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immediately about their roots ; and at the same 

 time the advantage of a warm vapour for heating 

 the internal air, assisted by fire-heat in the flues 

 in the winter season, but which in summer and 

 autumn is sufficient alone; producing, from the 

 beginning of spring till October, an effectual 

 temperature of internal heat, for the preserva- 

 tion and growth of almost all such tender 

 exotic plants as are natives of different parts of 

 the hot regions of South America, Asta, and 

 Africa. 



Hot-houses or stoves of the common width 

 have in general only one pit extending length- 

 ways of them, as described above,; but if they 

 arc of considerable extent in length, the pits are 

 sometimes divided in the middle, or at other 

 parts, by intervening passages, to render them 

 more convenient in performing the necessary 

 culture of the plants. Some hot-houses of very 

 great width have likewise two bark-pits ranging 

 parallel lengthways with a passage extending be- 

 tween them, which renders them more commo- 

 dious in giving the requisite culture to the plants 

 that are plunged in the beds, than if the whole 

 was in one extremely wide pit, in which it would 

 often be very inconvenient to come at the plants 

 placed towards the middle; and by having an 

 intervening passage, give a larger scope, and 

 afford a better current of air for the growth of 

 the plants in the beds, as well as admit of 

 viewing them to much greater advantage and 

 effect. 



Detached or external bark-pits are such erec- 

 tions as are formed separate and distinct from 

 hot-houses or stoves, but in some manner con- 

 nected with them, being employed for samilar 

 uses, as well as for various other purposes where 

 occasional artificial heat is wanted. They are 

 made, as has been just observed, four, Eve, or 

 six feet wide, having such lengths as may be 

 required, formed by surrounding walls of brick- 

 work, three or four feet in height in the fronts, 

 by four, five, or six behind, where sometimes 

 flues lor winter lire heat are erected in the upper 

 parts, the whole being coed and covered at top 

 with moveable glass frames sloping southwards 

 to the full sun, and in which a bark-bed being 

 made to the whole width, length, and depth, 

 becomes an useful appendage to the stove, 

 greatly assisting in the culture of vari ius tender 

 exotics of that rep isltory, especially in the way 

 of nursery-pits for raising and preserving them 

 to some advanced state of growth j also" occa- 

 sionally in the propagation and protection of the 

 more tender kinds of green-house plants, or any 

 particular curious or tender plant of the full 

 ground, as being always readv, and prepared 

 with a continuing growing heat, in which to 



plunge the pots, where artificial heat is re- 

 quired, or essentially necessary in raising such 

 tender plants more effectually and expeditiously. 

 These kinds of bark-pits also prove exceedingly 

 useful in raising many sorts of tender exotics 

 from seeds, suckers, cuttings, slips, Sec, and in 

 retaining and forwarding them in their growth 

 for some time. Bark-pits of this kind are likewise, 

 as has been seen, particularly useful and necessary 

 in the culture of young pine-apple plants; for 

 rearing and nursing them till of a proper age and 

 size to be placed in the succession-house, fruit- 

 ing-stove, or pinery. Similar kinds of detached 

 bark-pits are likewise occasionally used with ad-- 

 vantage in planting, transplanting, and shifting 

 tender or curious plants in pots ; for plunging 

 the pots which contain them in as soon as re- 

 planted, which much expedites their taking fresh 

 root, and brings them up at first into a free and 

 vigorous growth. Bark-pits of the same kind 

 are also successfully employed in forcing and 

 raising early productions, such as melons, kid- 

 ney-beans, peas, strawberries, ike. ; and for 

 many sorts of flowers, both of the bulbous- 

 rooted and herbaceous kinds, as well as for small 

 flowering shrubs. And if the dimension of them 

 be sufficiently increased, especially in height in 

 the back parts, they may be made use of for 

 several sorts of dw arf fruit-trees in pots, in order 

 to the production of early fruit. Detached bark- 

 pits should always be erected in warm dry situ- 

 ations, in a southerly aspect, and be constantly 

 ranged lengthways in the direction of east and 

 west, or nearly so, in order to have the whole 

 fronts incline fully to the south sun, in a sloping 

 manner, on which to place the glasses in the 

 same position, being placed either contiguous to 

 the hot-houses or stoves, but at a proper di- 

 stance m front of them, as the situation or con- 

 venience of ihe place may admit, or at one or 

 both ends, extending in a line with them, but 

 separated by a passage between them. But de- 

 tached bark-pits arc sometimes formed with 

 ridged tops, like the roofs of houses, the glasses 

 sloping to both sides, being ranged lengthways 

 north and south, in order to have the benefit of 

 the sun equally on both sides, and used tor the 

 same purposes as the others ; though the com- 

 mon south-t ■ >nting pits are more generally em- 

 ployed, as being less expensive in glass, and in 

 comm .a more convenient for purposes of the 

 forcing kind. They should be constructed, as 

 has been observed, with brick walls, on the sides 

 and ends nine inches thick ; and where fire-flues 

 are intended, the back walls should be of a 

 proper thickness from the bottom, to admit of 

 having them in the upper parts, a fire-place 

 being contrived externally at the bottom at one' 



