374 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
May  4,  1699. 
of  Tomato  plants  revel  in  rich  top-clressings,  but  it  is  a  safer  and  better 
practice  to  provide  a  bed  of  soil  or  ashes  underneath,  for  them  to  spread 
their  roots  into.  Those  plants  newly  top-dressed  with  rich  compost 
must  have  water  supplied  to  their  roots  nearly  or  quite  as  often  as 
previously.  Pinch  or  cut  out  all  superfluous  side  shoots  as  fast  as  they 
form,  and  reduce  the  leaves  in  size  where  they  are  crowded  only.  A 
•warm  airy  house  best  suits  Tomatoes.  Keep  the  hot-water  pipes  warm 
all  through  the  night,  give  a  little  air  early  on  warm  days,  opening  the 
ventilators  as  the  sun  gains  in  power.  Reduce  the  air  gradually,  but  do 
not  close  early  enough  to  box  up  much  sunshine,  or  disease  will  soon 
follow. 
(a 
HE  BEE-KEEPER. 
Seasonable  Notes. 
The  changeable  weather  that  has  prevailed  during  the  past  month 
has  been  most  disastrous  to  the  bees.  High  winds,  snoiv,  hail,  and 
rain  have  been  general  throughout  the  country.  The  temperature, 
too,  has  been  below  the  average,  which  will  account  for  the  bees  being 
confined  to  their  hives  for  several  days  in  succession.  During  tl  e  last 
fortnight  of  April,  instead  of  the  bright  days  which  often  prevail  at 
this  season,  it  has  been  dull,  and  altogether  unfavourable  for  the  bees 
to  make  much  headway.  Fortunately  those  stocks  which  received 
timely  attention  have  advanced,  though  slowly ;  others  that  were  left 
to  chance  appear  to  be  no  stronger  than  they  were  a  month  ago.  This 
fact  alone  shows  the  advantage  of  attending  to  the  requirements  of  the 
bees  as  often  as  necessary. 
Warmth  in  the  brood  chamber  is  a  necessity  during  the  early 
spring  months  more  than  at  any  other  season,  and  if  the  outside 
temperature  is  low  steps  should  be  taken  to  keep  the  interior  of  the 
hive  as  warm  as  possible.  This  can  be  done  by  placing  some  extra 
coverings  on  the  top  of  the  frames.  Any  warm  material  will  have 
the  desired  effect,  and  should  this  not  be  conveniently  to  hand  a  good 
substitute  may  be  found  in  paper.  Place  several  thicknesses  of  paper 
on  the  top  of  the  other  coverings,  then  a  piece  of  board,  which  may 
be  weighted  down  with  a  brick.  It  is  surprising  the  amount  of 
warmth  that  may  be  obtained  in  this  manner. 
We  cannot  too  strongly  impress  on  bee-keepers  the  harm  that  is 
done  by  carelessly  handling  the  bees  at  this  season.  The  frames 
should  not  be  uncovered,  unless  there  is  some  definite  object  in  view. 
Brood  may  be  chilled  in  a  very  short  time  by  lifting  the  frames  out  of 
the  hive,  and  exposing  it  in  a  low  temperature.  Chilled  brood,  -we  are 
avare,  is  quite  different  from  foul  brood.  But  may  not  the  latter 
pest  be  created  by  having  a  large  amount  of  the  former  in  a  hive  ? 
We  are  inclined  in  this  belief  by  observing  foul  brood  in  some  districts 
where  it  was  unknown  previous  to  the  introduction  of  the  movable 
frame  hive. 
Supers  on  Hives. 
In  our  previous  notes  we  promised  to  revert  to  this  subject  again. 
It  will  be  remembered,  owing  to  the  large  amount  of  honeydew, 
much  of  the  honey  obtained  last  year  was  useless  for  commercial 
purposes.  We  therefore  allowed  several  large  supers  to  remain  on  the 
hives  throughout  the  winter.  The  experiment  was  interesting,  as 
showing  what  effect  it  would  have  on  the  bees.  When  examined  in 
February,  they  were,  without  exception,  in  good  condition.  But  con- 
trar}'  to  our  expectation  we  found  that  in  the  majority  of  tho-hives 
the  bees  were  clustered  between  the  frames  in  the  body  of  the 
hive  where  there  was  little  store  left.  We,  therefore,  decided  to 
observe  them  closely  in  case  they  should  suffer  during  a  spell  of  cold 
weather  in  the  spring.- 
During  the  past  few  weeks  those  stocks  on  which  were  single 
crates  of  sections  and  shallow  frames  were  in  better  condition  than 
those  having  full-sized  frames  in  the  supers.  The  only  exception 
was  in  the  hives  where  the  bees  had  taken  possession  of  the  frames 
in  the  top  storey,  and  had  commenced  brood-rearing  there.  This  was 
what  we  expected,  but  we  thought  the  majority  of  the  colonies  would 
have  forsaken  the  lower  frames  so  as  to  he  nearer  their  stores.  As 
this  was  not  the  case  we  placed  them  all  in  the  bottom  hive,  the 
brood  and  the  empty  combs  being  placed  in  the  centre  of  the  hive,  and 
some  frames  of  sealed  stores  on  the  outside.  A  few  square  inches  of 
the  stores  were  uncapped.  This  had  a  stimulating  effect  on  the  bees. 
They  were  afterwards  covered  up  warm  as  advised  above.  The  un¬ 
capping  of  the  sealed  stores  will  be  continued  about  every  fourth  day. 
This  will  have  the  desired  effect,  and  should  a  change  in  the  weather 
set  in  they  will  increase  at  a  rapid  rate ;  and  although  early  swarms 
cannot  be  expected  owing  to  the  lateness  of  the  season,  they  will 
doubtless  give  a  good  account  of  themselves  when  the  honey  flow 
comes. 
If  stocks  are  short  of  sealed  stores  continue  to  feed  with  thin 
syrup  until  natural  supplies  can  be  obtained  from  outside. — 
An  English  Bek-keepeb. 
All  correspondence  relating  to  editorial  matters  should,  until 
further  notice,  be  directed  to  “  The  Editor,”  8,  Rose  Hill  Road» 
Wandswortb,  S.W.,  and  HOT  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. 
Loose  Gravel  Path  (0.  F.). — Loose  paths  are  very  unpleasant,  and  we 
know  of  nothing  but  to  secure  some  fine  binding  gravel  and  mix  it  with  the 
present  surface.  This  would  not  be  a  very  costly  proceeding  ;  but 
perhaps  youi  could  not  conv«niently  procure  the  article.  Of  course  the 
rough  stones  can  be  raked  off,  but  that  will  result  in  little  improvement. 
We  have  sometimes  found  that  turning  the  walk  had  a  good  effect,  the 
rough  being  put  under,  and  the  fine  brought  on  the  top. 
Annuals  Round  Fruit  Trees  (Scotland)  — As  the  circles  have  been 
mulched  with’  manure  or  saturated  with  liquid  manure,  any  of  the 
annuals,  provided  there  is  not  too  much  shade,  would  probably  succeed. 
Some  most  likely  are  Sweet  Alyssum,  white  ;  Cape  Marigold,  Meteor, 
lemon  striped  silver;  Candytuft,  dwarf  hybrid,  rose;  Candytuft, 
Empress,  white  ;  Cornflower,  Victoria,  blue ;  Eschscholtzia  crocea  ; 
Leptosiphon  aureus,  yellow  ;  Lupinus  nanus,  blue ;  Mignonette,  dwarf 
erect  ;  Nemophila  insiguis,  blue  ;  Poppy,  dwarf  French  ;  double  Jacobse.a, 
and  Venus’  Looking-glass,  blue. 
Weevils  (C.  0,  J?.).  — The  specimens  you  have  sent  are  very  good 
examples  of  the  clay  coloured  weevil,  Otiorhynchus  picipes.  You  wish  to 
know  their  vices  and  virtues.  We  know  their  vices  well  enough,  for  they 
will  eat  almost  any  living  vegetation,  both  under  glass,  in  the  form  of 
Vine  leaves  and  Fern  fronds,  and  outdoors  by  feasting  on  the  lender 
growths  of  Raspberries  and  Roses.  In  the  larva  state  they  eat  the  tend<r 
roots  of  various  plants.  Their  virtues,  perhaps,  rest  in  affording  food  for 
something  else  that  we  do  not  know,  and  in  quickening  the  activities  of 
growers  of  plants  and  fruit  in  catching  the  depredators  as  you  are  doings. 
They  are  best  seen  after  dark  with  the  aid  of  a  light  when  on  their  foraging 
expeditions. 
Apple  T-wigs  Eaten  just  Below  the  Pruning  {Manse). — The  Apple 
twigs  have  had  the  bark  eaten  off  just  below  the  pruning  and  on  the 
side  of  the  buds,  but  without  injuring  them.  The  gnawing,  though  only 
very  slight,  has  been  going  on  for  some  time,  as  some  portions  are 
brown,  and  others  quite  white,  indicating  recent  attack.  There 
are  no  insects,  and  the  flies  to  which  you  allude  do  not  gnaw  but  suck. 
Probably  the  animals  are  the  stem-borer  weevil,  Rhynchites  Alliariae,  a 
very  handsome  creature,  deep  blue  with  a  greenish  tinge.  It  loves  the 
Apple  tree,  and  has  probably  found  the  sap  “up”  at  the  points  of  the 
shoots  and  got  a  start  on  the  newly  forming  cellular  tissue.  Look  very 
early  in  the  morning  or  at  night  with  a  lanbrn,  and  you  may  possibly  see 
the  culprits.  Or  place  a  smear  round  the  stem  on  a  grease-proof  band 
and  the  creature  may  transfix  itself,  though  it  does  not  often  do  so,  but 
it  certainly  will  not  cross  the  sticky  substance. 
Eruptions  on  Under  Side  of  vine  Leaves  (A.  TV). — The  leaves  have 
been  microscopically  examined,  but  no  form  of  vegetable  or  animal 
parasite  has  been  detected.  The  warts  are  considered  to  arise  from  a 
sudden  depression  of  temperature  or  drj’ing  of  the  atmosphere  by  giving 
air  in  large  amount  at  one  time,  and  after  the  sun  has  raised  the 
temperature  considerably  and  increased  the  expansion,  if  not  quantity,  of 
air  moisture.  That  such  will  give  rise  to  warting,  and  even  to  scorching, 
every  gardener  well  knows;  but  there  are  cases  where  “the  eruptions 
on  the  under  side  of  Vine  leaves”  cannot  bo  so  accounted  for,  and  this 
appears  your  case,  the  Vines  otherwise  being  vigorous  and  healthy,  and 
the  bunches  quite  free  from  the  warting,  or,  as  some  term  the  leaf 
affection,  rust.  We  have  made  careful  observation  of  tie  phenomenon, 
and  find  that  it  proceeds  from  the  stomata  or  breathing  pores,  where 
there  is  a  thickening  of  tissue  and  abnormal  growth  of  cells,  which  in 
some  cases  partake  of  the  character  of  bark  and  dies,  giving  the  leaves  a 
semi-scorched  appearance.  We  have  noticed  similar  appearances  on 
outdoor  Vines  and  other  broad-leaved  plants,  and  for  these  no  reason 
appears  except  chill,  which  may  be,  and  probably  is,  the  cause  of  the 
warting.  But  the  fact  remains,  that  where  every  possible  care  is  taken  in 
ventilating  the  warting  occurs,  and  this  rather  points  to  excess  of  sap  or 
development  in  too  close  and  moist  atmosphere.  The  pseudo-bulb  i.s 
probably  a  species  of  Dendrobium. 
