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JOURNAL  OR  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
May  13,  18  §?. 
few  days  after,  when  the  cells  are  all  filled  with  eggs  and  brood, 
insert  another  frame  of  foundation,  or,  better  still,  fully  drawn  out 
worker  comb,  in  the  centre  of  the  brood  nest,  repeating  this  as 
often  as  is  necessary.  The  plan  answers  admirably  if  one  could 
only  rely  on  the  weather  being  warm,  but  such  is  not  the  case  for 
many  days  together  in  this  country.  If  the  days  are  bright  there 
is  often  a  frost  at  night,  and  the  bees  cluster  in  the  centre  of 
brood  nest,  with  the  consequence  that  the  brood  in  the  outside 
combs  becomes  chilled,  and  instead  of  the  colony  being  strengthened 
it  has  quite  the  opposite  effect.  Spreading  brood  has  done  much 
harm  to  modern  bee-keeping,  and  as  it  requires  so  much  care  and 
judgment  I  do  not  recommend  its  adoption. 
I  prefer  the  more  rational  system  of  placing  the  empty  comb 
between  the  outside  comb  containing  stores  and  the  next  one  which 
the  queen  has  filled  with  eggs  and  brood.  Do  this  as  often  as 
necessary,  and  there  will  be  no  fear  of  having  chilled  brood  and 
its  attending  evils.  When  empty  frames  are  being  given  to  stocks, 
if  honey  is  not  coming  in  freely  it  will  be  an  advantage  to  uncap 
some  of  the  sealed  ud  stores,  this  will  encourage  the  queen  to 
continue  laying. — 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,  &.IF.  It  is  requested  that  no 
one  will  write  privately  to  any  of  our  correspondents,  seeking 
information  cn  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. 
Educational  (J.  H.  D  ). — If  the  evidence  in  our  possession  is  not 
misleading,  and  we  do  not  think  it  is,  the  Institution  in  question  is  at 
present  without  the  requisite  means  for  meeting  your  anticipations,  and 
you  will  probably  act  wisely  by  waiting  the  issue  of  events,  which  may 
possibly  be  of  a  favourable  character.  , 
Insects  In  American  Wonder  Peas  (Wonder').  —  The  insect* 
in  the  Peas  are  the  Pea-seed  beetle  (Bruchus  pisi),  which  by  its  grubs 
feeding  in  the  Peas  lessens  their  weight  and  v«due  for  seed,  as  where  the. 
substance  of  the  Peas  is  much  eaten  away  the  growing  power  of  the 
young  plant  from  the  damaged  seed  is  also  much  lessened.  Peas 
infested  by  the  beetle  are  easily  distinguished  by  having  a  little  round 
depression  in  the  skin,  which  is  slightly  yellowish  or  transparent,  and 
caused  by  the  substance  of  the  Pea  having  been  eaten  away  inside  by 
the  grub.  It  is  hardly  necessary  to  say  that  infested  seed  is  not  desir¬ 
able  for  sowing,  as  the  growth  of  this  depends  on  the  stored  matter  in 
the  seed,  and  the  first  growth  not  being  vigorous  the  later  will  be 
correspondingly  stunted  or  sickly  ;  but  by  treating  both  Beans  and  Peas 
before  sowing  with  petroleum  we  have  obtained  satisfactory  results. 
The  Peas  were  placed  in  a  flower  pot  with  the  hole  corked  and  petroleum 
sprinkled  on  them,  then  by  moving  the  Peas  up  and  down  by  a  throw- 
up  and  turn-over  movement,  effected  by  holding  the  flower  pot  by  the 
rim  with  both  hands,  the  seed  was  thoroughly  moistened  with  the 
petroleum,  and  after  draining  off  the  superfluous  oil  the  Peas  sown. 
The  petroleum  sinks  through  the  thin  skin  of  the  seed,  where  the  beetle 
liea  in  the  channel  beneath.  As  to  the  beetles  in  the  infested  Peas 
being  “likely  to  leave  any  progeny  to  develop  this  season,”  it  is  certain 
that  the  beetles  would  not  be  injured  by  being  buried  in  the  soil,  for 
they  require  a  certain  amount  of  moisture,  otherwise  they  die  even  in 
the  seed.  The  beetles  can  be  deterred  from  depositing  their  eggs  on  the 
embryonic  pods  by  spraying  the  plants  when  showing  blossom  with  a 
solution  of  soluble  petroleum,  which  has  also  the  advantage  of  prevent¬ 
ing  attacks  of  mildew  and  other  pests.  It  should  be  applied  in  a  dry 
time,  or  if  wet  repeating  occasionally. 
Overtime  (Primrose). — You  have  evidently  laboured  diligently  and 
done  your  best  to  write  poetry  on  this  prosaic  subject,  and  succeeded  in 
failing.  In  making  engagements  it  is  desirable  to  have  a  clear  under¬ 
standing  on  the  subject  of  compensation  for  extra  hours  of  labour,  for 
the  avoidance  of  subsequent  disappointment. 
Vine  leaves  (J.  D.). — It  is  quite  common  for  parcels  to  be 
delivered  some  hours  later  in  London  than  are  letters  posted  at  the  same 
time.  Your  letter  has  been  received,  but  not  the  parcel,  though  it  perhaps 
might  have  been  if  you  had  addressed  it  as  has  been  advised  in  our 
columns  during  the  past  three  weeks.  See  instructions  at  the  head 
of  this  page. 
Cherry  Tree  Blossom  Falling  Off  (J.  M.  H.). — The  tiny  grubs 
eating  the  embryo  fruit  are  the  larvae  or  caterpillars  of  the  winter  moth 
(Cheimatobia  brumata),  There  are  also  swarms  of  thrips,  both  larvae, 
white  or  yellowish,  and  perfect  forms,  black— Thrips  minutissima  or 
vulgatissima.  The  surest  means  of  destroying  the  caterpillar  is  to  spray 
the  trees  with  a  mixture  of  Paris  green,  using  the  paste  form,  1  oz.  to 
20  gallons  of  water,  whilst  the  foliage  is  very  young  and  tender  also  the 
caterpillars  very  small.  The  mixture  must  be  applied  by  a  spraying 
apparatus,  such  as  the  knapsack  pump  advertised  in  our  columns,  merely 
wetting  the  trees  with  the  finest  possible  film  of  the  mixture,  and 
repeating  at  intervals  of  about  four  days  or  once  a  week  for  a  time..  If 
the  caterpillars  gain  on  the  trees  use  it  stronger,  1  cz.  to  15  gallons  of 
water,  as  the  foliage  will  bear  more  and  the  caterpillars  take  more  killing 
as  the  first  gets  firmer  and  the  latter  stronger.  If  you  add  oz.  of 
softsoap  to  each  gallon  of  the  spraying  mixture  it  will  also  kill  the 
thrips.  Killmright  and  other  advertised  insecticides  act  well  against 
both  caterpillars  and  tbrip§. 
Diseased  Vine  Roots  and  leaves  (8.  IL,  I.  W.). — 1,  The  mal¬ 
formed  leaves  from  the  Black  Hamburgh  V  nes  are  crumpled  in  the 
middle  next  the  footstalk,  and  appear  to  have  had  moisture  resting  there 
when  the  sun  has  acted  powerfully  upon  them  or  air  admitted  so  as  to 
evaporate  it  rapidly  ;  but  there  is  no  rust  or  scorching  such  as  generally 
results  therefrom,  and  no  gnawing  of  the  leaf  surface  such  as  occurB  by 
infestation  from  Vine  moth  caterpillar.  There  also  was  no  web,  so 
we  cannot  make  out  anything  but  the  moisture  on  the  leaves  as  the 
likely  cause.  2,  The  roots  of  the  Black  Alicante  Vines  are  a  similar 
enigma,  for  there  are  no  fungus  or  micro-organism  of  any  kind  ;  but 
they  are  simply  dead,  and  the  loss  of  the  roots  is  probably  the  cause  of 
the  shoots  becoming  black  at  the  tip*.  It  is  a  case  similar  to 
“  browning,”  but  more  decisive.  There  was  no  fungoid  or  other  diseaes 
so  far  as  we  could  discover,  and  we  consider  the  defective  nature  of 
the  roots  sufficient  to  account  for  the  disease,  which  is  not  of  an 
organic  nature,  but  due  to  root  destruction  occasioned  by  sourness  of 
the  soil.  Perhaps  a  dressing  of  best  chalk  lime,  air  slaked,  would  correct 
the  sourness  of  the  soil  ;  at  any  rate  it  would  not  do  any  harm,  and  you 
may  use  it  at  the  rate  of  1£  cwt.  per  rod  (30£  square  yards)  without  any 
detriment,  pointing  in  as  deeply  as  can  be  done  without  injuring  the 
roots.  If  these  are  near  the  surface  let  the  lime  ieooain  on  the  top,  and 
if  you  do  not  mind  the  appearance,  a  quarter  of  an  inch  thick  of  lime 
would  not  do  any  barm  left  on  the  border,  and  out  of  this  sufficient  in 
soluble  form  would  pass  into  the  soil  to  rectify  its  sourness,  while  it 
would  the  sooner  become  carbonated  or  revert  to  carbonate  of  lime. 
Double  Scarlet  “  Geraniums  ’’for  Market  (W.  B.). — You  will 
find  F.  V.  Raspail  the  most  profiiable,  this  variety  flowering  con¬ 
tinuously  all  through  the  winter.  Turtle’s  Surprise  is  good  as  a  small 
pot  plant  for  the  markets,  but  it  is  not  nearly  so  robust  as  the  popular 
“  Raspail.”  Strong  young  plants  in  8-inch  pots  produce  the  finest 
trusses.  Old  stock  plants,  favoured  by  some  of  the  growers  in  the 
London  districts,  flower  more  profusely,  but  the  trusses  are  small, 
requiring  more  to  make  a  saleable  bunch.  No  gumming  is  needed. 
White-flowering  varietif  s  should  also  be  tried.  Hermine  and  Madame 
Rozain  can  be  recommended  ;  these,  if  not  quite  *o  floriferous  as  Rag- 
pails,  yet  pay  well,  especially  where  there  is  a  local  demand  for  white 
flowers.  Sixpence  per  dozen  trusses  wholesale  is  a  fair  price  for  the 
scarlets,  but  the  whites,  if  good,  frequently  fetch  ninepence.  Not  later 
than  March  insert  firm  cuttings  (young  tops)  either  singly  in  thumb 
pots,  or  three  or  four  round  the  sides  of  4-inch  pots.  They  will  root 
readily  in  a  brisk  dry  heat.  When  well  rooted  place  the  plants  singly 
in  4-inch  pots,  and  arrange  them  on  staging  not  far  from  the  glass  in 
gentle  heat.  vThey  may  be  topped  either  shortly  before  or  soon  after 
potting,  and  should  be  kept  cleared  of  flower  buds.  Light  frames  are 
the  best  for  them  in  May,  and  before  they  come  root-bound  the  final 
shift  should  be  given.  The  strongest  and  best  plants  may  have  8-inch, 
and  the  rest  6-inch  or  7-inch  pots.  Drain  carefully  and  pot  firmly, 
using  a  compost  of  two  parts  fibrous  or  good  yellow  loam  to  one  of  leaf 
soil,  with  a  sprinkling  of  bonemeal  and  sand  added.  If  frame  room  is 
limited  arrange  the  plants  in  a  sunny  open  position  on  a  bed  of  ashes, 
but  they  are  less  liable  to  suffer  from  over-watering  when  kept  a  few 
days  longer  under  glass.  During  the  summer  top  often  enough  to  form 
well  balanced  heads,  also  pinch  off  all  flower  trusses  that  form.  Avoid 
undue  crowding,  and  turn  the  plants  round  occasionally  to  prevent  their 
rooting  into  the  ashes.  House  before  they  are  injured  by  cold  wet 
weather.  Arrange  in  light  structures,  raising  them  well  ud  to  the  glass, 
either  on  temporary  trellising  or  inverted  flower  pots.  They  require  a 
dry  heat,  from  50°  to  55°  by  night,  with  a  slight  increase  on  sunny 
days.  In  stronger  heat  and  a  moist  atmosphere  they  grow  too  strongly 
and  do  not  flower  freely.  Weak  liquid  manure  may  be  given  with 
advantage  when  the  plants  show  signs  of  requiring  it.  The  season  lasts 
from  October  till  Whitsuntide,  after  which  bushy  plants  will  frequently 
realise  9d.  each  for  lawn  and  vase  decoration, 
