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March  17,  19C4.  JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
rains.  It  will  very  materially  assist  in  bringing  the  soil  into  good 
condition  for  planting. 
LETTUCES. — A  good  batch  of  early  Cabbage  Lettuce  should 
now  be  planted  in  a  sheltered  spot,  after  being  thoroughly 
hardened.  At  the  foot  of  a  warm  south  wall  is  the  best  place  for 
them.  The  soil  should  be  rich  and  light  to  induce  a  cpuck  growth. 
All  the  Year  Round  and  Tom  Thumb  are  very  reliable  kinds, 
being  hardy  and  turning  in  quickly.  There  are  ]uany  newer 
kinds  of  great  merit,  many  of  which  lack  hardness,  which  is 
essential  for  this  early  planting. 
PLANT  C'AULIFLOWERS,  which  have  been  wintered  in  cold 
irames,  should  be  carefully  lifted  with  a  fork,  keeping  as  much 
of  the  soil  on  the  roots  as  possible.  They  will  require  pi'otecting 
on  cold  and  frosty  nights.  There  is  nothing  better  than  hand- 
lights  for  the  purpose.  Where,  however,  these  cannot  be  had, 
flower  pots  turned  ever  the  plants  will  answer  well,  but  these 
must,  of  course,  be  removed  early  on  fine  mornings.  When 
planted  out  at  this  early  date  extra  care  will  be  reexuired,  as 
a  check  will  mean  faihire. 
SEC'OND  EARLY  POTATOES.-  A  good  breadth  of  these 
should  now  be  planted. — A.  T.,  Cirencester. 
The  Flower  Garden. 
GLAUIOI.I. — Conns  of  Gladiolus  brenchleyensis,  gandavensi.s, 
Lemoinei,  and  C'hildsi  varieties  may  be  planted  in  lines  or  groups 
in  borders.  A  fairly  deep,  rich,  and  well-manured  soil  should  be 
provided,  but  the  positions  must  be  sunny,  and,  if  possible,  shel¬ 
tered,  as  rough  winds,  when  the  flower  spikes  are  opening,  soon 
destroy  their  beauty.  The  conns  may  be  planted  4in  deep  and 
Gin  apart.  Place  the  groups  in  threes,  sixes,  or  twelves.  Lines 
or  lows  should  not  be  less  than  a  foot  apart.  Gladioli  look  well 
when  in  floM'er  against  the  dark  background  of  a  hedge  or 
shrubs. 
HALF-HARDY  ANNL'ALS. — Asters,  Ageratums,  Amaran- 
thus.  Carnations,  Stocks,  Scabious.  Salpiglossis,  Zinnias,  and  any 
other  half-hardy  annuals  ma.y  now  be  sown  in  pans  or  boxes  under 
glass  in  a  greenhouse  sufficiently  well  heated  to  cause  quick 
germination.  Drain  the  pans  or  boxes  well,  using  a  few  crocks 
and  some  rough  material  for  the  purpose.  A  mixture  of  loam 
and  leaf  soil,  with  some  sand  added,  will  form  a  good  compost. 
Make  the  soil  firm  and  level,  and  if  at  all  dry  give  a  watering 
before  sowing.  Scatter  the  seeds  thinly,  and  cover  with  a  light 
sprinkling  of  fine  soil.  Cover  the  soil  with  a  pane  of  gla.ss,  aird 
lay  over  a  sheet  of  paper,  which  withdraw  immediately  the  seed 
germinates.  Afterwards  give  the  .seedlings  a  position  near  the 
glass. 
ROSES. — It  is  not  yet  too  late  to  plant  Roses;  indeed,  this  is 
a  favourable  time,  providing  the  weather  is  dry  and  the  soil  works 
well.  The  plants,  however,  will  not  flower  abundantly  this 
season  as  the.y  cannot  have  time  to  become  well  established.  Close 
pruning  should  follow  the  planting,  and  some  good  growth  will 
result,  this  being  important.  Thoroughly  broken  up  ground  in 
beds  and  border's,  enriched  with  manure  and  loamy  soil,  and  free 
from  .stagnant  moisttrre,  is  suitable  for  Roses.  In  these  position.s 
plant  bushes,  including  Hybrid  Pei-petuals,  Tea  and  Hybrid 
Teas,  China  or  Monthly  Roses.  For  trellises  or  pillars  the  climbing 
Polvantha  Roses,  Banksian.  Evergreen,  and  the  climbing  varieties 
of  Hybrid  Perpetuals  and  Tea  Roses  are  adapted.  The  Penzance 
Sweet  Briars  make  good  hedges. 
SWEET  PEAS. — Further  sowings  should  be  made.  A  piece 
of  good  ground  which  has  been  well  cultivated  b.y  trenching  and 
manuring  is  required,  or  if  this  has  not  been  done  spread  a  liberal 
la.yer  of  manure  over,  and  dig  it  in  as  deepl.y  as  possible.  Another 
method  ma.y  be  adopted,  this  consisting  of  taking  out  a  trench 
as  for  Celery,  placing  several  inches  of  manure  at  the 
bottom,  their  filling  in  the  soil.  Draw  a  wide  drill  over 
this,  making  the  base  level,  sow  the  seeds  4in  apart, 
and  cover  with  fine  soil  about  2in.  It  will  be  needful  to 
protect  the  seed  andi  seedlings  from  birdsf  Sweet  Peas  which 
are  being  forwarded  in  pots,  should  have  frame  treatment  pre¬ 
paratory  to  being  planted  out. — E.  D.  S.,  Gravesend. 
New  Hardy  Tritoma,  May  Queen. — The  hybrids  and  species 
of  Tritomas,  so  valuable  as  decorative  plants  in  groups  as  well 
a.s  cut  flowers,  usually  commence  to  flower  in  midsummer  and 
cease  when  early  frosts  in  October  set  in.  This  new  hybrid, 
however,  begins  to  flower  at  the  end  of  May  with  the  Irises,  and 
continues  to  bloom  till  late  in  the  autumn.  The  habit  of  th.e- 
plant  is  good,  and  the  floweis  vary  in  colour  from  orange  to 
'carlet.  Raised  from  seed,  which  geiuninates  easily,  the  plants 
bloom  in  the  second  year.  The  plant  has  proved  quite  hardy, 
and  can  remain  outdoors  during  the  winter:  snow  and  frosts  do 
them  no  harm  if  sheltered  somewhat  against  strong  ninds.  It 
is  offered  by  Stenger  and  Kotter.  nur-erymen  and  seedsmen, 
Erfurt,  Geimauy. 
w. 
HE  BEE-KEEPER. 
■  I . :  ■  r--rri  .-n 
■i--t  -r: 
The  Stewarton  Hive. 
I  was  glad  to  read  "  E.  E.’s”  further  remarks  regarding  these 
hives,  and  he  states  that  the  extra  body  boxes  should  be  placed 
under  the  brood  box,  and  thus  circulating  the  necessar.v  heat. 
This  is  where  I  seemed  to  err,  as  I  placed  the  additir.nal  body 
box  immediately  on  the  top  of  the  brood  box,  and  on  that  again 
I  put  the  super.  By  this  arrangement  I  had  kept  the  bees  from 
going  upwards,  as  I  now  see  it  was  rather  cold  for  the  bees  to 
start  right  awa.y  in  a  new  bod.y  box.  When  I  am  placing  the 
extra  body  box  under  the  present  brood  box,  I  suppose  only  two 
s!ide.s  on  either  side  will  be  sirfficient  to  allow  the  bees  to  get 
up  and  down  from  their  present  abode,  and  also  I  shall  require  to 
close  the  preseirt  entrance  of  the  brood  box,  thus  enabling  the 
bees  to  exit  from  the  additional  box.  "  E.  E.,”  however,  states 
that  the  young  queen  is  the  best  to  keep.  How  can  he  ever  get 
a  young  queen  with  these  hives  if  he  puts  on  additional  boxes 
each  year  to  prevent  swarming? — Hexagonal. 
With  reference  to  "  E.  E.’s  ”  remarks  on  page  152  regarding 
the  cost  of  Stewarton  hives,  I  cannot  see  why  catalogue  prices 
should  be  taken,  especially  as  one  cannot  find  two  of  them 
alike.  His  comparison  with  the  bar-frame  parts  is  not  much  of 
a  guide  for  the  Stewarton.  I  know  men  (enthusiastic  bee  men) 
in  Ayrshire  who  simply  take  a  delight  in  the  management  of 
those  hives,  and  it  is  not  an  uncommon  sight  for  a  stranger  to 
enter  into  any  of  their  houses  on  a  stormy  winter  evening  and 
to  observe  at  first  sight  the  industrious  man  with  his  hammer  and 
plane  putting  the  parts  of  the  hive  together,  and  thus  preparing 
for  the  summer.  These  are  the  men  who  deserve  success,  anil 
much  credit  is  due  to  them  when  they  can  show  you  601b  or  701b 
of  honey,  all  obtained  at  so  little  cost,  and  principally  through 
their  watchfulness.  To  those  commencing  bee-keeping  I  would 
venture  to  say  that  they  should  start  at  the  foot  of  the  ladder 
and  make  their  own  hives,  and  they  could  not  desire  to  work  with 
a  better  and  more  ea.sily  made  and  managed  hive  than  the 
Stewarton. 
4Vith  reference  to  obtaining  boxes  from  grocers,  “  E.  E.  ”  must 
be  placed  in  a  curious  position.  The  next  time  he  is  in  Scot¬ 
land;  if  he  enters  into  one  of  our  large  shops,  I  am  sure  he  will 
get  as  much  as  he  can  carry  back  with  him  free.  If  “  E.  E.”  has 
ever  the  occasion  to  go  to  an.v  good  nurserymen  for  cuttings  in 
the  autumn  he  will,  I  am  sure,  receive  them  in  nice  little  boxe.s 
just  the  size  for  supers.  Last  autuiiin  I  had  the  pleasure  of 
receiving  two  or  three  good  ones  in  this  way. 
I  do  not  agree  with  the  trough  feeders  as  mentioned.  The 
feeder  above  is  the  best  of  all,  as  there  is  not  much  chance  of 
stray  bees  getting  there.  I  fancy  from  the  trough  appearance 
that  stray  bee.s  can  enter  hive,  partake  of  feeding,  and  gO'  out 
again  without  being  noticed  by  the  bees.  Very  few  bees  remain 
at  the  footboard  as  compared  to  those  at  the  top  of  hive.  I  have 
used  the  zinc  excluder,  but  it  was  not  till  late  in  the  summer  that 
the  bees  ventured  through.  Calico  will  answer  should  it  be  used 
in  the  right  manner.  On  the  whole.  I  do  not  believe  in  any 
queen  excluder,  hence  my  reason  for  using  this  hive. — Stewarton. 
Young  Gardeners’  Domain. 
The  Editor  welcomes  .short  letters  from  under  gardeners.  Letters  should  be  con¬ 
fined  to  600  words  in  length,  should  be  written  onl.v  on  one  side  of  the  paper, 
as  clearly  as  possible,  with  one  inch  space  at  both  top  and  bottem  as  well 
as  at  the  sides.  The  names  and  addresses  of  the  writers  must  acci  mpany 
all  communications,  not  necefsnrily  for  publication,  but  as  a  guarantee  of 
good  faith.  If  these  points  are  not  respected,  the  letters  cannot  bee  onsiderc  d. 
Scottish  V.  English  Gardeners. 
I  beg  of  you  to  allow  me  a  little  space  in  this  corner  to  reply 
to  my  critics.  I  hope  the  letter  by  •'  Cosmopolitan,”  p.  152,  has 
been  read  by  “A.  J.  L,”  ‘‘Northern  Gardener,”  “English  Fore¬ 
man  in  Ireland,”  and  “  Englishman,  Berks.”  It  is  a  most  edifying 
letter  to  old  and  yonng  gardeners  who  have  taken  part  in  this 
discus-sicn,  and  I  hope  a  lesson  may  be  taken  therefrom  how  to 
write  somewhat  more  sensible  answers  to  any  question.  I  must 
needs  .‘-a.y  a  word  to  my  critics  individuall.y.  The  "  English 
Foreman  in  Ireland”  interests  and  amuses  me.  I  think  those 
men  wlio  were  expelled  for  drunken  habits  must  have  been  clieap 
men.  and  of  the  lowest  order,  picked  up  in  the  now  proverbial 
“Salt  Market”  in  Glasgow.  IMy  next  critic  is  “Nqithern 
Gardener,”  on  p.  109.  who  thinks  I  had  better  be  learning  iny 
business  than  asking  such  senseless  riuestion<.  Why  has  he,  in 
the  name  of  common-sense,  stooped  to  take  notice  and  answer 
senseless  question.s  in  the  “Young  Gardeners’  Domain”?  It  is 
good  to  have  letters  from  experienced  men  to  help  us  to  arrive 
at  proper  conclusions  on  subjects  under  discus-,ion,  but  I  don’t 
