August  29,  1895. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
213 
seed  leaves  will  be  about  level  with  the  rims  of  the  pots,  earthing  the 
plants  as  they  increase  in  growth. 
Very  useful  fruit  can  be  had  from  plants  in  pots  or  boxes  in  houses 
with  a  stove  temperature.  A  quart  of  soot,  or  a  pint  of  the  advertised 
fertilisers,  more  or  less  according  to  their  strength,  may  be  added  to 
every  bushel  of  the  loam.  Plant  when  the  soil  is  warmed  through, 
press  the  soil  gently  yet  compactly,  and  secure  the  plants  to  stakes 
reaching  to  the  trellis.  Rub  olf  the  laterals  to  that  height,  and  stop 
the  leading  shoot  at  about  the  second  or  third  wire  of  the  trellis.  Shade 
from  bright  sun  until  established.  Syringe  lightly  in  the  early  after¬ 
noon  ;  damp  in  the  morning,  noon,  and  evening.  Keep  a  day  tempera¬ 
ture  of  70°  to  75°,  raising  10°  to  15°  from  sun  heat,  and  a  night  tempera¬ 
ture  of  70°,  falling  to  65°  in  the  early  morning.  Plants  from  seeds  sown 
early  in  August  will  fruit  m  late  autumn,  but  they  must  not  be  cropped 
much,  better  not  at  all,  if  they  are  to  give  a  plentiful  supply  of  fruit 
from  Christmas  to  spring. 
Cucumbers  for  Christmas  and  Onwards. — For  producing  these  in 
the  crispest  and  most  acceptable  form  for  table  use  there  is  nothing 
like  young  plants.  Seeds  sown  on  the  1st  of  September  will  do  this  in 
light,  well-heated,  and  properly  managed  structures.  Too  much  strength 
cannot  be  got  into  the  seedlings  by  keeping  them  near  the  glass. 
Everybody  has  his  particular  favourite  variety.  We  find  Rollisson’s 
Telegraph  and  Cardiff  Castle  most  satisfactory  in  crop,  solidity,  colour, 
and  quality  of  fruit.  Albeit,  a  cross  between  these  with  a  long  neck  is 
most  esteemed  at  table.  It  is  anything  but  a  bad-looking  fruit  excepting 
the  neck,  yet  appearance  counts  most  for  marketing.  The  seeds  are  best 
sown  singly  in  large  60-pots  a  little  more  than  half-filled  with  soil  and 
covered  half  an  inch  deep- 
Keep  the  plants  near  the  glass,  earth  them  up  as  they  grow,  and 
transfer  to  48’s  when  they  need  a  shift,  placing  a  stick  to  each,  to  which 
secure  the  gro  jvth  as  it  advances.  Rub  off  the  laterals  as  they  show, 
training  with  a  single  shoot.  They  will  be  fit  to  plant  during  the  first 
fortnight  of  October. 
Cucumbers  in  Pits  and  Frames. — The  growths  of  these  will  need  to 
be  trained  thinly  as  a  safeguard  against  damp.  Watering  must  be  done 
early  and  judiciously,  as  damp  and  cold  soon  injuriously  affect  the 
foliage  and  fruit  at  this  season.  A  light  sprinkling  may  be  given  at 
closing  time  on  fine  afternoons,  but  water  will  not  be  much  needed  after 
this,  or  very  little  of  it,  the  plants  obtaining  sufficient  moisture  through 
the  decay  of  the  fermenting  beds.  The  beds  must  be  lined  with  stable 
litter,  and  a  little  air  given  at  the  back  to  allow  of  any  steam  escaping, 
the  temperature  being  kept  at  about  65°  at  night.  There  will  generally 
be  some  warmth  from  the  sun  in  the  daytime,  and  by  employing  a 
covering  of  mats  over  the  lights  on  cold  nights,  with  proper  attention 
to  the  linings  and  care  in  management,  Cucumbers  will  be  obtained 
from  these  structures  for  many  weeks  to  come. 
APIARIAN  NOTES. 
Youthful  Queens. 
Youthful  queens  have  been  so  often  recommended  that  a 
repetition  in  their  favour  may  not  be  very  acceptable  to  persons 
who  favour  those  several  years  old.  But  the  following  facts  in 
favour  of  the  former  are  too  good  to  be  lost  sight  of.  I  have  been 
fully  a  month  with  my  bees  at  the  Heather,  and  bees  have  had 
only  two  full  working  days.  The  weather  has  been  calm  and 
mild — warm  may  be  a  better  term,  but  the  rainfall  has  been  much 
less  than  in  most  places. 
An  old  shepherd  asked  me  lately,  “  Did  I  ever  see  the  Heather 
so  fine  ?  ”  to  which  I  had  to  assent  in  the  affirmative,  when  he 
added,  “  Never.  That  is  due  to  the  dry  weather  in  the  early 
summer.” 
The  foregoing,  as  well  as  the  following  facts,  will  perhaps 
astonish  as  well  as  convince  theoretical  teachers.  I  have  not 
weighed  my  hives  this  year,  and  owing  to  illness  and  weakness 
have  spent  very  little  time  amongst  my  bees.  The  pure  air  and 
pure  water  of  the  ^ottish  South  Highlands  have  strengthened  me 
greatly,  and  latelyT  have  taken  more  interest  in  them,  but  much 
to  my  astonishment  bees  have  done  well,  especially  strong  hives 
with  youthful  queens. 
In  the  same  enclosure  as  my  hives  stand  are  three  hives,  their 
united  weights  being  close  on  a  quarter  of  a  ton,  the  weight  of  the 
three  empty  hives  being  under  100  lbs.  These  hives  are  the 
stock,  prime,  and  second  swarms.  The  old  stock  had  an  1894 
autumn-raised  queen  ;  it  swarmed  early,  and  was  able  to  keep  up 
the  breeding  consistent  with  the  large  swarm.  The  old  stock  and 
second  swarm  having  young,  early  fertilised  queens  are  now  superior 
in  strength  to  unswarmed  hives  or  any  having  queens  more  than  a 
year  old,  which  cannot  come  near  the  weight  of  the  three  hives 
mentioned.  They  have,  in  addition  to  well-filled  bodies,  four  tiers 
of  supers  sealed  out,  and  the  Heather  is  not  much  more  than  half 
gone. — A  Lanarkshire  Bee-keeper. 
SEASONABLE  NOTES. 
In  many  parts  of  the  country  bees  are  still  kept  in  straw  skeps, 
and  if  not  already  done  the  taking  of  the  honey  should  not  be 
delayed  any  longer.  As  it  is  such  a  simple  matter  to  drive  the 
bees  without  destroying  them,  I  hope  the  sulphur  pit  will  soon  be 
a  thing  of  the  past,  although  I  find  there  are  some  old-fashioned 
bee-keepers  who  still  prefer  this  method  to  the  more  humane 
system  advocated  by  the  advanced  bee-keepers,  who  work  on 
modern  lines  with  the  moveable  frame  hive.  In  most  districts  there 
is  usually  someone  within  easy  reach  who  would  advise  or  assist  a 
novice  in  his  first  attempt  at  driving  his  bees,  and  the  chances  are 
another  season  he  will  succeed  in  the  operation  without  any 
assistance. 
A  few  words  on  the  subject  may  assist  those  who  have 
hitherto  been  nervous  at  making  the  initial  attempt.  The  first 
thing  to  be  done  is  to  decide  which  stocks  are  to  be  kept  for 
another  season.  In  making  the  selection  it  is  well  to  remember 
that  colonies  headed  by  a  young  queen  will  in  all  probability 
winter  better  and  be  much  stronger  in  bees  next  spring  than  stocks 
that  have  an  old  queen  ;  consequently  much  earlier  swarms  will  be 
obtained.  The  management  of  bees  in  straw  skeps  is  somewhat 
different  to  the  moveable  frame  hive,  as  with  the  latter  they  may 
be  worked  on  the  non-swarming  system,  which  is  a  great  advantage 
when  the  honey  flow  lasts  such  a  short  time  as  it  does  in  this 
country.  With  the  former  the  swarming  system  is  to  be  preferred, 
and  the  earlier  the  swarms  are  obtained  the  greater  chance  there  is 
of  a  good  surplus  at  the  end  of  the  season. 
Some  people,  however,  may  have  a  difficulty  in  deciding  which 
of  their  stocks  contain  a  young  queen.  There  is  a  great  deal  of 
ignorance  displayed  on  this  subject,  although  it  should  now  be 
well  known  that  the  old  queen  always  leaves  the  hive  with  the 
first  swarm,  and  there  is  then  no  queen  left  in  the  parent  stock. 
But  there  will  be  several  in  the  cells  in  various  stages  of  develop¬ 
ment,  and  in  about  eight  or  ten  days  a  young  queen  will  hatch 
out  ;  and  if  the  stock  is  a  strong  one,  and  the  weather  is  favour¬ 
able,  another  swarm  will  leave  this  hive,  which  is  termed  a  cast, 
and  will  be  accompanied  by  a  young,  unfertilised  queen.  Here 
will  also  be  a  young  queen  left  in  the  parent  stock. 
This  should  always  be  borne  in  mind  when  taking  the  honey 
in  the  autumn.  Bees  will  always  rear  many  more  queens  than  are 
required,  but  will  destroy  all  but  one  directly  they  decide  not  to 
throw  off  any  more  swarms.  Should  the  weather  be  favourable 
the  young  queens  will  be  fertilised,  and  laying  in  about  ten  days 
or  less.  It  will  thus  be  seen  that  the  old  stock  and  cast  are  headed 
by  young  queens.  It  is  advisable  to  place  a  number  on  each  skep 
and  make  a  note  of  them  ;  there  will  then  be  no  danger  of  a 
mistake  in  driving  the  wrong  stock.  The  casts  usually  make  the 
best  stocks  for  another  season,  and  old  stocks  should  not  be  kept 
longer  than  two  years,  as  the  combs  are  then  very  black  and 
contain  much  pollen. 
If  an  increase  of  stocks  is  not  required,  the  old  itock  and  first 
swarm  should  be  taken,  destroying  the  old  queen  from  the  first 
swarm,  uniting  the  bees  with  those  obtained  from  the  old  stock. 
They  will  then  be  headed  by  a  young  queen,  which  will  make  a 
capital  stock  for  another  year.  The  honey  obtained  from  the 
early  swarm  is  superior  to  that  from  the  old  stock,  and  should  be 
kept  separate. 
Driving  bees  is  done  by  turning  the  hive  intended  to  be  driven 
upside  down,  having  previously  blown  a  puff  or  two  of  smoke  in  at 
the  entrance.  Place  an  empty  hive  on  the  top,  which  should  be 
held  in  its  place  by  a  couple  of  pieces  of  stout  wire  about  a  foot 
in  length,  with  about  an  inch  turned  at  each  end  so  as  to  form 
a  hinge.  Commence  tapping  the  outside  of  the  hive  containing  the 
bees  with  the  open  hand,  and  they  will  at  once  run  up  into  the 
empty  hive.  The  middle  of  a  fine  day  is  the  best  time  for  the 
operation,  and  by  keeping  up  a  regular  tapping  the  majority  of 
the  bees  will  soon  run  up,  and  the  old  queen  may  be  readily 
picked  out  as  she  is  running  up  with  the  other  bees. 
Should  the  bees  not  run  freely  it  will  be  better  to  get  them  out 
by  bumping.  This  is  much  the  quicker  way,  and  is  done  by  first 
pulling  out  the  cross  sticks,  if  any,  then  bump  the  hive  sharply 
on  the  ground,  first  on  one  side  and  then  on  the  other.  This  will 
have  the  effect  of  breaking  the  combs  off  from  the  crown  of  the 
hive.  Then  take  the  combs  out  one  at  a  time,  and  brush  the  bees 
into  an  empty  skep.  Unite  two  or  more  lots  together,  and  if 
sprinkled  with  a  little  thin  syrup  no  fighting  will  take  place.  If 
put  in  a  straw  skep  the  bees  must  be  fed  with  thick  syrup  until 
they  have  stored  sufficient  to  winter  on.  It  would,  however,  be  a 
great  advantage  to  place  them  in  a  frame  hive  on  frames  of  fully 
drawn  out  combs,  as  having  no  combs  to  make  they  would  store 
sufficient  in  a  few  days  to  last  them  throughont  the  winter. — 
An  English  Bee-keeper. 
