September  7,  1899. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
210 
hearing  shoots  cut  back  to  two  or  three  leases  above  the  pruuing  buds. 
This  will  facilitate  cleansing  the  foliage  of  red  spider  and  other  pests, 
and  assist  in  plumping  the  basal  buds  as  well  as  the  ripening  of  the  wood 
by  the  increased  amount  of  light. 
Late  Grapes. — Where  the  Vines  were  started  in  good  time  the  Grapes 
are  well  advanced  in  ripening.  Keep  the  laterals  well  thinned,  and 
thereby  admit  as  much  air  as  possible  for  finishing  the  crops — not  by 
large  reductions  at  a  time,  but  by  frequent  pinchings.  Maintain  an  arti¬ 
ficial  temperature  of  70°  to  75°,  falling  5°  or  10°  during  the  night, 
■iucreasing  to  80°  or  85°  by  day,  accompanied  with  a  circulation  of  air 
constantly,  and  free  under  favourable  atmospheric  conditions.  Where  the 
•Grapes  are  only  beginning  to  colour  somewhat,  sharp  firing  will  be 
required  to  finish  them  properly  before  the  days  are  too  short  and  cold  to 
admit  of  free  ventilation,  it  being  possible  to  do  more  in  the  next  month 
or  six  weeks’  time  than  in  twice  the  time  later  on.  With  the  Grapes  well 
advanced  in  colouring  and  ripening  the  atmospheric  moisture  should  bo 
reduced.  Those  only  colouring  should  have  a  moderate  amount  of 
atmospheric  moisture  to  assist  their  swelling,  not  neglecting  to  supply- 
water  to  the  roots  as  required. 
Young  Vines. — Those  that  have  made  a  strong  growth  and  are  late  in 
lipening  should  be  assisted  with  fire  heat,  continuing  it  until  the  wood  is 
ripe,  accompanied  with  free  top  and  bottom  ventilation.  Discourage 
further  growth  by  the  removal  of  the  laterals  as  they  appear,  and  with¬ 
hold  water  from  the  roots,  only  the  soil  must  not  be  allowed  to  become 
too  dry  ;  and  if  the  Vines  have  the  run  of  outside  borders,  some  spare 
lights  placed  over  the  border,  so  as  to  throw  off  the  wet,  will  be  very 
beneficial  to  the  roots.  If  the  autumn  be  dry  the  border  is  better 
exposed,  but  heavy  rains  thrown  off  will  be  beneficial  when  the  wood 
■does  not  ripen  kindly'. 
THE  KITCHEN  GARDEN. 
Mushrooms.  —  After  the  rain  that  has  falleD  in  many  districts 
Mushrooms  will  be  abundant,  though  not  of  so  much  value  as  they  would 
he  if  developed  a  little  later  in  the  season.  Should  the  rainfall  be  heavy, 
and  the  weather  keep  dull  for  a  few  days,  the  probability  is  that  the  crop, 
if  heavy,  will  be  of  short  duration,  and  in  any  case  the  forming  of  beds, 
both  in  the  open  and  in  sheds  or  Mushroom  houses,  ought  to  commence 
=8t  once  with  a  view  to  having  a  late  autumn  supply. 
Open-air  Beds. — Only  ridge-shaped  beds  are  suitable  for  the  open  air, 
and  these  may  be  formed  of  any  convenient  length.  The  manure  should 
have  a  good  portion  of  short  stained  straw  mixed  with  it,  throwing  on 
one  side  the  1  ng  straw  only,  and  keeping  this  dry  so  as  to  have 
•abundance  for  covering  the  b  ds  after  they  are  formed.  When  enough 
manure  has  been  collected  form  a  heap  to  ferment,  which  it  will  do  in  a 
few  hours.  This  must  not  be  left  untouched  long  enough  for  the  centre 
to  attain  to  a  “  white  heat,”  but  every  day  and  occasionally  twice  in  a 
■dQy  it  should  be  turned  inside  out,  the  aim  being  to  dissipate  the  ranker 
gases  without  rendering  the  manure  worthless  for  heating  purposes. 
Ten  days  may  safely  be  expended  cn  the  preparation  of  a  large  heap  of 
manure,  and  during  that  time  it  should  be  protected  from  heavy  rains,  or, 
it  dry  when  turned,  bo  lightly  watered.  When  put  together  finally  it 
ought  to  feel  comfortably  hot,  be  just  moist  enough  to  bind,  and  smell 
sweet. 
Forming  and  Spawning. — Ridge-shaped  beds  should  be  formed  on  a 
level,  hard  base  in  a  spot  sheltered  from  cold  winds.  They  ought  to  be 
about  3  feet  wide  at  the  base,  and  gradually  narrowed  to  about  9  inches, 
finishing  off  at  a  height  of  3  feet  in  the  centre  of  the  ridge.  The  manure 
should  be  put  together  in  layers,  made  as  firm  as  possible  with  the  back 
of  a  fork,  and  have  the  surfaces  combed  down  neatly.  B  fore  the  heat 
■declines  much  below  80°  insert  the  spawn,  ot  which  each  cake  should  not 
be  broken  up  into  about  eight  pieces.  Insert  these  firmly  and  flatly  in 
the  bed  nearly  level  with  the  surface  of  the  manure,  at  intervals  of  about 
fi  inches  apart  each  way,  spawning  the  ends  but  not  the  ridge.  Fresh, 
fine,  yellow  or  brown  loam  is  suitable  for  casing  the  beds,  and  if  this 
■cannot  be  dug  from  immediately  below  the  turf  in  a  meadow,  substitute 
the  best  garden  soil  procurable.  This  should  be  laid  on  from  2  inches 
to  3  inches  in  thickness,  made  smooth,  firm,  and  level.  Arrange  strawy 
litter  so  as  to  form  a  thatch  to  throw  off  heavy  rains.  Prepare  more 
manure  for  successioDal  beds. 
Seasonable  Work. — Rains  having  fallen  heavily  and  generally,  it  is  to 
be  hoped  there  has  been  enough  to  render  it  possible  to  complete  the 
work  of  cropping  for  the  winter.  Celery  planted  thus  late  will  not  attain 
to  a  great  size,  but  may  prove  use  ul  next  spring.  Leeks  should  be 
planted  thickly  and  deeply  in  holes  just  large  enough  to  allow  the  stems 
to  swell  to  a  good  size,  out  of  which  they  will  turn  ready  blanched. 
Plant  Cabbage  extensively.  If  old  stumps  have  been  saved,  these  will 
produce  large  quantities  of  small  hearts  and  greens,  especially  if  assisted 
by  having  nitrate  of  soda  lightly  sown  between  the  rows,  or  liquid  manure 
applied  lreely.  Autumn  Cauliflowers  may  be  greatly  assisted  in  a  similar 
manner. 
It  is  not  yet  too  late  to  plant  Borecole.  Dispose  the  plants  somewhat 
thickly  in  good  ground.  Turnips  should  be  sown  on  ground  newly 
cleared  of  Potatoes.  If  they  fail  to  bulb  ”  properly,  and  are  not  wanted 
for  greens,  they  may  be  dug  in  for  manure.  Plants  already  up  should  be 
dusted  occasionally  with  soot  and  lime  as  a  preventive  of  insect  attacks. 
Thin  out  early  and  lightly  at  first.  Plants  given  good  room  are  the 
first  to  form  serviceable  roots.  Transplant  Lettuce,  leaving  some 
undisturbed  to  heart-in  a  little  earlier  in  the  autumn.  Treat  Endive 
similarly,  arranging  a  portion  of  the  plants  where  they  can  be  temporarily 
protected  on  frosty  nights.  Weeds  will  spring  up  in  all  directions. 
Keep  them  down  by  means  of  the  Dutch  hoe  frequently  used. 
HE  BEE-KEEPER. 
tire 
Feeding  Bees. 
One  of  the  most  important  operations  in  connection  with  successful 
bee-keeping  is  feeding  the  bees  in  the  autumn.  Too  often  is  this  left  until 
the  cold  weather  sets  in.  When  the  majority  of  stocks  in  the  country 
were  kept  in  straw  skeps,  little  feeding  was  necessary,  as  under  the 
system  by  which  they  were  managed  the  bees  were  wintered  on  their 
natural  stores.  In  a  general  way  a  given  number  of  stocks  were  con¬ 
demned  to  the  sulphur  pit,  the  colonies  that  remained  being  allowed 
to  retain  the  surplus  stored  in  their  hives.  They  had  thus  sufficient 
stores  to  carry  them  over  till  the  following  spring.  The  heaviest 
stocks  were  often  left  for  wintering  without  taking  into  consideration 
the  age  of  the  queens,  and  owing  to  the  fact  of  many  of  the  queens 
being  old  and  worn  out,  and  quite  incapable  of  fulfilling  their  proper 
functions,  stocks  were  often  found  queenless  in  the  following  spring. 
As  each  spring  comes  round  we  have  several  queries  on  this 
subject.  Bee-keepers  cannot  understand  why  their  bees  have  dis¬ 
appeared  from  their  hives,  as  on  examination  neither  queen  nor  bee  is 
there,  although  scale  1  stores  are  founl  in  abundance.  When  this  is 
the  case  it  is  easily  explained.  The  queen  having  died  during  the 
autumn  or  winter,  the  bees  that  remain  dwindle  away  at  a  rapid  rate. 
Those  from  the  other  colonies  are  not  slow  to  find  out  the  stores 
from  such  stocks  a-e  unprotected,  and  they  commence  to  clear  out 
the  dead  bees,  and  the  few  bees  that  remain  alive  will  often  unite 
themselves  to  another  colony  having  a  queen.  This  is  a  common 
occurrence,  and  as  the  weither  becomes  warmer  they  clear  out  the 
stores  as  well. 
With  the  advent  of  the  movable  frame  hive  much  of  this  was 
changed.  It  still  goes  on,  however,  with  the  straw  skeppist,  but  in  a 
lesser  degree.  Instead  of  the  bees  being  destroyed  their  lives  are 
saved  by  bee-keepers  in  various  districts,  who  manage  their  stocks 
on  the  modern  system,  an!  are  thus  able  to  place  the  driven  bees 
on  frames  of  fully  drawn  out  combs. 
Whether  the  stock  is  composed  of  driven  bees,  or  it  has  been 
worked  for  a  surplus  during  the  past  summer,  it  is  all  the  same, 
feeding  must  be  carried  out  on  rational  lines.  If  a  colony  has  been 
kept  for  extracting,  and  the  honey  removed  from  the  supers  as  soon  as 
it  is  partly  sealed  over,  is  examined  previous  to  bemg  fed,  it  will  be 
found  that  all  the  honey  has  been  carried  into  the  super.  Those 
colonies,  however,  on  which  sections  have  been  w'orked,  and  remained 
on  the  hives  until  every  cell  was  sealed  over,  will  be  found  to  have 
ample  stores  in  the  brood  nest,  in  which  case  it  will  be  unnecessary  to 
feed  them.  The  above  shows  how  it  is  that  some  colonies  require 
more  feeding  than  others.  This  is  a  fact  that  should  not  be  overlooked 
when  comparing  the  weight  of  honey  obtained  from  a  hive  on  which 
sections  have  been  worked  and  those  used  for  extracting  purposes. 
In  this  district  (South  Yorkshire)  there  is  a  better  market  for 
extracted  honey  than  for  honey  in  comb,  hence  the  majority  of 
our  stocks  are  used  for  extracting  purposes,  although  it  entails  a 
greater  amount  of  labour  in  feeding  up  for  winter.  The  reason  why 
those  stocks  worked  for  comb  honey  have  ample  stores  in  the  brood 
nest  at  this  season  is,  when  honey  is  coming  in  freely  the  crates  of 
sections  are  in  various  stages  of  development,  the  majority  of  them 
being  partly  sealed  over  but  not  quite  ready  for  removal.  The  bees 
have  thus  not  sufficient  space  in  the  supers  to  store  the  extra  surplus, 
and  they  fill  all  the  empty  cells  in  the  brood  nest.  These  are  sealed 
over  in  due  course  and  will  not  be  uncapped,  although  an  extra  crate 
of  sections  may  afterwards  be  given  to  them.  We  have  sometimes 
tried  to  prevent  the  storing  of  honey  in  the  brood  nest  by  giving  a 
crate  of  sections  directly  the  previous  one  placed  on  the  hive  was  half 
filled,  but  the  result  was  always  the  same.  How  and  when  to  feed 
must  be  left  t  >  future  notes. — An  English  Bee-keeper. 
A  VALUABLE  BEE  TREE. 
Tilia  petiolaris. 
The  hum  of  bees  in  Lime  trees  when  these  are  in  flower  is  familiar  to 
all  observers,  ami  apiarians  appreciate  the  largo  quantities  of  honey 
gathered  during  the,  to  them,  too  short  season  when  the  trees  are  yielding 
the  coveted  supply. 
On  the  occasion  of  a  honey  show  at  Fierrepont,  Frensham,  the 
beautiful  seat  of  R.  H.  Combe,  Eiq.,  early  in  August,  some  of  the 
members  of  the  Council  of  the  Surrey  Bee-keepers’  Association,  which, 
in  conjunction  with  the  County  Council,  is  carrying  on  an  active  and 
useful  campaign  in  the  county,  discovered  among  the  Lime  trees  in  the 
park  a  handsome  specimen,  differing  from  all  others,  and  on  which  they 
set  very  great  value  as  a  honey-yielding  tree.  It  was  alive  with  bees, 
which  had  abandoned  all  other  contiguous  Limes  for  the  simple  reason 
that  they  were  fast  going  out  of  flower,  while  the  one  over  which  they 
