FORCING EARLY VEGETABLES 129 



more from our Allies, th'e French and Belgians, we 

 shall banish useless conservatories, the vistas of 

 expensive glass buildings in which are often but 

 indifferent specimens that may or may not be 

 ready when the big shooting-party takes place, 

 and shall fall back upon a practical market-house. 



This, if intelligently worked, can supply so much 

 in a restricted area, and where forced vegetables 

 and fruit are required, nothing surpasses a " travel- 

 ling " greenhouse used for utilitarian purposes. 

 The trees and crops in the kitchen-garden need to 

 be planted with forethought as regards the succes- 

 sions that are required, and this greenhouse, 

 capable as it is of being wheeled from one site to 

 another, can, under its protecting warmth, force on 

 different crops as they are wanted. 



Even if such an elaborate structure is not feasible 

 it is quite easy to grow ample supplies of every kind 

 of vegetable, provided the owner is prepared to 

 dispense with some ornament. How much better, 

 for instance, to force on food supplies beneath the 

 staging than to have there a miniature rock-garden 

 with ferns but seldom wanted and never looked at 

 by the owner when he shows his friends round. 

 Then, too, in place of some of the houses, now 

 devoted to a mixed and ill-assorted collection of 

 crotons, begonias, orchids, lilies, tuberoses, cycla- 

 men, all arranged apparently to banish restful- 

 ness and cause violent surprises to the tired eye, 

 how much more interesting it would be to con- 

 centrate one's energy upon growing well a few 

 plants that would be of use for the dinner-table ! 



Glasshouses, in the average modern garden, are 



