SHADING. 213 



ing sun and shade. This lath screen may be used for 

 shading plants in the open ground, if supported at a 

 proper hight above them. In a propagating house, 

 where it is necessary, as it often is, to shade cuttings, a 

 lattice laid upon the outside of the glass answers a good 

 purpose. The laths are sometimes tied together with 

 strong twine, the cord answering the place of slats, and 

 serving as a warp with which the laths are woven ; the 

 advantage of a screen of this kind being that it can be 

 rolled up. Another and excellent screen to shade is to 

 make frames three by six feet of the '* Protecting Cloth" 

 already alluded to in the chapter on ** Greenhouses or Pits 

 without Artificial Heat." Plants kept in windows dur- 

 ing summer months will, if in a sunny exposure, require 

 some kind of a shade, and if the one provided to keep 

 the sun from the room shuts out too much light, or ex- 

 cludes air as well as sun, something must be provided 

 which will give protection during the heat of the day, 

 and still allow sufficient light and an abundant circu- 

 lation of air. Any one with ingenuity can arrange a 

 screen of white cotton cloth to answer the purpose. 



The old practice of stripping the greenhouse in sum- 

 mer is falling into disuse. By a proper selection of 

 plants and sufficient shade, it is made as attractive then 

 as at any other season ; but even for tropical plants the 

 glass must be shaded. For a small lean-to, a screen of 

 light canvas, muslin, or the ** Protecting Cloth," ar- 

 ranged upon the outside, so tliat it may be wound up 

 on a roller when not wanted, will answer ; and if it be de- 

 sired to keep the house as cool as possible, this should be 

 so contrived that there will be a space of six inches or so 

 between that and the glass. But upon a large house, or 

 one with a curvilinear roof, this is not so manageable, 

 and the usual method is to coat the glass with some ma- 

 terial which will obstruct a part of the light. The most 

 common method is to give the outside of the glass a coat 



