December  2(».  IWO. 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
f)67 
Young  Gardeners’  Domain. 
The  R.H.S.  Examinations. 
I  AM  pfreatly  interested  in  the  discussion  re  K.H.S.  examinations,  and 
think  it  a  siihject  that  should  be  thoroughly  threshed  out.  I  re-echo 
the  question  of  your  correspondent  on  page  498,  Is  it  any  advantage  to 
gardeners  to  obtain  a  first-class  certificate  ?  With  the  present  state  of 
things  it  certainly  does  not  guarantee  a  suitable  place  where  he  can  puf. 
his  scientific  knowledge  to  account.  To  my  way  of  thinking  such  will 
never  be  the  case.  Gardening  appointments  are  generally  made  over 
the  dinner  table,  and  I  think  the  time  is  far  distant  when  employers  will 
go  to  any  institution  or  college  for  their  gardeners. 
There  can  be  no  doubt  that  men  who  combine  a  scientific  with  a 
practical  knowledge  tf  the  profession  must  be  able  to  do  their  work 
easier  and  with  more  satisfaction  to  themselves.  Therefore,  I  say  get 
hold  of  as  much  of  the  theoretical  side  as  possible,  but  do  not  be  led 
away  with  the  idea  that  the  fact  of  possessing  such  will  lift  you  into 
any  of  the  well  paid  posts.  1  have  been  informed  lately  by  men  of 
repute  that  young  gardeners  who  take  a  real  interest  in  their  work  are 
getting  decidedly  scarce,  and  in  years  to  come  a  good  man  will  have  no 
difiiculty  in  securing  a  first-class  place.  We  young  ones  must  hope  that 
such  will  be  the  case.  I  think  we  need  not  fear  any  great  competition 
from  the  ladies. — H.  C.  D.,  Stanmore. 
- - - - - 
—  —  - - -  -  .  ■■■  ^,1  !»..  — - - - - ■  , - — 
M  •*  I 
li 
HE  BEE-KEEPERI 
Protection  for  Bees. 
Protfction  for  bees  in  some  form  or  the  other  is  necessary  if  the 
best  nsultsaie  to  be  obtained.  It  is  surprising  how  well  bees  will 
sometimes  wint  r  in  a  makeshift  hive  if  shelteied  Iroin  the  cold  winds. 
Protecticm  is  required  qui  e  as  nn-ch  from  dampness  as  from  a  low 
temperature.  It  the  routs  are  not  thoroughly  wabiproof  the  bees  will 
soon  suffer,  and  if  it  is  not  remedied  d.Nsentery  will  set  in  and  the 
colony  will  deteri<‘rate  rapidly.  We  have  in  previous  notes  stated  how 
easily  roofs  may  be  made  waterproot  by  covering  them  with  zinc. 
This  is  a  plan  we  tecommeud  for  all  new  roots.  But  when  existing 
roofs  leak  it  is  a  good  plan  to  strain  a  pi-^ce  of  calico  over  the  whole  root 
and  paint  it  a  couple  of  times.  This  is  an  inexpensive  way  of  keeping 
the  roof  in  good  conditi<  n. 
If  the  bees  have  not  sufficient  covering  on  the  top  of  the  frames 
they  will  suffer  from  lack  of  warmth.  Any  warm  material  will  answer 
the  purpose.  We  prefer  old  pieces  of  carpet  or  sacking,  as  it  is  porous  and 
warm.  But  if  these  are  not  conveniently  to  hand,  paper  may  be  used 
with  advantage.  If  several  pitces  are  placed  on  the  top  of  the  other 
coverings  and  weighted  down  with  a  board,  the  btes  will  winter  well, 
and  will  stand  a  long  spdl  of  cold  weather  if  ]  rovided  with  stores. 
The  one  point  to  bear  in  mind  at  all  times,  but  more  especially 
when  preparing  for  the  winter,  is  to  see  that  the  quilt  is  placed 
carefully  over  the  tops  of  the  frames,  so  that  no  crevices  are  left  for 
an  escape  of  heat  from  the  hive.  Bee-keepers  who  are  nerve  us  whilst 
handling  bees  often  make  the  mistake  of  only  partially  replacing  the 
quilt  and  errverings.  The  consequence  is  the  bees  take  possession  o' 
the  roof,  as  it  is‘im[  os.sible  for  them  to  do  well  when  tl  ere  is  a  constant 
draught  through  the  brood  nest.  It  is  most  important  when  colonies 
are  examined  in  preparation  for  covering  up  for  the  winter  that  the 
work  should  be  carelully  done,  so  that  if  the  bees  are  well  supplied 
with  stores  they  may  reasonably  be  expected  to  come  out  strong  and 
healthy  the  following  spring. — An  English  Bee-keeper. 
- - 
Tbe  'Widening'  of  Piccadilly. — A  correspondent  writes  to  the 
“  Morning  Post”  pointing  (/ut  what  the  proposed  widening  of  Piccadilly 
actually  means.  “  It  means,”  be  says,  “  the  destruction  of  every  tree 
on  the  southern  pavement,  of  every  tree  in  the  Green  Park  within 
15  yards  of  the  present  railings,  and  of  every  tree  at  the  corner  of  the 
park  between  tbe  arch  on  Constitution  Hill  and  the  first  gate  to  the 
eastward  of  it.  The  destruction  of  trees  will  not  end  there,  for  in 
forming  the  slope  away  from  what  will  be  tbe  new  level  from  the 
south  side  many  more  trees  will  be  partially  buried,  which  will  lead  to 
their  ultimate  destruction.  What  are  we  to  gain  by  all  this  lamentable 
destruction  of  tree  life  ?  First,  we  shall  have  the  capacity  of  Piccadilly 
from  Walsingham  House  to  Hyde  Park  Corner  practically  doubled. 
Consequently,  it  will  be  capable  of  kolditig  nearly  twice  the  amount 
of  vehicles  it  now  holds.  But  the  capacity  of  the  necks  of  the  bottle, 
so  to  speak — that  is  to  say,  the  part  of  Piccadilly  from  Walsingham 
House  to  the  Circus  going  east,  and  the  narrow  part  by  Albert  Gate 
going  west — will  not  be  it  creased  by  1  inch.  As  a  consequence,  the 
congestion  and  crush  at  these  two  ends  will  be  nearly  twice  as  bad  as 
it  is  at  present.” 
Trade  Catalope  Received. 
J,  Veitch  <fc  Sons,  Ltd.,  Chelsea.  — A^eeds,  Chrysanthemums,  Carnations 
and  Picotees,  and  Fruit. 
All  correspondence  relating  to  editorial  matters  should  be  directed 
to  “  The  Editor,”  xz,  iviltre  Court  Cbambers,  Fleet  Street, 
Iiondon,  E.C.  It  i-.  requ  sted  thit  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  ami  expense. 
Wireworm  in  Soil  for  New  "Vinery  of  Muscat  Grapes  (W.  A.  A.). — 
You  will  find  reply  on  this  subject  on  page  544. 
Farming  for  Profit  {W.  E.  M.). — There  is  no  such  ready  road  to 
wealth  by  farming,  or  land  would  now  be  unobtainable.  An  acre  of 
hothouses  would  hardly  realise  such  a  sum  in  the  gross, and  it  would-be 
gardening,  not  farming. 
Book  on  Carnations  (  IF.) — You  will  probably  find  tbe  “  Carnation 
Manual,”  published  by  Messrs.  Cassell  &  Co.,  La  Bello  Saiivage, 
Ludgate  Hill,  London,  on  behalf  of  the  National  Carnation  and  Picotee 
Society,  most  vluable.  You  will  be  able  to  procure  it  from  Mr.  T.  E. 
Henwood,  Auricula  Villa,  16,  Hamilton  Road,  Reading,  who  is  the 
honorary  sect et ary  of  the  society  named. 
Planting  Ranunculuses  (d.  L.  A.).— The  soil  should  be  retentive  of 
moisture.  If  the  soil  be  thought  loo  poor  a  small  addition  of  decayed 
cow  manure  would  be  advisable.  Let  it  be  thoroughly  mixed  with  the 
soil  whilst  making  the  bed  in  dry  weather.  Some  time  about  the  end  of 
February  or  the  first  week  in  March,  rake  the  surface  of  the  bed  in  the 
morning  of  the  day  previous  to  that  fixed  upon  for  planting.  Commence 
by  drawing  with  a  hoe  a  drill  across  the  end  of  the  bed,  IJ  inch  deep; 
if  deeper  the  roots  will  be  weakened  the  succeeding  year,  by  forming  a 
kind  of  stem  nearer  the  surface;  and  if  shallower,  the  plants  are  more 
liable  to  be  damaged  by  drought.  The  drill  being  drawn  the  right 
depth  press  each  tuber  slightly  down  into  the  ground  ;  plant  them,  if 
large,  4  inches  apart  in  the  row  ;  if  small,  inches  will  be  a  suflioient 
distance.  Cover  the  crown  of  each  tuber  with  fine  sand.  This  ■will 
cause  the  tubers,  when  they  are  taken  up  in  July,  to  come  out  of  the 
ground  quite  clean  for  keeping.  Then,  with  a  short-toothed  rake,  draw 
the  soil  over  the  bulbs,  and  when  it  is  level,  with  the  head  of  the  rake 
gently  press  the  soil  pretty  closely  upon  them. 
Spots  on  Pelargonium  Leaves  {A.  G.  H.) — The  leaves  are  suffering 
from  what  is  generally  called  ‘‘^pot,”  a  kind  of  mildew,  which  appears 
as  brown  and  yellow  rings  through  the  leaves,  and  arises  from  one  of 
two  causes — either  from  the  roots  being  too  dry,  or,  which  is  more 
generally  the  case  with  plants  in  greenhouses  at  this  time  of  the  year, 
from  want  of  suflioient  heat  and  air ;  in  other  words,  the  houses  are 
kept  too  close  and  damp.  Often,  by  way  of  remedying  the  disease,  the 
plants  are  not  watered,  which  tends  to  make  the  disease  worse,  as  a 
proper  balance  is  not  kept  up  between  the  action  of  the  roots  and  the 
leaves.  Plants  at  this  period  are  more  liable  to  the  disease,  owing  to 
the  amount  of  moisture  in  the  air  and  a  corresponding  want  of  sun. 
Tbe  remedy  is  to  give  more  heat,  dust  the  plants  with  sulphur,  and 
keep  up  sufficient  root  action,  giving  the  plants  at  the  same  time  all  the 
light  possible,  with  good  ventilation.  By  ventilation  we  do  not  mean 
cold  draughts  of  air,  but  sufficient  warm  air  to  encourage  healthy  action 
both  in  the  leaves  and  roots. 
Combretum  not  Flowering  (Tyro). — The  probable  reason  of  the 
plant  not  flowering  is  that  the  position  is  shaded  and  the  wood  does  not 
become  thoroughly  ripened.  The  wood  of  the  previous  year  should  be 
well  ripened,  growth  being  encouraged  at  the  early  part  of  the  year, 
and  when  this  is  complete  apply  less  water ;  in  fact,  keep  the  plant  dry. 
So  as  not  to  cause  the  leaves  to  flag,  and  in  the  winter  it  should  be  kept 
dry  at  the  roots,  hut  not  dust  dry.  In  February,  or  when  the  buds  begin 
to  swell,  it  should  be  pruned.  Reduce  the  side  shoots  to  two  eyes,  and 
shorten  those  required  for  extension  to  the  extent  of  one  or  two-thirds 
of  their  length,  according  to  the  strength  and  ripeness  of  the  wood. 
The  plant  is  encouraged  to  break  by  keeping  it  moist,  and  sprinkling 
twice  daily,  but  only  keeping  the  soil  moist ;  and  when  the  young  shoots 
are  an  inch  or  two  long  repot,  removing  the  soil  coming  away  freely 
from  the  roots,  and  giving  a  moderate  shifr.  Place  it  iu  a  good  sized 
pot  in  the  spring,  using  equal  parts  of  fibrous  loam  and  sandy  peat,  with 
a  fourth  of  leaf  soil  and  a  fifth  part  in  equal  propoition,  of  pieces  of 
charcoal,  from  the  size  of  a  pea  to  that  of  a  hazel  nut,  creeks  broken  up 
rather  small,  and  silver  sand. 
