408 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
November  24,  1898.- 
Bee-keepers’  Requirements. 
It  is  somewhat  disheartening  to  a  beginner  in  bee-keeping  to 
peruse  a  catalogue  issued  by  many  manufacturers  of  bee  hives,  in 
which  are  ^freely  illustrated  articles  of  supposed  valuo  to  advanced 
bee-keepers.  Many  of  them  are  of  little  use  to  the  practical  apiarist, 
and  with  a  view  to  assisting  those  who  have  not  had  experience  in 
the  matter,  we  will  mention  a  few  articles  that  are  really  necessary  to 
the  beginner. 
After  deciding  on  the  class  of  hive  intended  to  be  used,  one  can  be 
purchased  and.  others  made  from  the  pattern.  With  a  little  practice 
the  most  timid  bee-keeper  will  soon  learn  to  handle  bees  without 
-gloves.  It  is  different,  however,  with  a  veil  for  the  face,  which  we 
would  advise  beginners  to  use  at  all  times  whilst  manipulating.  The 
veil  should  be  made  of  some  dark  coloured  light  material  which  will 
'fit  over  the  bat  and  be  carried  in  the  pocket  when  not  in  use. 
A  smoker,  too,  is  a  necessity.  We  prefer  the  Bingham  with  a  tin 
■guard  over  the  tube.  This  will  prevent  the  hand  being  burnt  in  case 
the  smoker  is  incautiously  laid  hold  of.  The  Bingham  is  strongly 
made,  and  with  care  one  will  last  for  several  years.  It  has  the 
advantage,  too,  of  not  being  particular  as  to  the  kind  of  fuel  used, 
brovvn  paper,  corduro}',  rags,  or  old  sacking  answering  admirably. 
A  pair  of  knifes  for  uncapping  should  be  obtained,  those  with  a 
bevelled  edge  arc  the  best.  We  prefer  the  Bingham  of  English  make; 
they  are  about  2  inches  in  width,  and  being  specially  made  for  the 
purpose  will  last  a  lifetime.  The  reason  a  pair  is  recommended  is  that 
they  always  work  better  when  used  warm,  for  this  reason  one  may  be 
kept  in  warm  water  whilst  the  other  is  being  used. 
A  tin  box  for  carrying  the  frames  when  full  of  honey,  or  at  any 
other  time  when  it  is  necessary  to  keep  the  bees  from  gaining  almit- 
tance,  should  be.imde  for  the  purpose,  of  the  same  width  and  depth 
as  the  frames,  with  projections  at  each  end  for  the  frames  to  rest  on. 
A  handle  ought  to  be  placed  on  the  top,  so  that  it  may  be  easily 
oanied.  One  holding  eight  frames  will  be  quite  large  enough. 
A  good  extractor  is  one  of  the  most  expensive  items.  It  is,  how¬ 
ever,  much  better  to  obtain  a  thoroughly  reliable  article  at  the  com¬ 
mencement  than  to  buy  an  inferior  machine  which  will  requiro  a  great1 
amount  of  labour  in  manipulating  it.  We  prefer  a  cylinder  extractor 
with  cog. gearing,  taking  two  combs  in  standard  size  frames,  and 
having  swinging  reversible  cages.  They  are  made  of  strong  block  tin, 
and  are  about.  2  feet  high  and  1C  inches  across.  An  extractor  of  this 
description  will  hold  80  lbs.  of  honey  under  the  cages  before  it  will  be 
necessary  to  run  it  off,  which  is  done  through  a  valve  at  the  bottom 
of  the  machine. 
M  e  have  a  machine  similar  to  the  above  which  has  been  in  usi  for 
neatly  twenty  years,  during  which  time  it  has  extracted  many  tons  of 
honey,  and  to  all  appearance  it  is  as  good  now  as  when  first  obtained. 
It  cost  2  guineas.  An  extractor  suitable  for  a  bee-keeper  having  one 
or  two  hives  may  be  obtained  for-Ss.  Gd. ;  but  to  anyone  who  antici¬ 
pates  keeping  bees  largely  we  would  strongly  recommend  the  larger 
size. — An  English  Bee-keeper. 
Beginning  with  Bees. 
G  ^  •  G.  refer  to  page  387,  he  will  find  the  majority  of 
his  questions  answered.  Some  notes  on  the  different  varieties  of  bees 
.Tif  \?Pea,i! a!*  earb”  date.  We  do  not  know  if  the  county  in  which 
“  R.  W.  G.  resides  can  boast  of  a  bee  keepers’  association  ;  there  was  one 
a  few  years  ago,  but  it  may  not  now  bo  in  existence.  The  information, 
tiovvever,  may  be  obtained  by  forwarding  a  stamped  addressed  envelope 
to  the  Secretary,  British  Bee-keepers’  Association,  105.  Jermyn  Street, 
b.W.  This  is  the  parent  association,  of  which  tho  Baroness  Bunletl- 
Goutts  is  the  President. 
TRADE  CATALOGUES  RECEIVED. 
W.  Barron  &  Son,  Elvaston  Nurseries,  Borrowash,  Derby. —  Trees. 
Dammann  &  Co.,  Naples. — Seeds. 
Hogg  &  Wood,  Coldstream. — Trees  and  Shrubs. 
Eel  way  &  Son,  Langport. —  Wholesale  LiU  of  Gladioli. 
E.  Wiseman,  Elgin.—  Trees  and  Shrubs. 
GARDENERS’  CHARITABLE  AND  PROVIDENT 
INSTITUTIONS 
The  Gardeners’  Royal  Benevolent  Institution. — Secretary 
Mr.  G.  J.  Ingram,  175,  Victoria  Street,  S.W. 
United  Horticultural  Benefit  and  Provident  Society  — 
Secretary,  Mr.  W.  Collins,  9,  Martindale  Road,  Balham,  London,  S.W.  ’ 
E°yai’  Gardeners’  Orphan  Fund.-  Secretary,  Mr.  A.  F.  Barron 
I  he  Royal  Gardeners’  Orphan  Pund,  Chiswick,  W. 
All  correspondence  relating  to  editorial  matters  should,  until 
further  notice,  be  directed  to“  The  Editor,”  s,  Rose  Hill  Road. 
.  -  -  •  / v  77  9  ! 
Wandsworth,  S.W.,  and  HOT  to  12,  Mitre  Court  Chambers, 
Fleet  Street.  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.  Letters  of  inquiry  must  be  accompan:ed  by » 
the  names  and  addresses  of  the  ■writers,  but  these  will  neither  he 
published  nor  disclosed  when  initials  or  nom  de  plumes  are  given 
for  the  purpose  of  replies. 
Green  Labels  (17.  F.  71/.). — First  paint  the  labels  a  pleasing  green, 
then  write  the  names  with  a  cainet’s-hair  brush,  using  a  mixture  of  one 
part  of  poppy  oil  and  two  parts  of  gum  mastic  worked  into  good  white 
lead  until  it  is  the  consistency  of  cream. 
Book  of  the  Rose  (Morning  Cloud )  — The  book  you  name  is  an  excellent 
one,  and  is  published  by  Messrs.  Macmillan  &  Co.  We  do  not  recollect 
the  exuct  price,  but  you  can  obtain  it  through  a  good  local  bookseller,  or 
from  the  publishers,  St.  Martin’s  Street,  W.C.  Your  other  question  shall 
have  attention. 
What  is  an  Amateur?  (Constant  Tcaler). — We  publish  your  case,  as 
follows: — “A  has  retired  from  his  profession  as  a  medical  man,  and 
follows  the  cultivation  of  flowers  as  a  hobby.  A  does  most  of  the  work 
himself,  but  employs  B,  a  jobbing  gardener,  about  three  hours  a  day  to 
do  the  rough  work  in  the  garden,  and  occasionally  in  the  greenhouse 
when  any  potting  is  being  done.  Will  employing  B  constitute  A  a 
professional  gardener,  and  debar  A  from  showing  in  the  amateur  classes 
at  the  shows  ?  Or,  in  other  words,  what  is  the  definition  of  a  professional 
gardener  and  an  amateur?”  In  reply  wo  take  a  citation  from  Mr. 
J.  Wrigh-’s  paper  on  “Horticultural  Exhibitions  and  Schedules,”  in  the 
Journal  of  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society,  vol.  xxi.,  part  3,  April,  1898. 
“In  the  schedules  and  at  tho  exhibitions  of  tho  Royal  Horticultural 
Society  the  established  rule  is  to  regard  all  competitors  as  ‘  amateurs  ’  who 
are  not  nurserymen.  This  broad  distinction  meets  tho  requirements  cf  tho 
chief  society  fairly  well,  but  it  is  very  far  from  meeting  those  of  the  over¬ 
whelming  majority  of  local  societies.  This  is  recognised  in  the  Society’s 
excellent  code  of  ‘Rules  for  Judging.’  After  the  statement  that  ‘no 
person  shall  be  allowed  to  compete  as  an  amateur  who  cultivates  plants 
(or  other  garden  produce)  for  sale,’  it  is  recommended  that  doubts  as  to 
tho  qualification  of  an  exhibitor  be  referred  to  tho  committee  of  tho  show 
for  decision.  Vciy  good  advice  it  is,  but  unfortunate'y  many  committees 
find  it  difficult  to  decide  the  point, and  disputes  appear  to  goon  as  briskly 
as  ever  among  ihe  several  persons  interested.  A  fact  to  be  kept  in  mind 
in  considering  this  amateur  question  is  that  the  rich  can,  and  hundreds  of 
them  do,  love  gardening  as  intensely  as  the  relatively  poor,  and  tho 
comparatively  poor  can,  and  happily  thousands  of  them  do,  love  it  as 
ardently  as  the  relatively  rich.  Wo  must  then  for  practical  purposes  divide 
them  into  two  intelligible  sections,  both  rendering  good  service  in  a  common 
cause— namely  (l)  amateurs  as  patrens  of  gardening  ;  (2)  amateurs  as 
the  actual  workers  of  their  own  gardens.  The  former  may  employ  as 
many  gardeners  as  they  wish,  provided  they  do  not  grow  for  sale.  They 
are  then  well  within  the  meaning  of  tho  term  ‘amateur,’  from  the  Latin 
amalor,  a  lover  of  any  particular  art,  but  not  profiting  by  it.  The  definition 
of  the  second  and  larger  section,  for  the  purpose  of  exhibiting,  varies 
somewhat  in  different  localities,  but  generally  the  qualifying  conditions 
are  well  set  forth  in  the  rules  of  the  ‘National  Amateur  Gardeners’ 
Association’  as  follows  ‘  No  person  shall  bo  eligible  for  membership 
who  disposes  of  plants,  flowers,  seeds,  or  trades  in  garden  produce  for 
profit,  or  is  in  the  employ  of  a  nurseryman  or  gardener,  or  is  employed  as 
a  gardener.  Occasional  help  from  a  labourer  in  digging,  wheeling,  or 
similar  rough  woik  is  allowed.  All  other  actual  cultural  work  this  type 
of  amateur  must  do  jvith  his  own  hands.’  By  some  societies  a  person  is 
not  allowed  to  exhibit  in  the  amateur  classes  if  he  has  the  aid  of  any  paid 
assistance,  directly  or  indirectly,  in  working  his  garden.  Whatever  tho 
show  regulations  may  be,  they  must  be  strictly  complied  with.  An 
admirable  example  of  amateurs  cf  the  first  class  is  found  in  the  President 
of  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society,  Sir  Trevor  Law  rence.  Bart.,  who  has 
sought  unweariedly  tor  a  number  of  years,  by  precept  and  by  example,  to 
create  interest  in  and  to  advance  tbo  prosperity  of  British  gardening. 
A  worthy  specimen  of  the  second  class  is  aflorded  by  Mr.  Alfred  Lewis 
