July  16,  1903; 
JOURNAL  OF  HORTICULTURE  AND  COTTAGE  GARDENER. 
67 
takes  from  other  hives  in  the  neighbourhood.  ^  The  patentee, 
Mr.  Geary,  warrants  this  to  be  a  non-svvanning  hive,  and  without 
a  doubt  it  is  far  better  than  any  other  hive  I  have  had  an  oppor¬ 
tunity  of  observing,  and  well  worth  a  trial. — Hybla. 
When  to  put  on  Supers. 
One  is  constantly  being  asked.  When  ought  I  to  place  supers 
on  my  hives  ?  This  question  seems  a  very  simple  one,  but  only 
general  rules  can  be  laid  down  for  their  guidance.  Most  people 
imagine  that  we  have  only  to  place  on  these  supers  and  they  are 
sure  to  be  filled,  but  at  "the  end  of  the  season  they  tell  a  very 
different  tale.  They  have  learned  something  by  experience,  and 
the  school  of  experience  is  perhaps  the  best  of  schools  in  which 
to  learn.  Note  first  the  main  source  from  which  the  honey  is 
obtained.  In  one  district  it  may  be  fruit,  in  others  mustard, 
turnips,  clover,  lime  trees  or  heather.  Having  settled  this  point, 
get  the  hives  ready  for  the  season ;  this  means  you  must  com¬ 
mence  operations  at  least  six  weeks  before.  Then,  when  you  see 
the  white  wax  near  the  top  bars  put  on  the  queen  excluder  and 
sections,  wraj)  up  well,  and  hope  for  the  best.  During  a  good 
season  it  is  quite  possible  to  have  twenty-one  sections  filled  in 
seven  days.  A  friend  of  mine  told  me  that  he  had  sections  filled 
in  this  period  once,  and  they  were  the  prettiest  he  had  ever  seen. 
Still,  knowing  this,  don’t  be  surprised  if  they  take  longer. 
It  may  not  be  cut  of  place  to  give  a  hint  or  two  on  the  prepara¬ 
tion  of  sections.  Procure  some  boiling  w^ater  and  a  small  paint 
brush.  Wet  all  the  joints  well,  twenty-one  sections  at  a  time, 
placing  them  one  on  the  other.  When  all  of  them  have  been  well 
wetted,  turn  over  the  pile,  and  the  first  one  operated  on  will  be 
well  soaked.  It  is  best  to  use  wdiole  sheets  of  foundation.  Many 
use  only  starters,  but  this  is  false  economy.  It  takes  the  bees 
longer  to  complete  their  work,  and  the  sections  are  rarely  so  well 
filled.  Some  time  ago  a  lady  bee-keeper  remarked  on  well  filled 
sections,  and  when  told  how'  they  were  secured,  replied,  “  I  can¬ 
not  lower  myself  to  do  that,  for  the  bees  in  time  wull  lose  the  art 
of  comb  building.” — Hybla. 
- t - 
*  All  correspondence  relating  to  editorial  matters  should  be  directed 
to  “The  Editor,”  12,  Mitre  Court  Chambers,  Fleet  Street, 
London,  E.C.  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. 
SWEET  PEAS  FUNGOID  (C.  M.  H.).— My  Sweet  Peas 
have  suffered  during  the  last  two  years,  but  this  year  they  are 
w'orse  than  ever.  A  large  proportion  of  seeds  have  never  come 
up,  and  if  they  survive  to  flow’ering  time  the  blos  :om3  are  deformed 
and  blurred  in  colour;  the  leaves  yellow  and  curled  up.  I  shall 
be  grateful  for  any  information. 
[The  Swmet  Pea  plants  are  affected  in  the  leaves  and  stems 
by  the  Pea  spot,  Asochyta  pisi,  a  parasitic  fungus  that  causes 
pale  spots  on  the  leaves,  stems,  and  even  pods  of  cultivated  Peas 
(Pisum  sativum),  Haricot  Beans  (Phaseolus  vulgaris),  Everlasting 
Pea  (Lathyrus  sylvestris  platyphyllus,  syn.  L.  latifolius),  Swe-et 
Pea  (L.  odoratus),  and  species  of  Vicia  and  Cercis.  It  forms 
pallid  spots  of  a  somewhat  rounded  or  oval  form  on  the  leaves, 
and  these  quickly  dry  up  and  leave  nothing  but  the  stems  on 
young  plants,  and  greatly  prejudice  the  growth  of  older  plants 
so  that  they  do  not  flow'er  satisfactorily;  indeed,  the  petals  are 
affected,  being  more  or  less  disfigured  by  pale  dead  spots,  and 
sometimes  they  do  not  open,  but  shrivel  up  in  the  bud,  seeding 
being  very  indifferent,  and  sometimes  not  any  pods  are  formed. 
The  parasite  also  attacks  the  stems,  seldom  below  the  surface  of 
the  ground,  and  then  the  part  of  the  plant  above  the  point  of 
infection  commonly  collapses,  drying  up  and  withering  of  a  pale 
colour.  It  is,  however,  most  disastrous  to  the  leaves,  these 
having  the  pale  spots,  and  the  whole  leaf  or  leaflet  dries  up  of  a 
pale  colour.  On  the  pale  spots  appear  minute  dark  points  or 
dots,  though  not  ahvays  in  the  case  of  leaves  that  quickly  shrivel. 
These  dark  bodies  are  the  conceptacles  of  the  fungus,  and  from 
these  are  discharged,  wdien  mature,  the  spores  of  the  parasite  by 
means  of  which  the  disease  is  spread,  and  the  diseased  leaves  or 
stems  also  carry  over  the  disease  from  year  to  year  by  means  of 
perithecia  that*  form  in  them  during  their  dried  state.  Disea.sed 
portions,  therefore,  should  be  burned.  No  preventive  means 
against  this  pest  have  been  recorded.  Probably  spraying  with 
dilute  Bordeaux  mixture  or  potassium  sulphide  solution,  loz  of 
the  , sulphide  being  dissolved  in  about  a  quart  of  hot  water,  and 
when  dissolved  adding  2igals  of  soft  water,  in  which  loz  of  soft- 
soap  has  been  meanwhile  dissolved,  thus  making  2^gals  of  .solution, 
when  wmll  mixed  and  cool,  is  ready  for  use.  Spraying  should 
commence  as  soon  as  the  plants  appear  above  ground,  and  be 
repeated  at  intervals  of  ten  days  or  a  fortnight,  so  as  to  coat  the 
leafage  as  made  with  the  finest  possible  film  of  the  solution.  Wo 
did  not  find  any  trace  of  disease  on  the  roots,  though  the  cuticular 
tissues  had  become  brown  in  some  cases,  and  there  was  no 
evidence  of  eelworm  in  the  root  stem.  Possibly  the  disease  may 
go  over  in  the  seed,  as  it  affects  the  pods  and  probably  the  seed, 
as  jmu  mention  that  some  of  the  Peas  never  come  up,  for  which, 
howmver,  the  seedsmen  are  not  responsible,  only  in  that  they 
should  be  careful  to  save  seed  only  from  healthy  plants.  The 
Sweet  Sultan  also  had  the  foliage  shrivelled  up,  and  appears 
affected  by  a  similar  disease,  but  we  did  not  discover  the  fruits 
of  the  fungus,  which  are  essential  for  definite  identification.  The 
soil  appears  deficient  in  lime,  otherwise  of  a  nature  calculated 
to  grow'  Peas  and  other  crops  satisfactorily.  As  there  was  trace 
of  ‘‘sleeping  disease”  in  the  Sw’eet  Sultan  root  stem,  we  advise 
the  ground  to  be  dressed  in  the  autumn,  or  some  time  in  advance 
of  cropping,  with  a  mixture  of  eight  parts  basic  cinder  phosphate 
and  three  parts  kainit,  applying  lib.  of  the  mixture  per  square 
yard,  and  digging  in,  taking  small  spits  so  as  to  mix  evenly  with 
the  soil.  In  the  spring,  or  before  sowdng  or  planting,  again  fork 
over  the  ground,  and  probably  you  will  not  be  ti'oubled  with  the 
collapse  of  either  the  Sw'cet  Peas  or  the  Sw'eet  Sultan  plants.] 
DWARF  CHRYSANTHEMUMS  (S.  W.).— Sturdy,  healthy 
cuttings  grown  in  the  full  sun,  inserted  now  in  small  pots  of 
sandy  soil,  stood  on  damp  ashes  in  a  frame,  kept  moist,  close, 
and  shaded  to  prevent  the  leaves  flagging,  strike  readily,  and 
the  plants  are  often  very  serviceable  for  various  decorative  pur¬ 
poses.  The  cuttings  and  young  plants  cannot  have  too  much 
light  and  air  consistent  with  keeping  the  foliage  fresh.  Thou¬ 
sands  of  dwarf  plants  of  pompon  varieties  are  raised  from 
cuttings  inserted  in  July  and  August. 
BOOK  ON  FORESTRY  (Geo.  S.). — We  are  not  acquainted 
w'ith  the  book  you  name,  and  cannot  say  where  a  copy  is  obtain¬ 
able.  You  might  write,  stating  your  wants,  and  asking  for  a 
catalogue  of  their  books,  to  either  of  the  follow’ing  :  W’esley  and 
Son,  Essex  Street,  Strand,  WhC.  ;  or  Morgan  and  Co.,  8,  St. 
Mary-at-Hill,  E.C.  We  can  recommend  to  your  notice  “  The  New 
Forestry,”  by  J.  Simpson,  2s.  6d.  (Pawson  and  Brailsford, 
Sheffield),  as  a  good,  suggestive  work.  You  will  find  occasional 
forestry  work  in  our  own  columns,  also  in  the  “  Gardeners’ 
Chronide,”  London;  “The  Garden,”  London;  “North  British 
Agriculturist,”  Edinburgh;  “The  Field,”  “Flora  and  Sylva” 
(2s.  6d.  monthly),  and  other  periodicals.  We  do  not  know  a 
journal  of  forestry.  There  was  a  Scottish  arbori cultural  paper, 
but  it  failed. 
VARIETIES  OF  BLACK  HAMBURGH  GRAPE  (W.  A.).— 
The  best  variety  of  Black  Hamburgh  is  undoubtedly  Mill  Hill, 
which  has  the  fine  appearance  of  Dutch  Hamburgh,  but  w’ithout 
the  coarseness  and  hollowmess  at  the  centre  that  characterises 
that  form,  and  the  quality  is  equal  to  that  of  the  Black  Ham¬ 
burgh  ;  the  latter  is,  however,  excellent,  and  as  a  rule  grows 
better  than  the  Mill  Hill.  By  planting  the  Vines  now  you  will 
take  time  by  the  forelock — i.e.,  get  them  established,  and  they 
will  be  in  a  condition  to  make  a  good  start  when  the  house  is 
closed  in  February.  It  is  only  a  question  of  shading  until  the 
Vines  recover  from  the  partial  disentangling  and  spreading  out 
of  the  roots  in  the  fresh  material,  afterwards  exposing  the  growth 
fully  to  light  so  as  to  get  the  wood  ripe.  Cut  hard  back,  and 
they  w’ill  start  wmll  with  the  other  Yhnes.  It  would  be  prefer¬ 
able  to  plant  at  once  than  defer  it  until  the  house  is  started  in 
February.  _ _ 
Meteorological  Observations  at  Chiswick.* 
Taken  in  the  Royal  Horticultural  Society’s  Gardens  at  Chis¬ 
wick,  height  above  sea  level  24  feet. _ _ 
Date. 
Temperature  of  the 
Air. 
Temperature  of 
the  Soil. 
At  9  A.M. 
1903. 
July. 
Direction  o 
Wind. 
At  9  A.M. 
Day. 
Night 
d 
cd 
At 
1-ft. 
deep. 
At 
2-ft. 
deep. 
At 
4-ft. 
deep. 
tc 
■*=>  ^  ai 
o  a 
Drv 
Bulb. 
Wet 
Bulb. 
CO 
01 
HH 
W 
(U 
o 
1-3 
J  s  g 
o  ° 
B 
Sunday  ...  5 
S.W. 
deg. 
59-4 
deg. 
55'8 
deg. 
70-5 
deg. 
55-7 
Ins. 
deg. 
64-7 
deg. 
6T8 
deg. 
570 
deg. 
53-5 
Monday  ...  6 
N.W. 
58-4 
55’0 
65-2 
55-7 
— 
64-2 
61-7 
57-2 
54'6 
Tuesday...  7 
N.N.W. 
56-2 
53-3 
65-9 
46-3 
— 
62-2 
bl*3 
57-4 
40-7 
Wed’sday  8 
N.N.W. 
60-2 
56-0 
72-5 
43-0 
— 
61'2 
60-8 
57-6 
31'0 
Thursday  9 
N.W. 
71-7 
67'2 
77'2 
600 
— 
64-0 
60-8 
b'/‘b 
bi’4 
Pridav  ...10 
S.W. 
73-7 
68-5 
1  84-4 
58'9 
— 
65-2 
61'2 
57 '6 
50’7 
Saturday  11 
S.W. 
76-6 
70-0 
'  85’2 
1 
57-9 
66-6 
62-0 
57-7 
49‘5 
% 
Means  ... 
65-2 
608 
i 
74-4 
1  53*9 
|Total. 
i 
j  64  0 
614 
57'4 
48  8 
Fine  warm  w'eather,-  with  a  rising  temperature  towards  the  end 
of  the  week,  Saturday  being  the  hottest  day  since  August  10,  1901, 
which  was  exactly  the  same — viz.,  85'2deg. 
