Anril  20,  ISC'). 
JOURN'AL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
329 
All  the  advertised  fertilisers  are  e.Ycellent  and  handy.  It  is  best  to  give 
the  borders  a  thorough  supply  of  water,  then  apply  the  fertiliser,  and 
water  in  moderately.  By  this  procedure  there  is  no  fear  of  losing  any 
virtue  the  fertiliser  contains,  but  when  it  is  given  on  a  dry  border,  and 
followed  by  a  heavy  wateiing,  it  is  likely  to  be  washed  into  the  drainage, 
and  roots  be  encouraged  at  the  bottom  of  tlie  border  instead  of  near  the 
surface.  A  light  mulch  pf  short,  sweet,  lumpy  manure  will  be  of  advantage 
in  keeping  the  border  uniformly  moist. 
Late  Houses. — The  Vines  are  making  rapid  progress.  Disbud  and  tie 
down  the  shoots  as  they  rciiuiro  it.  It  is  best  to  have  the  rods  lower  than 
the  wires  of  the  trellis,  then  the  growths  will  only  require  tying  out,  and 
there  is  less  danger  of  snapping,  besides  the  shoots  receive  an  eipial 
supply  of  sap  and  have  their  points  and  the  fruit-ahows  well  up  to  the 
light.  Close  the  house  early  in  tho  afternoon  with  sun  heat,  and  maintain 
plenty  of  atmospheric  moisture  by  frequently  damping  tho  houses  and 
syringing  the  V^ines  at  closing  time,  but  not  after  the  bunches  show.  The 
latest  houses  of  thick-skinned  Grapes  must  now  be  started,  giving  them 
-every  encouragement  to  make  growth,  and  set  the  fruit  by'  tho  early  part 
of  June.  Late  Hamburghs  are  starting  naturally,  and  need  only  have  a 
little  fire  heat  to  exclude  frost,  but  it  is  not  advisable  to  allow  the  tempe¬ 
rature  to  fall  below  50°.  Take  care  that  the  points  of  the  shoots  do  not 
come  into  and  remain  in  contact  with  the  glass,  or  they  may  be  scorched 
by  sun  or  injured  by  frost. 
Young  Vines. — It  will  be  necessary  to  afford  a  gentlo  fire  heat  in  cold 
weather  to  keep  the  Vines  in  steady  progress,  otherwise  they  are  best 
allowed  to  start  naturally,  and  secure  a  short-jointed  growth  by  free 
ventilation.  Disbud,  leaving  the  best  shoots  on  both  sides  of  tho 
canes,  and  alternately  at  about  18  inches  distance  apart.  The  canes 
will  have  been  depressed  so  as  to  cause  them  to  break  regularly  down  to 
the  basal  buds,  when  they  can  be  tied  in  position.  Crop  lightly’,  one  or 
two  bunches  being  the  maximum  on  permanent  Vines.  Any  super¬ 
numeraries  planted  to  fruit  early,  and  afterwards  be  cut  out,  may  carry  a 
bunch  on  each  shoot;  six  or  eight  bunches,  however,  are  as  many  as 
vigorous  Vines  can  bring  to  perfection. 
THE  KITCHEN  GARDEN. 
Kidney  Beans. — The  later  cro[)s  of  these  in  houses  succeed  best  in 
long,  narrow,  moderately  deej)  boxes.  As  pits  or  frames  are  cleared  of 
early  Potatoes  these  may  be  planted  with  Kidney  Beans,  raised  in  small 
pots  in  readiness.  Mild  hotbeds  might  in  other  cases  be  formed  for 
growing  Beans,  with  a  view  to  relieving  the  houses  of  forced  plants  as 
quickly  as  possible.  Hand-lights  and  rough  frames  ought  also  to*  be 
utilised  for  a  similar  purpose,  abundance  of  early  Beans  never  failing 
K)f  appreciation.  Two  or  three  plants  may  be  raised  in  each  3-inch  pot, 
and  they  will  make  the  best  progress  after  they  are  planted  if  raised  in 
gentle  heat  only. 
Celery. — If  the  second  early  and  maincrop  plants  are  long  left 
crowded  in  the  seed  pans  or  boxes  they  become  spindly,  and  are  slow  in 
gaining  strength.  The  earliest,  or  any  wanted  for  planting  out  in  May, 
are  usually  forwarded  in  frames  over  mild  hotbeds  ;  but  in  the  case  of 
successional  plants  that  have  been  hardened  in  a  cool  house  or  frame, 
bottom  heat  may  be  dispensed  with,  though  a  little  warmth  at  first  is 
<lesirable.  Set  frames  on  a  hard  base,  and  in  these  place  a  layer,  5  inches 
deep  after  it  has  been  trodden,  of  old  hotbed  manure  not  quite  cold,  and 
•over  this  a  thin  layer  of  fine  soil.  Prick  out  the  plants  in  this  about 
4  inches  apart  each  way,  arranging  them  in  squares  ;  give  a  gentle 
watering,  put  on  the  lights,  and  keep  the  plants  close,  shading  from 
bright  sun  till  they  commence  growing  again.  If  kept  well  supplied 
with  water  the  plants’  progress  will  be  fairly  rapid,  and  in  order  to  keep 
them  sturdy  admit  abundance  of  light  and  air.  When  the  time  comes 
for  moving  them  into  the  trenches  they  may  be  cut  out  each  with  a  good 
square  of  soil  and  roots  attached.  Celeriac,  or  Turnip-rooted  Celery, 
should  be  prepared  similarly  to  ordinary  Celery,  only  in  this  instance  the 
final  planting  should  be  on  the  surface  of  good  ground,  not  in  trenches. 
If  extra  late  Celery  is  desired,  sow  more  seed  now  in  hand-lights  or  boxes. 
Onions. — Plants  raised  under  glass,  for  providing  handsome  early  bulbs, 
should  be  screened  from  cold  easterly  winds  for  a  time  after  planting  out. 
If  raised  thickly,  and  not  pricked  into  other  pans  or  boxes  of  soil  pror 
to  planting,  the  drawn  plants  should  be  lightly  trimmed.  Seed  sown  in 
the  usual  manner  has  germinated  satisfactorily,  and  with  favourable 
weather  the  plants  will  make  good  progress,  especially  if  assisted  by  a 
dressing  of  soot  between  the  rows.  Nitrate  of  soda,  applied  carefully  at 
the  rate  of  1  oz.  to  the  square  yard,  also  promotes  a  rapid,  strong  growth. 
There  should  be  no  undue  delay  in  thinning  the  plants.  They  draw  the 
most  readily  when  quite  small,  and  an  early  removal  of  all  superfluous 
plants  makes  it  much  better  for  the  rest.  If  the  rows  are  10  to  12  inches 
apart,  and  a  heavy  crop  of  medium-sized  long-keeping  bulbs  are  desired, 
leave  the  plants  3  inches  to  4  inches  apart,  allowing  an  extra  2  inches  if 
large  ones  are  wanted.  Good  Onions  for  pickling  may  be  obtained  by 
sowing  small  silver-skinned  sorts  now,  thickly  and  evenly  on  poor  ground. 
Parsley. — Large  early  raised  plants  are  not  the  best  for  the  winter 
croj),  or  for  lifting  and  storing  under  glass.  Sow  seeds  now,  thinly  in 
shallow  moist  drills,  giving  the  preference  to  an  open  position.  Thin  out 
the  earliest-raised  plants  lightly  at  first,  and  eventually  to  a  distance  of 
fi  inches  or  more  apart.  Plants  raised  in  frames  should  have  formed 
stout  tap  roots  before  they  are  transplanted  to  a  well  prepared  border. 
They  will  be  well  ahead  of  the  earliest  sown  in  the  open. 
Salsafy  and  Scorzonera. — Hoots  of  the  best  quality  are  usually 
obtained  by  sowing  seed  in  April  on  ground  that  was  well  manured  for  a 
preceding  surface  rooting  crop.  If  the  tap  roots  come  into  contact  with 
solid  manure  they  fork  badly.  Draw  drills  12  inches  to  15  inches  apart, 
and  sow  the  seed  thinly. 
New  Zealand  Spinach. — During  the  hottest  part  of  the  summer  the 
true  Spinach  is  liable  to  run  to  seed  prematurely,  and  a  substitute  m  the 
form  of  New  Zealand  Spinach  is  appreciated  in  some  establishments.  A 
dozen  strong  plants,  given  good  room  on  a  sunny  border,  will  usually 
provide  enough  tops  for  a  single  family,  and  these,  or  as  many  as  required, 
should  be  raised  under  glass  for  planting  out  late  in  .May.  Sow  the  seed 
now,  either  two  or  three  in  each  3-inch  pot,  or  in  a  pan  or  box  of 
sandy  soil,  placing  it  in  gentlo  heat. 
Vegetable  Marrow. — A  few  early  Marrows  may  be  obtained  by 
growing  one  or  more  plants  in  a  frame  on  a  mild  hotbed,  allowing  tho 
haulm  to  spread  when  protection  is  no  longer  needed.  Sow  a  few  seeds 
singly'  in  3-inch  pots  and  gentle  heat,  and  commence  collecting  materials 
for  the  bed  at  an  early  date.  Vegetable  Marroivs  maybe  grown  in  boxes 
and  trained  up  the  roof  of  a  house.  Cucumber  fashion,  but  the  flowers 
must  be  fertilised. 
J 
Rkarinw  Young  Queens. 
One  of  the  most  important  operations  in  connection  with  the 
successful  management  of  bees  is  the  rearing  of  young  queens.  In 
days  gone  by,  when  the  majority  of  bees  were  kept  in  straw  skeps, 
they  were  allowed  to  swarm,  and  thus  a  supply  of  young  queens  was 
easily  obtained.  But  witli  the  advent  of  the  movable  frame  hive  and 
our  anxiety  to  obtain  as  much  honey  as  possible  by  working  the  bees 
on  the  non-swarmitig  system,  queen  rearing  was  often  neglected. 
There  are  at  the  jiresent  moment  many  queenless  stocks  in  the 
country  vvhich,  if  due  precaution  had  been  taken  at  the  proper  season, 
would  now  have  had  several  frames  filled  with  healthy  brood  in 
various  stages  of  development  and  otherwise  in  good  condition.  It  is, 
however,  necessary  that  bee-keepers  should  have  a  system  in  managing 
their  bees,  otherwi.se  it  will  end  in  failure.  It  is,  however,  so  simple 
that  it  is  surprising  so  important  a  matter  should  be  left  to  chance. 
This  is  no  imagination,  as  the  many  inquiries  we  have  on  this  subject 
will  prove.  It  is,  of  course,  too  early  in  the  .season  to  attempt  queen 
rearing ;  but  if  the  subject  is  brought  before  bee-keepers  at  this  early 
date  they  can  make  arrangements  in  due  course,  and  there  will  be  less 
likelihood  of  neglect  when  the  busy  time  in  the  apiary  comes  on. 
CO!VrMENCING  OPERATIONS. 
It  is  as  well  to  remember  that  queens  are  at  their  best  the  second 
year.  The  bee-keeper  should  thus  aim  at  having  as  many  queens  of 
the  right  ase  as  possible.  Another  fact  that  should  be  borne  in  mind 
is  the  difference  that  often  exists  between  the  various  colonies  that 
have  had  exactly  the  same  treatment  throughout  the  previous  season. 
The  queens  may  all  have  been  batched  at  the  same  time  and  placed  in 
strong  stocks,  or  given  extra  bees  to  bring  them  up  to  the  desired 
strength.  Still,  the  following  spring  some  of  them  will  always  be  in 
much  better  condition  than  others. 
Bearing  these  facts  in  mind,  we  always  endeavour  to  have  a  given 
number  of  stocks  as  strong  as  possible  by  the  time  the  honey  How 
comes.  We  therefore  select  those  intended  for  honey  production,  and 
strengthen  them,  if  necessary,  with  bees  and  brood  Irom  the  hives 
intended  for  queen  rearing.  By  these  means  colonies  of  great  strength 
are  obtained.  Should  one  of  them  by  chance  swarm,  which  not  1  per 
cent,  will  do  if  due  precaution  is  taken  in  ventilation  and  shading, 
the  swarm  is  then  placed  in  a  separate  hive,  and  the  old  stock  used  for 
rearing  queens. 
A  few  days  afterwards  examine  the  colony  from  which  the  swarm 
came  and  form  nucleus  hives  from  it,  as  a  dozen  or  more  queen  cells 
will  probably  be  found  there.  Care  should  be  taken  that  there  is  a 
frame  of  brood  in  each  hive,  which  ought  to  be  placed  between  two 
frames  of  fully'  drawn  out  comb,  that  are  well  covered  with  bees.  The 
advantage  of  having  a  frame  of  brood  in  each  nucleus  is  that  the  bees 
will  not  desert  the  hive,  which  they  will  sometimes  do  when  the  young 
queen  leaves. 
We  prefer  fairly  strong  colonies  for  queen  rearing,  and  the  best  time 
to  commence  operations  is  the  middle  of  a  fine  day.  Examine  each 
frame  until  the  ((ueen  is  found,  place  the  frame  of  brood  and  all  the 
adhering  bees  with  the  queen  in  an  empty  hive,  and  close  up  with  a 
frame  of  fully  drawn  out  comb  on  each  side.  If  there  are  not  sufficient 
bees  to  cover  the  brood  shake  others  into  the  hive  from  another  comb, 
cover  up  warm  and  place  the  hive  a  fev/  yards  from  its  original  stand, 
as  it  is  not  advisable  to  destroy  the  old  queens  until  sufficient  young 
ones  are  fertilised  and  laying.  Queen  cells  will  be  at  once  commenced, 
young  queens  appearing  on  the  sixteenth  day.  Three  or  four  days 
previous  to  this  divide  the  stocks  into  as  many  as  required.  If  there 
are  not  sufficient  queen  cells  the  same  operation  must  be  again 
repeated  by  taking  a  frame  of  newly  laid  eggs  from  another  hive. 
Each  nucleus  hive  should  then  be  treated  in  the  same  manner  as 
recommended  for  a  stock  that  swarmed. — An  English  Beb- keeper. 
