564 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER, 
December  12, 1895. 
may  learn  much  at  agricultural  and  horticultural  shows  where  the 
bee  tent  ia  erected,  and  object  lessons  given,  showing  the  best 
methods  of  bee  management  by  men  of  experience. 
Whilst  assisting  as  expert  with  the  bee  tent  in  various  places  I 
have  seen  how  eagerly  the  on-lookers  have  watched  every  movement 
of  the  operator,  as  without  veil  and  with  rolled-up  sleeves  the  bees 
have  been  driven  from  the  old-fashioned  straw  skep,  the  queen 
picked  out,  as  she  ran  with  thousands  of  her  attendants  into  the 
empty  hive,  and  handed  round  for  inspection,  scooping  the  bees  up 
by  the  handful  without  being  stung,  afterwards  transferring  them 
to  the  modern  moveable  frame  hive.  All  this  tends  to  give 
confidence  to  would-be  bee-keepers  ;  still,  they  often  think  there  is 
some  charm  required  in  carrying  out  the  operation,  and  conclude 
the  operator  has  some  secret  solution  to  put  on  the  hands  and  face 
to  prevent  the  bees  stinging,  and  it  is  often  a  difficult  matter  to 
convince  them  otherwise.  Gloves,  except  at  the  first  with  the 
most  timid  operators,  should  never  be  worn,  as  one  can  work  much 
better  without  them,  and  they  irritate  the  bees  ;  but  it  is  better  to 
use  a  veil  at  all  times,  as  it  gives  the  operator  much  greater 
confidence. 
The  best  time  to  handle  bees  is  during  calm  warm  weather, 
and  should  be  avoided  when  it  is  cold  and  stormy,  or  when  there  is 
a  high  wind.  During  the  warm  days  of  summer,  when  honey  is 
coming  in  freely,  bees  may  be  handled  with  impunity  provided  the 
operator  is  gentle  in  his  movements.  A  smoker  should  be  kept 
conveniently  to  hand  ;  the  Bingham  is  recommended  for  the 
purpose.  It  is  not  advisable  to  blow  any  smoke  in  at  the  entrance 
of  the  hive,  but  to  commence  by  removing  the  coverings,  and 
turn  the  quilt  gently  back,  and  if  the  bees  are  at  all  inclined  to 
be  troublesome,  a  puif  or  two  of  smoke  will  drive  them  down 
between  the  combs.  If  allowed  a  little  time  they  will  commence 
to  fill  their  honey  sacs  from  the  stores,  and  will  then  not  be 
inclined  to  sting.  Fear  will  always  cause  them  to  do  this  ;  a  sharp 
rap  or  two  on  the  hive  will  have  the  same  effect.  When  bees 
swarm  naturally  they  rarely  sting  the  operator. 
Bee-keepers  must  be  prepared  to  be  stung  sometimes,  as  wffien 
one  has  several  colonies  to  examine  in  a  short  time,  and  the 
weather  is  not  favourable  for  the  operation,  the  bees  will  resent 
the  intrusion  and  stinging  be  the  result.  But  the  majority  of 
people  soon  become  inoculated,  and  in  a  short  time  stings  will 
have  no  ill  effect  on  them.  Some  people  are  very  nervous  of  bees, 
and  will  strike  right  and  left  directly  a  bee  approaches  them,  which 
will  cause  them  to  sting  at  once.  It  is  wise  to  have  some  liquid 
arnmonia  always  at  hand,  and  if  applied  at  once,  after  removing  the 
sting,  is  an  excellent  remedy. — An  English  Bee-keeper. 
All  correspondence  should  be  directed  either  to  “  The 
Editor'’  or  to  “The  Publisher.”  Letters  addressed  to 
Dr.  Hogg  or  members  of  the  staff  often  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. 
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  reply  to  questions  through  the  post, 
and  we  do  not  undertake  to  return  rejected  communications. 
Corrosive  Sublimate  {H.  T.  II.'), — The  reply  given  to  “  H.  K.” 
contains  the  information  jou  desire. 
Beet  (^S,  D.). — Beet  is  essentially  a  salad  vegetable,  and  it  would 
not  be  prudent  to  include  it  in  a  class  from  which  “Tomatoes  and  salads 
are  excluded.” 
Successional  Peas  and  Broccoli  (jR.). — If  you  sowWilliam  the 
First  and  Veitch’s  Perfection  Pea  side  by  side  on  the  same  day  you  will 
have  a  natural  successional  supply  of  pods.  The  same  remarks  apply 
to  the  sowing  of  the  Cauliflower  and  autumn  Broccoli. 
Orang-es  for  Culture  in  Pots  (^Subscriber). — Blood  and  Oval  or 
Egg  are  the  most  accommodating  as  regards  flowers  and  fruit.  St. 
Michael’s,  Botelha,  Dulcissima,  Exquisite,  Sustain,  and  Silver  or  Plata 
— all  varieties  of  St.  Michael’s — are  excellent  for  producing  flowers  or 
fruit  for  table.  Tangierine  and  the  St.  Michael’s  Tangierine  produce 
delicious  little  Oranges,  with  delightful  aroma. 
Peaches  and  N'ectarines  for  Forcing-  (Subscriber). — Peaches  : 
Bale’s  Early,  Dymond,  Royal  George,  and  Grosse  Mignonne  or  Noblesse^ 
as  you  may  want  a  dark  or  light-coloured  variety.  Nectarines  :  Early 
Rivers,  Lord  Napier,  Stanwick  Elruge,  and  Humboldt  or  Dryden,  as 
you  -wish  a  dark  or  yellow-coloured  sort. 
Brown  Turkey  Fig  Trees  in  Pots  (E.). — The  trees  do  well 
in  a  cool  house,  and  produce  one  crop  of  fruit,  provided  they  obtain 
abundance  of  light  and  are  well  attended  to  in  other  respects.  The 
pots  must  be  plunged  over  the  rims  to  protect  the  roots  from  frost, 
or  be  covered  with  dry  material,  such  as  hay  or  straw,  in  severe 
weather. 
Pronunciation  of  Botanical  N'ames  (E.  B.). — There  is  no 
dictionary  after  the  style  of  Nuttall’s  devoted  to  botanical  terms,  but 
the  latest  edition  of  “  Johnson’s  Gardener’s  Dictionary  ”  (which  may  be 
had  from  these  offices,  post  free,  for  ten  shillings)  would  be  of  material 
assistance  to  you.  It  contains  much  valuable  practical  matter  relative 
to  horticulture,  and  gives  simple  directions  in  the  pronunciation  of 
names. 
Polyantha  Boses  not  Flowering  (A.  E). — The  plants  are 
probably  in  too  rich  soil,  and  the  wood  does  not  become  sufficiently 
ripened.  If  in  pots  keep  them  outdoors  in  the  summer,  and  get  the 
wood  thoroughly  ripened,  then  we  think  they  will  flower  freely.  Seed¬ 
lings  are  often  a  long  time  before  they  come  into  flower.  Lifting 
annually,  or  keeping  cramped  at  the  roots,  tends  to  the  earlier  produc¬ 
tion  of  flowers.  We  should  give  them  more  time,  as  they  will  probably 
reward  you  for  waiting  ;  but  very  often  they  are  disappointing. 
Propagating  Bracaenas  (Eeader). — The  tops  are  rooted  by 
making  a  cross  cut  half  through  the  stems  close  under  the  good  leaves, 
then  starting  an  inch  or  so  below  and  cutting  upwards,  taking  out  the 
wedge,  so  to  say,  and  a  notch  is  thus  left.  If  moss  is  thickly  tied 
round  and  kept  moist  in  a  warm  house  roots  will  be  emitted  and  take 
possession  of  it  ;  or  split  pots  containing  light  material  may  be  placed 
round  the  heads,  supporting  them  in  position,  also  the  plant  by  securing 
both  to  stakes.  Imperfect  leaves  should  be  removed  up  to  the  part  that 
is  notched. 
Soatb  American  Orchids  (IF.  G.). — The  blocks  should  be  hung 
so  that  the  plants  fa<:e  the  light.  At  this  time  of  year  there  is  only  too 
little  sun  for  all  classes  of  Orchids.  There  may  be  times  during  the 
heat  of  summer  when  it  would  be  advisable  to  reverse  them  for  a  time, 
but  this  is  not  usually  practised,  the  plants  being  screened  from  bright 
sunshine  by  the  blinds  on  the  roof.  The  amount  of  watering  and 
syringing  required  depends  upon  the  season,  the  weather,  and  the 
species.  Most  of  the  Orchids  you  name  are  more  suitable  for  pot  or 
basket  culture  than  for  growing  upon  blocks,  the  amount  of  water 
needed  during  the  growing  season  entailing  a  great  amount  of  labour  if 
grown  this  way.  If  your  plants  are  established  upon  the  wood  perhaps 
you  could  by  reducing  the  size  of  the  pieces  introduce  them  into  pots 
or  baskets,  filling  up  with  a  suitable  compost.  The  book  you  name 
would  undoubtedly  be  a  great  help  to  you,  the  author  being  an  experienced 
grower. 
Chrysanthemums  (Blandford). — You  ask,  “Why  do  some  Chrys¬ 
anthemums  show  the  eye  ?  ”  We  do  not  suppose  it  is  for  the  purpose  of 
letting  us  see  the  green  in  it,  as  that  would  be  no  compliment.  Some 
varieties  do  not  produce  the  floral  appendages,  miscalled  petals,  so  freely 
as  do  others,  or,  in  other  words,  the  centres  do  not  fill  up  so  well.  Those 
which  are  naturally  prone  to  produce  a  number  of  disc  florets,  and  thus 
“  show  the  eye,”  must  be  disbudded  to  one  bloom  on  a  stem  and  three  to 
five  on  a  plant,  and  the  beat  cultural  attention  given  throughout  for  the 
production  of  grand  full  blooms.  Thousands  of  examples  of  Edwin 
Molyneux  are  grown  every  year,  the  disc  of  which  cannot  be  seen  with¬ 
out  searching  among  the  long  coloured  ligulate  florets,  of  the  absence 
of  which  you  complain.  Boule  d’Or  is  much  less  frequently  seen  in 
superior  condition,  as  it  is  not,  as  many  growers  say,  so  “  easy  to  do.” 
The  best  blooms  of  both  are  the  result  of  the  best  management,  including 
the  timely  “  taking  ”  or  setting  of  the  buds.  Try  again,  and  see  what 
you  can  do. 
Insects  Infesting  Boots  of  Primula  obconlca  (7/.  AT,). — The 
insects  are  the  larvae  or  grubs  of  the  grooved  or  Vine  weevil  (Otiorbynchus 
sulcatus)  which  may  have  been  introduced  in  the  potting  soil,  but  of 
this — the  grubs  feeding  on  dead  or  decaying  organic  matter — we  have 
no  evidence,  as  we  have  .not  found  them  in  soil  apart  from  living  plants 
during  fifty  years.  Possibly  the  horse  droppings  and  bone  dust  mixed 
with  the  turfy  loam,  collectively  a  mass  of  organic  matter,  may  induce 
the  female  parent  to  deposit  her  eggs  in  such  soil,  but  this  is  hardly 
likely,  as  the  organic  material  would  afford  most  .food  when  the  grubs 
require  least,  and  little  when  they  need  most,  therefore  it  is,  so  far  as  we 
have  experience,  certain  that  the  eggs  are  deposited  in  the  soil  by  the 
plant  on  which  the  larvrn  from  them  are  to  subsist  on.  You  do  not  ask 
for  (but  we  presume  you  desire)  a  remedy.  Well,  we  have  tried  many 
substances  and  found  two  very  effectual.  (1)  Gas  liquor  diluted  with 
five  times  its  bulk  of  water,  watering  the  plants  with  it  when  the  soil  is 
moderately  moist — that  is,  when  the  soil  is  in  need  of  water,  but  not  so 
dry  as  to  require  more  than  one  supply  to  make  the  soil  thoroughly  moist 
through  to  the  drainage,  (2)  Corrosive  sublimate  one-eighth  oz.  to 
3|-  gallons  of  water,  the  poison  being  dissolved  in  a  quart  of  hot  water,  then 
placed  in  a  wooden  vessel  with  the  remainder  of  the  water,  and,  stirring 
well,  let  stand  over-night,  scirring  two  or  three  times  so  as  to  insure  a 
thorough  solution,  and  with  this  .water  the  plants  infested.  It  will  not 
injure  the  plants — at  least,  we  have  used  it  for  Ferns,  Cyclamens,  and 
Primulas,  and  on  Tomatoes  and  Cucumbers,  without  prejudice  to  any¬ 
thing  but  growths  of  fungi,  and  insects  or  t’neir  larvm.  Corrosive 
sublimate  is  a  terrible  poison. 
