614 THE HOT-HOUSE. [DEC. 



If you find the frost likely to reach your plants, notwithstanding 

 all this care, you must heat the flues by gentle fires at night, and 

 also in the daytime when the frost is very piercing and the weather 

 dark; and, indeed, without such a convenience it is almost useless 

 to attempt the erection or trouble of a green-house, either in the 

 middle or eastern States, on account of their extremely rigorous 

 winters. But you must be particular never to heat the air in the 

 night-time above 40 or 45 degrees of Fahrenheit's thermometer; for 

 all the heat that the plants require at this season is only just as much 

 as will preserve them effectually from frost. 



However, be very particular every day, when the weather is mild 

 and the sun shining on the windows, to slide down the sashes, even 

 for but half an hour in the middle of the day, to admit fresh air and 

 ventilate the house ; for if the plants are kept too close they will 

 become tender and weak, and besides it will cause the leave's of 

 some kinds to turn of a yellowish sickly color, and afterwards to get 

 mouldy and drop off. 



N. B. The plants must never be deprived of light by keeping the 

 shutters closed a moment longer than it is found absolutely neces- 

 sary for their preservation ; and though I am not an advocate for 

 much fire-heat in a green-house, yet I would prefer it to keeping 

 the plants too long in darkness, which has an extremely bad effect 

 upon them. 



For particulars respecting watering and other information, I would 

 recommend to your perusal at this term the entire of the article 

 green-house in January, and also in February, pages 98 and 174. 

 The general care during each of these months is nearly the same. 



The plants which you are wintering in garden-frames must now 

 be carefully attended, agreeably to the directions given in page 594. 



THE HOT-HOUSE. 



The frost generally sets in very severe in this month, and the 

 winds are keen and cutting ; therefore it will be necessary to keep 

 up your fire-heat in proportion to the severity of the weather, which 

 must be regulated by a thermometer, never letting the air of the 

 house in the night or cloudy days be colder than 52 degrees of Fah- 

 renheit, nor warmer at this season by fire heat than 62 or there- 

 abouts with sunshine it may rise to 70 or 75 for it is very 

 injudicious to force the plants now into a fresh state of vegetation. 

 All that they want at present is to be kept comfortably warm and 

 rather in an inactive state; consequently, as the heat of the day in 

 sunny weather increases, you must slacken your fires or put them 

 totally out, as the case may be, always renewing them in the after- 

 noon or whenever you find the due warmth on the decline. 



It will be generally necessary to attend the fires till eleven or 

 twelve o'clock at night, when, if wanted, a sufficiency of fuel must 



