240 THE amateue's gbeenhotjse 



wanted, and yet to grow them well and enjoy them thoroughly 

 the shelter of glass is a sine qua non. From October to April, 

 when out-door pleasures are few, and flowers of all kinds 

 scarce, the alpine house is to be gay as a well-furnished jewel- 

 casket — in fact, it will be a jewel-casket if only our advice is 

 carried out to the letter. In the third place, one of the great 

 advantages of this house is that geraniums, verbenas, petunias, 

 and other soft greenhouse plants of the same class, will not 

 live in it, and so the gems it is to shelter will not be thrust 

 out of their legitimate home by usurpers of their rights. In 

 connection with this third advantage, it must be remarked 

 that the collection should be at its best in winter, and there- 

 fore to make it a store place for bedding plants would be a 

 violation of the scheme, for bedding plants offer no attractions 

 in the dark season. 



A cheap delight is to be looked for as the result of the 

 development of the plan. But pray bear in mind, we are no 

 advocates of sheds and shanties of obnoxious aspect for plant- 

 houses. Experience has always taught that those who build at 

 all should build well. First, then, choose a spot for the house 

 where it will be easily accessible for yourself and friends in 

 the winter season. It may, indeed, be connected wath the 

 dwelling, and made to open from one of the rooms, or it may be 

 reached by a covered way. The only essential matters, how- 

 ever, are to select a convenient site, to make a good foundation 

 and a drain, if necessary, to secure dryness in winter ; to 

 make the house run due north and south if possible, so that 

 the sun will every day at noon stand opposite the south door; 

 and, lastly, to preserve an open space outside at one or both 

 ends of the house, so that if ever you feel inclined to lengthen it, 

 you may do so without having to cut down trees or remove 

 buildings. It must be remembered that this cool plant-house 

 may be readily converted into a greenhouse proper, by means 

 of a furnace and boiler and a service of hot-water pipes. It 

 is one of the great advantages of building a house properly in 

 the first instance, that you can apply it to many purposes 

 afterwards, as inclination or circumstances may require. You 

 may, at small expense, convert this sanctum into a greenhouse, 

 a stove, a vinery, or a pine pit ; therefore you are not doomed 

 to be always a jeweller because you have speculated on the 

 construction of a casket. 



Now as to the plants. They must consist exclusively of 



