the  bees  have  died  early  the  previous 
autumn,  it  will  save  the  bees  a  great  amount  of  labour  if  the  combs  are 
cut  down  to  the  midrib,  and  the  whole  of  the  pollen  removed.  The 
bees  will  then  make  new  cells  on  the  old  foundation,  which  may  again 
be  used  for  breeding  or  extracting  purposes. 
They  are  not  difficult  to  manipulate  ;  a  knife  with  a  fairly  long  blade 
is  best  for  the  purpose,  and  with  a  little  practice  the  work  may  be  done 
without  injury  to  the  combs,  and  does  not  necessitate  melting  them 
down.  In  my  own  apiary  I  annually  examine  all  spare  combs.  These 
that  are  old  and  discoloured  are  placed  on  one  side  for  the  melting  pot, 
whilst  others  that  are  of  good  colour  and  otherwise  suitable  are  treated 
as  above.  This  plan  has  the  advantage  of  keeping  all  combs  in  stock  in 
good  condition. 
Is  “  R.  T.  W.”  quite  sure  that  the  stocks  which  died  were  healthy 
and  free  from  disease?  as  that  dread  pest  of  bee-keepers,  foul  brood,  is 
prevalent  in  some  parts  of  the  country,  and  as  it  is  very  infectious  great 
care  should  be  taken  in  a  district  where  it  is  known  to  exist.  It  is  much 
more  common  in  the  South  than  the  North  of  England, 
