246 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
Mflrr.li  23.  18  9. 
these  the  trenches  may,  with  advah''tage,  be  got  ready.  Especially  i.s  early 
sligging  desirable  where  the  ground  is  naturally  of  a  clayey,  bad  working 
nature. 
Lettuce. — Lettuces  can  be  grown  to  perfection  on  the  ridges  between 
«arly  Celery  trenches.  If  a  width  of  nearly  4  feet  is  allowed,  there  is 
room  for  a  central  line  of  Dwarf  Kidney  Beans  and  a  row  of  Lettuces  on 
each  side,  all  coming  off  the  ground  before  it  is  wanted  for  earthing  the 
Celery.  Well  hardened  Lettuce  plants  may  be  planted  either  on  ridges  or 
the  flat,  and  more  seed  sown  at  the  same  time.  Plants  raised  moderately 
early  ought  now  to  be  large  enough  to  prick  out  3  inches  apart  in  shel¬ 
tered  beds  of  good  light  soil.  During  a  showery  period  slugs  are  trouble¬ 
some,  and  are  very  plentiful  this  spring.  They  should  be  trapped  under 
heaps  of  Broccoli  or  other  leaves,  and,  in  addition,  frequently  dusting  the 
plants  with  soot  and  lime  is  necessary. 
Sowing  Peas. —  If  several  rows  of  Peas  are  sown  at  one  time  they  are 
apt  to  give  pickings  of  pods  also  at  much  the  same  time.  A  good  rule  to 
follow  i<  to  sow  one  or  more  rows,  according  to  circumstances,  directly 
the  plants  resulting  from  the  preceding  sowing  are  coming  through  the 
ground.  It  is  a  mistake  to  crowd  cithep  the  rows,  or  the  plants  in  the 
rows.  Allow  room  to  develop,  and  admit  light  and  sun  to  all.  The  rows 
should  at  least  be  as  far  apart  as  the  known  height  of  the  varieties,  and  a 
pint  of  a  good  main  crop  sort  is  enough  seed  for  a  row  60  feet  long. 
Open  wide  rather  than  narrow  drills,  and  cover  the  seed  with  3  inches  of 
fine  soil.  Protect  from  slugs  as  advised  in  the  case  ot  Lettuce,  and  if 
birds  are  troublesome,  either  cover  with  galvanised  wire  netting,  or 
strain  a  network  of  black  thread  over  the  rows  of  plants. 
a  vvj 
HE)  BE)E-KE)EPER. 
Spring  Dwindling. 
During  the  early  spring  months  bee-keepers  are  often  perplexed 
owing  to  the  comparative  weakness  of  many  of  their  stocks,  which, 
instead  of  increasing  in  strength,  gradually  become  weaker.  They 
continue  in  this  condition  until  a  favourable  spell  of  warm  weather  sets 
in.  This,  for  want  of  a  better  name,  is  called  .spring  dwindling.  But 
what  is  the  cause  V  The  chief  causes  are  old  queens,  shortness  of 
stores,  a  damp  or  badly  ventilated  hive.  It  may  also  happen  with  a 
colony  headed  by  a  young  queen  introduced  the  previous  autumn. 
This  usually  results  when  the  hive  is  crowded  with  bees  hatched 
during  the  summer  months.  These  will  survive  the  winter,  but  will 
succumb  during  the  changeable  weather  usually  experienced  in  early 
spring,  and  by  the  time  the  young  queen  has  filled  the  hive  with  brood 
and  bees  the  season  will  be  well  advanced. 
In  the  case  of  old  queens,  which  from  various  causes  may  not  have 
been  removed,  the  dwindling  is  more  apparent  than  in  the  above,  as 
she  would  not  commence  to  lay  for  some  weeks  after  a  young  queen 
had  filled  several  combs  with  brood.  This  fact  alone  shows  the  ad¬ 
vantage  of  having  all  colonies  headed  by  prolific  young  queens. 
Bees  cannot  be  expected  to  increase  in  numbers  if  there  is  a 
shortness  of  stores  in  the  hive.  The  same  effect,  however,  may  be 
caused  by  feeding  late  in  the  autumn,  so  that  the  bees  have  not 
sufficient  time  to  seal  their  stores  before  the  cold  weather  sets  in  or 
the  temperature  is  too  low  for  them  to  carry  out  this  necessary 
operation.  A  damp  or  badly  ventilated  hive  is  more  often  the  cause 
of  spring  dwindling  than  anything  else.  This  may  be  quite  unknown 
to  the  bee-keeper  until  it  is  too  late.  It  is  such  a  simple  matter  for 
the  interior  of  the  hive  to  become  damp,  owing  to  a  leaky  roof,  and 
how  can  bees  be  expected  to  progress  when  in  this  unsatisfactory 
condition  ? 
Early  Spring  Flowers. 
Owing  to  the  mild  winter  and  the  favourable  weather  experienced 
of  late,  the  early  s|)ring  flowers  already  in  bloom  are  somewhat 
numerous.  But,  strange  to  say,  some  are  later  than  usual.  For 
instance,  the  common  Daffodil,  which  is  plentiful  round  our  apiary, 
is  not  yet  showing  the  colour  of  the  blossoms,  whereas  m  some  former 
years  we  have  found  blooms  of  this  variety  fully  expanded  at  this 
early  date.  Probably  the  hot  weather  experienced  last  autumn  is  the 
cause  of  it.  The  Winter  Aconites  are  now  over.  Bees  were  observed 
working  on  them  in  January.  Snowdrops  have  been  plentiful,  and 
are  not  yet  over;  they  have  not  been  visited  by  the  bees  as  freely  as 
we  have  sometimes  observed  them.  This  was  probably  caused  by 
the  wealth  of  Crocuses,  which  have  been  a  mass  of  bloom  for  several 
weeks  past.  These  are  visited  by  the  bees  more  than  any  other  of 
our  early  spring  flowers,  owing  to  the  large  amount  of  pollen  that  is 
obtained  from  them.  Unfortunately  sparrows  are  very  fond  of  the 
blooms,  and  play  havoc  with  them.  In  some  districts  this  is  so 
serious  that  their  cultivation  has  had  to  be  given  up.  The  different 
varieties  of  Scillas  are  very  shoAvy,  and  are  not  neglected  by  the  bees. 
The  common  Palm  Willow  is  now  in  bloom.  From  this  the  bees 
derive  much  benefit,  as,  like  all  the  Salix  tribe,  it  yields  a  large 
amount  of  pollen  early  in  the  season,  and  is  much  more  valuable  than 
the  other  varieties. — An  English  Bee-keeper. 
All  correspondence  relating  to  editorial  matters  should,  until 
further  notice,  be  directed  to  “  The  Editor,”  8,  Rose  HIU  Road, 
Wandswortli,  S.W.,  and  NTOT  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  accompanied  by 
the  names  and  addresses  of  the  writers,  but  these  will  neither  be 
published  nor  disclosed  when  initials  or  nom  de  ‘plumes  are  given 
for  the  purpose  of  replies. 
Oorrespondents  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  not  necessarily  for  insertion.  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. 
Lawn  Patchy  (S,  W.}. — We  have  never  known  half-decayed  cow 
manure  to  kill  grass,  but  the  reverse.  Of  course,  if  applied  too  thickly  it 
would  smother  the  grass.  If  it  be  actually  killed  it  would  be  advisable  to 
sow  the  whole  with  seeds,  not  a  mixture  containing  Clover,  but  of  finest 
lawn  grass  seeds  only,  at  the  end  of  this  month  or  early  in  April,  choosing 
mild  weather. 
Potting  Young  Melon  Plants  (Zdem). — In  potting  young  Melon  plants 
from  the  seed  pan  they  should  be  sunk  to  within  about  halt  an  inch  of  the 
seed  leaves,  or  when  they  are  leggy,  about  an  inch.  If  the  seedlings  have 
been  grown  sturdily  they  will  not  have  much  more  than  an  inch  of  stem, 
therefore  the  roots  in  potting  will  only  be  just  covered  with  soil ;  very' 
deep  burying  of  a  long  stem  is  not  desirable.  We  recommend  the  cordon 
system  of  growing  in  houses  or  on  trellises,  because  we  find  it  most 
satisfactory  after  trying  it  extensively. 
Large  Beetle  (W.  /*.). — The  fine  specimen  is  the  great  water  beetle, 
Dyticus  marginalia.  It  is  quite  harmless  to  vegetation,  but  voracious  in 
both  the  larval  and  perfect  state,  even  not  sparing  members  of  its  own 
family.  It  may  do  harm  to  spawn  and  fry  of  fish,  otherwise  it  is  useful 
in  keeping  down  insects  that  teed  upon  aquatic  vegetation. 
Leaves  of  Tomato  Seedling  Discoloured  (A.  L.).— The  second  leaves 
appear  to  be  affected  by  what  is  termed  “curl,”  which  gives  the  leaflets 
a  peculiarly  twisted  appearance,  due  to  the  tissues  being  in  part  injured  or 
destroyed,  and  in  some  cases  discoloured  or  browned.  It  has  been 
attributed  to  “  brunure,”  or  browning  disease.  We,  however,  could  not 
detect  any  trace  in  your  plants  of  the  parasite,  hence  consider  the 
appearance  due  to  sudden  and  excessive  evaporation  from  the  leaves. 
We  can  only  advise  more  air.  especially  early  in  the  day.  There  does 
not  appear  anything  to  be  alarmed  about,  the  plants  being  sturdy  and 
apparently  healthy  in  the  stems.  The  roots,  however,  are  rather 
browned,  possibly  by  being  out  of  the  soil. 
Grubs  from  Soli  (IF.).  —  The  grubs  are  those  of  the  so-called 
‘‘  fever  fly  ”  (Dilophus  vulgaris).  There  are  two  broods,  one  appearing 
about  May  and  the  other  in  the  early  autumn.  The  larvte  or  grubs  are 
both  saprophytic  and  parasitic  in  mode  of  life — that  is,  they  live  on 
vegetable  matter  in  a  state  of  decay,  commonly  in  both  horse  and  cow 
manure,  and  on  the  roots  of  living  plants,  such  as  grass  and  corn  in  fields, 
roots  of  Hop  plants,  and  Lettuces  in  gardens.  The  eggs  are  often  laid  in 
manure,  and  thus  the  grubs  are  introduced  to  the  plants  ;  but  the  flies 
also  deposit  eggs  on  ground  rich  in  decaying  vegetable  and  animal  matter, 
we  having  found  them  abundantly  in  the  mulching  of  Vino  borders,  but 
not,  so  far  as  we  could  make  out,  feeding  on  the  Vine  roots.  The  best 
remedy  is  gas  lime,  but  it  must  only  be  used  on  bare  ground.  Half  a 
hundredweight  per  rod  should  be  spread  on  the  surface  evenly,  and  left 
there  for  a  month  or  six  weeks,  then  dug  in  with  a  fork.  Where  there 
are  plants,  such  as  roots  of  fruit  trees  or  Vines,  apply  1  cwt.  per  rod  of 
best  chalk  lime  spread  evenly  as  soon  as  slaked,  and  dig  in,  not  deeply', 
in  the  course  of  a  few  days,  or  not  longer  than  a  week,  and  alway  s 
choosing  dry  weather  for  applying  the  dressing.  We  have  also  found 
kainit,  7  lbs.  per  rod,  to  act  promptly  on  grubs  of  this  kind,  distributing 
evenly  on  the  surface,  and  leaving  for  the  rains  to  wash  in.  In  the 
growing  season  finely  powdered  nitrate  of  soda  stupefies  and  kills  tho 
grubs.  Apply  If  lb.  per  rod  when  the  ground  is  moist,  but  with  a 
prospect  of  fine  weather,  as  then  the  nitrate  acts  better  on  the  grubs, which 
are  usually  near  the  surface.  The  nitrate  must  be  kept  from  the  hearts 
,  of  growing  plants,  especially  when  these  arc  moist  with  dew  or  rain. 
