•Tune  1."),  1899. 
jocrxal  of  horticulture  axd  cottage  gaedexer 
501 
FRUIT  FORCING. 
Cucumbers. — When  the  night  temperature  can  be  kept  from  falling 
below  65°,  fire  heat  may  be  dispenses!  with.  Continue  to  look  over  the 
pi  ints  twice  a  week,  well  thinning  the  old  growths,  and  train  young  in 
their  place.  Avoid  overcrowding  and  overcropping,  and  remove  the 
fruit  when  fit  to  cut.  Supply  liquid  manure  twice  a  week,  and  surface 
dress  with  lumpy  loam  as  required.  Sprinkle  the  bed  occasionally  with 
sweetened  horse  droppings,  but  be  careful  not  to  overdo  it,  or  the  folidge 
will  suffer  irreparable  injury.  Syringe  on  clear  days  in  the  afternoon 
only,  but  keep  a  good  moisture  in  the  house  all  day  by  damping  the 
paths,  floors,  and  walls  as  they  become  dry.  Morning  syringing  is  often 
the  cause  of  much  injury,  and  if  practised  at  all  it  should  be  done  early 
and  lightly.  Promptly'  shade  on  bright  weather  succeeding  a  dull  period, 
but  at  other  times  only  to  prevent  flagging.  Ventilate  early,  but  avoid 
draughts,  and  never  admit  air  to  lower  the  temperature.  Keep  through 
the  day  at  75°  to  90°,  as  the  force  of  solar  heat  dictates  ;  but  in  bright 
weather  between  80°  and  90°  should  prevail  in  the  house  from  8  A.M.  to 
6  P.M.  Close  early,  so  as  to  increase  to  90°-100°,  and  admit  a  little  air 
before  nightfall  as  a  safeguard  against  condensed  moisture,  and  increase 
the  ventilation  from  seven  to  eight  o'clock  on  sunny  mornings. 
Pits  and  Frames. — Unless  the  weather  prove  cold  night  coverings  will 
not  be  necessary  ;  if  put  on,  it  must  not  be  until  the  sun  is  off  the  lights, 
and  it  should  be  withdrawn  early  in  the  morning.  Commence  ventilating 
at  75°,  and  increase  with  the  sui.’s  advance,  keeping  through  the  day  at 
80°  to  90°,  closing  at  3  to  4  P.M.,  then  sprinkle  the  foliage,  and  after 
being  closed  for  an  hour  or  two  admit  a  little  air  at  the  back  of  the  lights 
to  allow  of  the  pent-uii  moisture  escaping.  Water  will  be  required  about 
twice  a  week,  and  weak  tepid  liquid  manure  may  be  given  occasionally, 
keeping  it  from  the  foliage  and  fruit.  Attend  to  the  plants  once  a  week, 
stopp  ng  the  growths  about  one  or  two  joints  beyond  the  fruit,  removii  g 
bad  leaves  and  exhausted  growths.  If  the  plants  show  signs  of  exhaustion 
top-dress  with  lumpy  loam,  and  layer  some  of  the  younger  shoots  at  a 
joint  from  which  roots  will  be  freely  admitted  and  strengthen  the 
succeeding  growths,  so  that  the  plants  will  continue  to  produce  clean 
fruit  for  a  long  period. 
Vines. — L  ite  Grapes. — These  must  be  thinned  immediately'  they  are 
largo  enough,  the  berries  swelling  so  rapidly  at  this  season  that  they  soon 
become  too  large  to  be  thinned  pr 'perly  and  expeditiously  ;  bes  des,  when 
the  work  is  deferred  too  long  the  size  of  the  fruit  is  impaired.  The 
laterals  must  not  be  allowed  to  extend  so  as  to  interfere  with  the  principal 
foliage.  The  growth  may  be  permitted  to  extend  where  there  is  space  to 
admit  of  its  full  exposure  to  light,  but  not  otherwise,  as  overcrowding 
and  overcropping  are  often  the  causes  of  failure,  and  more  frequently  so 
than  any  other  error  of  culture.  Remove  ail  superfliious,  badly  placed, 
deformed,  or  small  bunches.  Crop  lightly,  which  means  size,  quality',  and 
high  finish  ;  bulk  signifies  small  fruit,  bad  colour,  poor  quality,  often 
shanking,  and  always  non-keeping.  Water  thoroughly  when  necessary, 
one  good  watering  is  worth  many  driblets.  Afford  t"p-dressings  of 
artificial  manures  occasionally,  and  a  light  mulch  of  sweet  lumpy  manure 
will  prove  beneficial  in  most  cases  by  encouraging  surface  roots  and 
maintaining  the  moisture  uniformly. 
Vines  Cleared  of  their  Crops. — Syringe  the  Vines  occasionally  to  keep 
the  foliage  clean,  afford  water  to  render  the  soil  moist,  supply  an 
occasional  top-dressing  of  chemical  fertiliser  of  a  pho^phatic  and  p..tassic 
rather  than  a  nitrogenous  nature,  and  a  light  mulching  to  keep  the 
surface  from  cracking  as  well  as  to  prevent  the  roots  going  down  in 
seareh  of  moisture.  Allow  a  m  iderate  extension  of  the  lateral,*,  but  do 
not  permit  them  to  interfere  with  the  principal  leaves.  Some  lateral 
extension  is  absolutely  necessary  to  prevent  the  starting  of  the  main  buds 
and  the  premature  ripening  ,  of  the  foliage.  There  is  no  fear  of  the 
wood  not  ripening,  the  difficulty  is  in  the  opposite  direction — loss  of 
foliage  and  starting  into  growth  instead  of  going  to  rest  in  late  summer. 
\'entilate  freely  when  the  temperature  ri.-es  above  60°, 
Houses  of  Ripe  Grapes. — Black  Grapes  will  bo  belter  for  slight  shade 
from  powerlul  sun  ;  some  pilchard,  or  a  doable  thickness  of  herring  nets 
drawn  over  the  roof- lights,  will  mostly  be  sufficient  shade,  and  a  good 
spread  of  foliage  will  not  injure  the  berries,  but  assist  Hamburghs  keeping 
colour.  Moderate  air  moisture  does  not  injure  the  Grapes  if  accompanied 
by  free  ventilation.  Keep  laterals  fairly  under,  but  a  little  extension 
will  assist  in  the  retention  of  the  principal  leaves,  and  upon  their  con¬ 
tinuance  in  health  depends  the  maturity  of  the  buds  for  next  year’s  crop, 
^luscats  and  all  amber-coloured  Grapes  improve  in  colour  after  being 
apparently  ripe,  and  bear  exposure  to  light  without  detriment  up  to  a 
l  ertain  point,  that  of  the  rich  golden  amber  stage,  but  after  that  they 
become  darker  and  blotchy'  ;  then  the  skin  is  very  susceptible  of  miistnre 
and  easily  spotted,  which  must  be  guarded  against  by  free  ventilatii  n. 
Grapes  Ripenimj. — Afford  these  a  free  circulation  of  air  on  all  favour¬ 
able  occasions,  with  enough  constantly  to  insure  a  change  of  air,  as  it  is  a 
confined  stagnant  atmosphere  that  does  all  the  mischief  in  Grapes 
“spotting”  and  cracking.  Keep  sufficient  heat  in  the  pipes  fo  maintain 
a  night  temperature  of  G5°,  and  70°  to  75°  by  day,  with  80°  or  90°  through 
the  day  from  sun  heat.  Avoid  a  very  dry  atmosphere,  damping 
occasionally',  and  do  not  allow  the  border  to  become  ^Irv.  .Moderate 
lateral  growth  will  favour  Hamburghs  and  Madresfield  Court,  but  Muscat 
of  Alexandria  colours  best  when  e.xposed  to  the  light,  yet  a  little  la  oral 
growth  is  desirable  as  a  safeguard  against  shanUing,  and  for  the  main¬ 
tenance  of  healthy  root  action. 
Grapes  Scidding. — .Muscat  cf  Alexandria  and  Lady  Downc’s  are  more 
liable  to  “  scald  ”  than  most  other  varietic-i,  but  Hamburghs  sometimes 
suffer  severely  when  completi' g  the  stoning  process.  At  that  time  air 
should  be  given  abundantly,  sufficient  warmth  being  kept  in  the  het-wnter 
pipes  to  maintain  a  night  temperature  of  65°  to  70°,  and  .5°  to  10°  more 
artificially  in  the  daytime,  leaving  a  little  ventilation  on  a*  night,  and 
increase  it  before  the  sun  acts  powerfully  upon  the  house  in  the  morning. 
This  attended  to,  there  will  be  little,  if  any,  scalding,  for  it  is  keeping 
close,  moist,  and  cold  that  renders  Grapes  liable  to  scald  if  the  weather 
prove  bright. 
IVORKINi;  FOR  A  SURPLU.S. 
All  is  now  activity  in  the  apiary.  The  hot  weather  experienced 
during  the  past  week  has  had  the  desired  effect  on  tlio  bees.  Stocks 
that  were  weak  a  month  ago  are  now  ready  for  supering,  and  no  t  tne 
should  be  lost  in  providing  them  with  surplus  chaniher.*,  so  tl  at  full 
advantage  may  be  taken  ol  the  honey  flow  which  may  now  be  obtained 
from  the  numerous  flowers  in  bloom. 
The  majority  of  bee-keepers  have  doubtless  already  decided  in 
what  form  they  desire  to  obtain  a  siirpliis.  If  from  run  honey,  then 
we  have  no  hesit.ation  in  recommending,  which  for  want  of  a  better 
name  is  termed  the  doubling  s\  stein.  If  comb  honey  is  preferred 
then  1  lb.  sections  or  shallow  frames  may  he  depended  cn,  the  former 
for  preference.  It  is  advisable  to  have  supers  in  various  forms.  The 
bulk  of  honey  in  the  comb,  however,  should  be  in  sections. 
How  to  obtain  the  great e.-t  weight  of  honey  from  a  given  number 
of  stocks,  and  also  a  small  increase  in  the  colonies  in  the  apiarv,  is  the 
aim  ot  the  majority  of  hee-keepers. 
Xe  will  endeavour  to  show  how  this  may  he  done.  Instead  of 
allowing  the  bees  to  swarm  to  obtain  an  increase,  super  the  stronc^est 
st-^cks,  and  if  they  are  not  overflowing  with  bees,  take  some  frames  of 
hatching  brood  Irom  another  hive  reserved  for  queen  rearing,  and  give- 
it  to  the  colony  intended  for  honey  production.  A  few  notes  on  wurk: 
done  in  our  own  apiary  during  the  past  few  days  may  be  beneficial  to¬ 
others  similarly  situated. 
Work  Done  in  the  Apiary. 
Only  a  few  stocks  are  utilised  for  the  production  of  comb  honey. 
For  this  purpose  we  use  our  largest  hives,  some  of  which  were  formerly 
treated  on  the  two-queens  system,  some  of  them  ha\ iug  upwards  of 
eighteen  frames.  With  close  attention  on  the  lines  advocated  in 
previous  notes,  we  succeeded  in  filling  the  majority  of  them  v\ith  brood. 
As  such  a  large  brood  nest  would  be  a  disadvantage  il  a  large  surplus, 
from  supers  were  reipiired,  we  reduced  the  number  of  frames  to  ten. 
In  smaller  hives,  where  the  brood  nest  had  been  smaller,  they  were 
reduced  in  some  instances  to  eight  frames. 
The  dividing  board  being  placed  close  to  the  frames,  the  opeit 
space  at  the  back  was  filled  with  spare  coveiings  taken  from  the  top.s 
ot  the  frames.  This  will  prevent  the  bees  from  filling  it  with  con  b 
which  they  doubtless  would,  instead  of  working  in  sections,  A  crate- 
of  twenty-one  secdons  was  at  once  placed  on  the  top  of  the  frames 
with  the  result  that  the  bees  took  possession  at  once.  Owin^ 
to  the  brood  chamber  being  restricted  a  surplus  is  now  being  storecT. 
As  so  n  as  the  more  forward  seciions  are  partly  sealed  over  another 
crate  of  sections  will  be  placed  underneath,  and  as  some  of  the  colonies 
are  extra  strong  in  worker  bees  it  may  bo  necessary  to  give  a  third 
crate  of  sections  before  any  of  them  are  fit  for  removal.  Streno- 
colonies  of  this  description  when  woikul  (or  comb  honey  reipiire 
plenty  of  space  in  the  supers,  otherwise  there  is  a  liability  of  them 
s\yarming. 
'i'he  Irames  of  brood  that  were  removed  from  the  above  hives  were 
placed  in  supers  on  other  stocks  lor  extracting  purposes,  the  hives 
being  otherwise  strengthened  by  the  addition  of  bre  d  and  bees  from 
other  colonies  intended  for  queen  re-uing,  these  being  placed  in  the 
middle  of  the  super  and  some  frames  of  clean  old  combs  |  ut  on  the 
outside,  as  they  are  not  as  liable  to  break  dov\h  in  the  exiractor  as 
new  combs.  Excluder  zinc  should  always  be  used  under  frames 
intended  for  extracting  purposes.— An  English  Bee-keeukr. 
“Familiar  Wild  Flowers.”— Nos.  10  and  11  contain  plates  of 
the  IVild  Strawberry,  Furze,  common  Vetch,  Sea  C  impion,  Broad-leaved 
I’lantain,  ihe  Green  He  le bore.  Heath  or  Ling,  the  Ifindock,  ()..eyo 
Daisy,  Great  Mullein,  Buxbaum’s  Speedwell,  Flowering  Rush,  pink 
Campion,  Dog  Rose,  Spindle  Tree,  Spotted  Orchis,  Hol)\,  Cnvet,  Sallow, 
and  clustered  Belt  Flower. 
