74 
JOURXAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDEXER. 
January  2G,  1839. 
Early  Potatoes. — Where  the  planting  tubers  were  stored  in  heaps  the 
mild  winter  has  caused  them  to  sprout  early,  and  the  shoots  are  too  long 
to  save.  Weather  permitting,  all  should  be  cleared  of  their  long  shoots 
and  be  spread  out  thinly  in  shallow  boxes,  and  placed  in  a  cool,  light 
position  to  start  afresh.  By  planting  time  all  ought  to  be  furnished  with 
two  or  three  short  thick  sprouts,  and  as  far  as  Xhe  round  and  pebble 
shaped  varieties  are  concerned,  will  not  have  been  greatly  weakened.  It 
is  the  Ash-leaf  varieties  that  suffer  the  most  from  the  loss  of  the  primary 
sprouts.  These  ought  to  be  kept  thinly  stored,  and  in  a  light  position 
from  the  first.  Any  tubers  that  are  to  be  forced  in  pots,  pits,  or  frames, 
ought  first  to  be  started  in  boxes,  arranged  sprout  end  uppermost,  a  moist 
atmosphere  and  gentle  heat  causing  a  healthy,  strong  growth.  In  the 
meantime  prepare  mild  hotbeds  and  soil,  and  by  the  time  the  latter  is 
well  warmed  through  and  the  strong  heat  declined  somewhat,  the  sprouts 
will  have  commenced  forming  roots  and  be  in  excellent  condition  for 
planting. 
WonK  IX  TIlE'AriARY. 
During  the  long  winter  evenings  much  work  may  be  done  in  the 
apiary  which  will  be  beneficial  to  the  bees  when  the  busy  time  comes. 
More  often  than  otherwise  we  fear  very  little  preparation  is  made  by 
bee-keepers  beforehand,  or  there  would  not  be  so  many  complaints 
from  them  during  the  busy  season  of  their  inability  to  procure  from 
dealers  in  bee  appliances  the  goods  they  require.  It  is  unreasonable 
for  them  to  expect  their  orders  to  be  satisfactorily  carried  out  when  a 
short  notice  is  given.  If  \  little  forethought  were  given  to  this 
matter  it  would  be  to  the  advantage  cf  both  buyer  and  seller. 
Early  in  the  new  year  it  is  our  practice  to  carefully  e.xamine  all 
the  utensils  we  use  in  connection  with  bee-keeping  and  make  a  note 
of  our  requirements,  and  whilst  the  various  ai  tides  are  passed 
through  our  hands  they  are  cleaned  if  necessary^,  and  placed  where 
they  may  be  easily  found  when  required  for  future  use.  In  well 
managed  apiaries  a  correct  list  will  be  kept  of  all  sections  and  bottles 
on  hand.  It  is  useless  waiting  until  they  are  required,  and  then 
expect  the  dealer  to  supply  them  at  a  moment’s  notice.  The  honey 
season  is  usually  so  short  in  this  country  that  a  delay  of  a  few  days 
in  obtaining  the  necessary  articles  may  make  gU  the  difference  between 
he  success  or  failure  of  the  honey'  crop. 
^  Another  advantage  bee-keepers  derive  by  obtaining  their  goods  at 
this  season  is — the  majority  of  dealers  will  allow  a  liberal  discount  on 
all  goods  supplied  before  spring.  We,  therefore,  cannot  too  strongly 
impress  on  bee-keepers  the  great  benefii  it  will  be  to  them  to  make 
their  arrangements  beforehand.  Combs,  whether  in  frames  or  sections, 
should  at  the  same  time  be  removed  from  the  boxes  or  wherever  they 
are  stored,  and  examine  1  to  see  if  the  wax  moth  has  mole.sted  them, 
as  if  left  undisturbed  the  combs  would  soon  be  ruined.  If  previous 
instructions  have  been  carried  out,  and  carbolic  acid  is  again  sprinkled 
on  the  wrappers  in  which  they  were  enclosed,  little  damage  will  be 
done.  They  may  then  be  placed  in  the  same  position  they  previously 
occupied. 
Spare  Hives  and  Frames. 
It  does  not  require  a  tradesman  to  make  either  frames  or  hives, 
and  anyone  w'ho  felt  inclined  to  try  their  hand  at  this  interesting 
work  might  do  so  most  successfully  during  the  winter  evenings.  We 
would  advise  those  who  have  not  previously  attempted,  to  procure 
a  hive  that  has  been  properly  made,  and  there  need  then  be  no 
difficulty  in  making  another  equally  good  out  of  a  box  that  can  be 
obtained  from  grocers  and  others  for  a  few  coppers. 
Whether  bee-keepers  obtain  their  goods  ready  made  or  they  manu- 
iacture  their  own,  it  is  advisable  to  have  them  all  of  the  same 
dimensions,  as  they  are  so  much  easier  to  manipulate,  and  if  extracted 
honey  is  the  chief  aim  of  the  bee-keeper,  it  is  sometimes  a  decided 
advantage  to  be  able  to  practise  the  doubling  system,  and  it  is  a  very 
simple  operation  when  all  the  hives  are  of  the  same  dimensions  and 
each  one  has  a  loose  floor  board. 
Frames  ready  made  may  now  be  obtained  at  such  a  low  price  that 
many  bee-keepers  prefer  to  buy  them.  There  is  one  strong  jioint  in 
favour  of  the  frames  turned  out  by  our  large  manufacturers  is  they  are 
made  true  to  measurement,  and  hang  square  in  the  hive.  They  are, 
however,  often  lightly  made,"  and  on  several  occasions  we  have  seen 
the  top  bar  break  whilst  lifting  a  fully  sealed  comb  out  of  the  hive. 
We  therefore  prefer  the  home-made  frames  if  ordinary  care  is  taken  in 
making  them.  A  block  is  necessary  for  this  purpose ;  it  is  then  im¬ 
possible  to  make  one  larger  than  another;  a  little  practice,  however, 
is  required  to  make  them  so  that  they  hang  perfectly  square  in  the 
hive,  otherwise  some  frames  will  touch  each  other,  and  others  may  be 
a  couple  of  inches  apart. — An  English  Bee-keeper. 
All  correspondence  relating  to  editorial  matters  should,  until 
further  notice,  be  directed  to  “  The  Editor,”  a,  Rose  HlU  Road, 
Wandsworth,  S.W,,  and  NOT  to  12,  ^litre  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  be 
published  nor  disclosed  when  initials  or  nom  de  flumes  are  given 
for  the  purpose  of  replies. 
Correspondents  should  not  mix  up  on  the  same  sheet  questions  relating 
to  Gardening  and  those  on  Bee  subjects,  and  it  is  convenient  when 
each  question  is  written  on  a  separate  sheet.  All  articles  intended 
for  insertion  should  be  written  on  one  side  of  the  paper  only  ;  and 
the  name  and  address  of  each  writer  must  be  known  by  the 
Editor,  though  n  it  necessarily  for  ihsertion.  We  cannot,  as  a 
rule,  reply  to  questions  through  the  post,  and  we  do  not  under¬ 
take  to  return  communications  which,  for  any  reason,  cannot 
be  inserted. 
Fruit  and  Flower  Farming  (//.  17.). — We  have  no  justification  for 
publishing  the  addresses  you  suggest,  and  thus  causing  busy  people  to 
be  inundated  with  letters,  even  though  the  recipients  did  not,  as  certainly 
many  of  them  would  not,  reply  to  the  applications.  IF  you  cannot  obtain 
what  jou  require  otherwise,  you  might  try  the  effect  of  advertising  in  the 
usual  business  way  in  which  persons  make  known  their  “  want?.” 
Begonia  Gloire  de  Lorraine  (W.  C.  S.'). — This  is  one  of  the  very  best 
plants  now  grown  for  winter  flowering.  After  blooming  the  plants  should 
be  kept  a  little  cooler  than  before  and  rather  dry  at  the  roots  for  three  or  four 
weeks.  Then  place  them  in  heat  and  repot  as  soon  as  they  begin  to  grow 
freely,  using  a  compost  of  two  parts  loam,  one  part  of  peat  or  leaf  soil, 
with  sharp  sand  added.  Pot  very  firmly.  As  soon  as  good  young 
cuttings  are  formed  they  should  bo  inserted  in  sandy  soil  and  kept  close 
in  a  hand-light  placed  in  a  warm  house.  Pot  as  required,  and  grow  in  a 
temperature  of  60°  during  the  spring  months.  Throughout  the  summer 
the  plants  succeed  well  in  a  cool  house  or  frame.  Stopping  the  young 
growths  should  be  practised  three  or  four  times  during  the  summer.  The 
plants  will  then  form  dense  bushy  little  specimens.  During  the  flowering 
period  provide  a  temperature  ranging  between  55°  and  65°. 
Soil  for  Ehododendrons  (AAodo).— The  best  mixture,  ne.xt  to  peat,  for 
these  shrubs  is  the  turfy  surface  of  a  pasture  where  the  soil  is  of  a  sandy 
or  gravelly  nature,  cut  about  2  inches  thick,  chopping  and  adding  one- 
fourth  of  well-decayed  cow  manure.  In  preparing  the  beds  the  subsoil 
should  be  sufficiently  porous  or  drained  to  prevent  water  becoming 
stagnant  beneath  and  around  the  plants.  As  your  soil  has  a  clay  subsoil 
it  will  not  do  to  make  beds  a  depth  of  3  feet  without  having  drains  from 
them,  and  somewhat  lower,  with  proper  fall  and  outlet,  or  you  would 
only  have  pits  for  holding  water.  Besides,  a  depth  of  2  feet,  or  at  most 
feet,  is  quite  deep  enough  for  Rhododendrons,  and  we  should  only 
have  the  latter  in  your  case,  with  6  inches  of  rubble  (preferably  freestone, 
certainly  not  calcareous  material)  placed  in,  not  forgetting  the  drains  to 
carry  off  superfluous  water,  and  on  the  rubble  place  a  layer  of  turves 
grass  side  downwards.  This  will  give  the  plants  a  chance.  They  do  not 
object  to  a  clay  subsoil  if  it  be  well  drained.  If  peat  is  procurable  it  should 
form  the  bulk  ;  leaf  soil  and  sandy  loam  may  be  added  more  freely  when 
they  can  bo  readily  obtained,  and  dried  cow'  manure  is  an  excellent 
addition.  Here  is  a  good  mixture  Peat  two  parts,  leaf  soil  and  sandy 
loam  one  part  each,  dried  cow  manure  one  part.  The  object  in  this 
mixture  is  to  save  the  peat,  mixing  all  well  together.  Another  good 
mixture  is  : — Half-decayed  leaves  throe  parts  ;  turfy  surface  of  a  pasture, 
cut  about  3  inches  thick,  one  part ;  rough  white  or  other  sharp  sand  half  a 
part ;  chop  but  not  beat  the  soil,  and  use  it  as  rough  as  possible.  If  the  plants 
have  6  inches  uepth  of  this  below  the  balls,  and  it  is  brought  up  around 
them  and  over  so  as  to  cover  them  about  an  inch,  they  will  thrive,  giving 
a  top-dressing  every  two  j’ears  of  cow  manure.  Yet  another  recipe  may 
be  given  : — Half-decayed  stable  manure,  from  horses  bedded  with  sawdust, 
one  part ;  turfy  loam,  of  a  sandy  or  gravelly  nature,  two  parts— the  loam 
chopped  up  and  mixed  well  with  the  sawdust  material.  The  best  Rhodo¬ 
dendrons  we  have  grown  were  planted  in  light  turfy  loam  over  good 
drainage,  the  beds  being  kept  well  mulched  with  the  half-decayed 
sawdust  and  manure,  loose  box  material,  about  a  sixth  of  sharp  sand 
being  added  to  it  and  intermixed.  Now  choose  for  yourself,  it  being 
a  question  of  making  worthy  use  of  available  material.  i  . 
