360  JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER.  April  18,  isafi. 
transferred  into  the  last  size,  and  as  soon  as  they  commence  flowering 
may  he  removed  to  the  conservatory. 
Habrothamnus  elegans. — A  very  useful  plant  for  covering  walls 
and  pillars  ;  for  the  latter  few  equal  it  when  trained  10  to  12  feet  high, 
and  then  allowed  to  form  a  large  head.  Such  plants  that  have  done 
flowering  should  he  cut  hard  back,  for  by  this  means  only  can  they  be 
kept  clean  and  presentable.  Those  pruned  now  will  before  another 
autumn  make  shoots  6  or  7  feet  in  length,  which  will  droop  gracefully, 
and  will  flower  from  the  axil  of  every  leaf.  The  flowers  of  this  plant 
during  the  winter  are  invaluable  for  table  decoration.  By  lamplight 
the  flowers  have  the  appearance  of  coral,  and  are  most  striking  on  the 
white  tablecloth. 
Blgnonla  grandiflora. — This  and  other  varieties  that  are  used  for 
furnishing  the  roof  and  pillars  of  the  conservatory  and  greenhouse 
should  be  examined,  and  their  shoots  tied  and  arranged  for  the  season. 
Prune  all  that  flower  from  ripeDed  wood,  and  train  the  branches  thinly, 
so  that  lignt  and  air  can  penetrate  freely  to  harden  and  ripen  them.  It 
is  useless  to  plant  Bignonias  in  houses  densely  shaded,  for  they  will 
not  flower.  The  wood  must  be  thoroughly  ripened  if  a  profusion  of 
bloom  is  expected.  B.  venusta  and  some  others  make  capital  evergreen 
pillar  climbers  for  those  houses  that  are  heavily  shaded. 
Zapagerlas. — These  will  now  be  growing  freely  and  require 
abundance  of  water  at  their  roots.  If  confined  in  small  borders  weak 
stimulants  may  be  given  every  alternate  time  water  is  needed,  clear  soot 
water  being  very  beneficial.  Keep  the  shoots  from  the  glass,  but  not 
tied  in  too  tightly.  They  flower  better,  and  present  a  more  striking 
appearance  when  all  the  small  growths  are  drawn  below  the  wires  on 
which  the  main  branches  are  trained.  This  process  domewhat  arrests 
growth,  and  the  shoots  become  firm  and  hard,  and  large  racemes  of 
bloom  are  the  result.  Young  plants  that  are  to  be  extended  should  have 
the  whole  of  the  shoots  trained  vertically  or  horizontally,  according  to 
the  mode  of  training  adopted.  Keep  the  house  in  which  these  plants 
are  grown  cool  and  airy,  for  the  ends  of  the  shoots  quickly  discontinue 
growth  when  the  atmosphere  is  close. 
Tacsonlas  and  Acacias. — These,  as  well  as  other  greenhouse 
climbers  that  have  flowered,  must  be  pruned  and  their  growths 
regulated.  If  left  for  a  season  or  two  they  become  crowded,  and  light  is 
excluded  from  the  plants  below.  Arrange  the  main  branches  thinly,  so 
that  the  roof  will  be  evenly  covered  by  the  end  of  the  season  ;  bat  with 
well  established  plants  of  Tacsonias  and  Passifloras  the  shoots  require 
attention  at  intervals  of  a  month  during  the  season.  If  the  newly  made 
growths  are  allowed  to  baDg  from  the  main  shoots  in  large  houses  a  very 
picturesque  appearance  is  obtained  when  the  plants  are  in  flower. 
ivy -leaved  Pelargoniums. — Few  plants  equal  the  double  and 
semi-double  forms  as  climbers  lor  the  sides  of  houses  and  pillars  in  light, 
open,  exposed  positions.  It  is  useless  to  plant  them  in  shady  places,  for 
they  will  grow  but  not  flower  ;  but  when  fully  exposed  to  light  and 
sunshine  they  yield  a  large  profusion  of  delicate  and  beautiful  flowers 
for  cutting,  either  for  home  decoration  or  for  packing  during  the  London 
season.  They  have  a  more  delicate  appearance  than  Zonals. 
KF1 
v. 
s 
HE  BEE-KEEPER. 
m -- 1  ■ .  - <  -  <~’i  ■  i  -T- 1 .  i .  i  -  r  - 1  -  i .  r- 1  -i  -  t.i  .1  ■  i  - 1 .  i  .  r.  i  i 
SPRING  MANAGEMENT. 
The  present  changeable  weather  is  very  trying  to  the  bees  ; 
still,  the  first  three  months  of  the  year  has  been  in  their  favour, 
but  much  will  depend  on  their  management  during  the  next  few 
weeks  whether  success  or  failure  will  have  to  be  chronicled  when 
the  hooey  flow  comes,  provided  the  weather  ig  favourable  at  that 
time.  The  bee-keeper’s  aim  should  be  to  have  all  stocks  strong  and 
overflowing  with  bees  when  required,  and  now  is  the  time  to  make 
preparation. 
As  breeding  is  going  on  apace  warmth  is  essential.  The  winter 
covering  should  be  allowed  to  remain  on  the  top  of  the  frames,  and 
if  a  piece  of  board  is  placed  over  the  whole  when  snugly  covered 
with  several  thicknesses  of  warm  material  it  will  be  found  of  great 
advantage,  as  it  will  conserve  the  heat  of  the  hive  in  a  marked 
degree.  After  a  bright  sunny  day  (and  we  have  had  our  share  of 
them  in  the  Midlands  lately)  if  the  stock  is  examined,  say  at  10  p.m., 
the  temperature  of  the  hive  treated  on  the  above  lines  will  be 
found  to  be  several  degrees  warmer  than  those  having  only  scanty 
coverings.  The  bees,  too,  at  that  hour  will  be  found  to  be  bard  at 
work,  and  the  hum  of  the  busy  workers  may  be  heard  several 
yards  distant  from  their  hives,  which  is  quite  unusual  so  early  in 
the  season. 
But  in  the  past  week  a  much  lower  temperature  has  been 
registered,  high  winds,  with  heavy  showers  of  sleet,  hail,  and  rain 
have  prevailed.  During  a  continuance  of  this  weather  all  stocks, 
of  which  there  are  any  doubts  as  to  their  having  a  plentiful  supply 
of  stores,  should  be  supplied  with  thin  syrup  in  the  evening,  made 
in  the  proportion  of  1  lb.  of  sugar  to  1  pint  of  water.  I  prefer  a 
bottle-feeder  at  this  season,  as  there  is  then  no  escape  of  heat  from 
the  hive,  which  is  the  objection  to  many  of  the  feeders  in  the 
market. 
An  ordinary  broad-mouthed  bottle  will  answer  the  purpose 
admirably.  Tie  a  piece  of  thin  muslin  over  the  mouth,  cut  a  hole 
through  the  quilt  the  same  size,  and  insert  a  piece  of  perforated 
zinc,  this  will  prevent  the  bees  escaping  or  being  disturbed  when 
refilling  the  bottle.  Place  the  bottle  mouth  downwards  over  the 
zinc,  and  the  bees  will  take  the  syrup  readily  as  required,  and  there 
will  be  do  leakage.  Cover  the  bottle  warm,  taking  care  not  to 
spill  any  of  the  syrup,  as  robbers  are  ever  on  the  alert,  and  care¬ 
lessness  in  this  respect  will  soon  set  the  apiary  in  an  uproar. 
Feeding  need  not  be  continued  during  bright  weather,  as  the 
fast  opening  blossoms  will  be  sufficient  for  the  bees’  daily 
requirements. 
Spreading  brood  is  still  advocated  by  some  bee-keepers,  and  in 
the  hands  of  the  experienced  is  sometimes  a  success,  but  there  are 
so  many  risks  attached  to  it,  that  I  cannot  recommend  it.  I 
experimented  in  thiB  direction  for  several  years,  with  the  result 
that  some  of  the  stocks  operated  on  did  well,  others  made  little 
headway,  and  those  that  were  left  alone,  but  supplied  with  the 
necessary  stores,  were  strong  and  healthy,  and  stored  an  equally 
good  surplus  as  those  that  were  experimented  with. 
It  may  be  of  interest  to  explain  the  system.  The  plan  usually 
adopted  to  stimulate  the  bees  is  to  make  preparations  six  weeks 
before  the  honey  flow  is  likely  to  take  place,  by  uncapping  a  few 
cells  daily,  or,  if  short  of  stores,  to  feed  with  thin  syrup.  When 
two  or  three  frames  in  the  centre  of  the  hive  are  filled  with  brood, 
take  an  empty  frame  of  fully  drawn  out  worker  comb  and  place  it 
in  the  centre  of  brood  nest  between  two  frames  of  brood.  Repeat 
the  operation,  according  to  the  weather,  every  three  or  four  days, 
or  as  fast  as  the  combs  are  filled  with  brood,  and  should  the  weather 
continue  warm  all  will  go  well.  Should  there,  however,  be  a  spell 
of  cold,  wet  weather,  the  bees  will  cluster  in  the  centre  of  brood 
nest  for  warmth,  and  being  unable  to  cover  the  whole  of  the  brood, 
the  outside  combs  of  brood  will  be  chilled,  and  this  is  my  objection 
to  the  system. 
If  the  bees  are  supplied  with  the  necessary  food,  and  the  internal 
arrangement  for  the  hive  left  to  themselves,  they  rarely  make  the 
mistake  of  having  chilled  brood.  But  stimulate  by  all  means  by 
uncapping  or  bruising  the  capping  of  the  sealed  stores,  and  there 
will  be  no  complaints  of  chilled  brood  or  the  attending  evils. — 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. 
Caonas  (W.  IF.).  —  We  do  not  know  of  any  cheap  work  on  the 
cultivation  of  Cannas,  but  cultural  notes  will  probably  appear  before 
very  long  in  the  Journal  of  Horticulture, 
Zinc  Isabels  ( H .  H.'). — Zinc  labels  in  different  shapes  and  sizes,  also 
the  proper  kind  of  ink  for  writing  on  them,  are  sold  by  most  nursery  and 
seedsmen  of  repute  in  various  parts  of  the  kingdom. 
Widely  versus  Closely  Planted  Tomatoes  (C'.  H.). — Neither 
arrangement  is  good.  The  best  crops  would  be  bad  from  plants  15 
inches  apart  in  rows  3  feet  asunder.  A  distance  of  18  inches  apart  each 
way  is  not  enough  space,  the  plants  unduly  shading  each  other,  and  the 
crops  are  usually  light  accordingly.  On  the  other  hand,  arranging  them 
30  incheB  apart  in  rows  3  feet  asunder  is  allowing  more  space  than  is 
needed.  The  condition  that  the  crops  be  thinned  to  sixteen  fruits  on 
each  plant  is  an  unwise  one.  On  the  thinly  arranged  plants  they  would 
attain  the  greatest  individual  weight,  but  in  the  closer  arrangement 
there  would  be  a  much  greater  number  of  plants,  which  would  more 
than  compensate  for  the  lightness  of  the  fruit  individually.  If  instead 
of  confining  the  number  to  sixteen  on  each  plant,  all  were  allowed  to 
produce  as  many  as  possible,  other  than  those  resulting  from  fasciated 
flowers,  then  there  is  every  likelihood  of  the  thinly  disposed  plants 
yielding  the  most  profitable  crops. 
