THE PEACH AND NECTARINE. 141 



should, of course, run north and south. The span- 

 roofed form affords a great amount of training surface, 

 and gets the sun morning, noon, and evening. The 

 wires should be fixed at 16 inches from the glass, and 

 7 inches apart. In span -roofed houses the whole 

 surface of glass from the bottom of the front lights 

 upwards is available for being furnished with bearing 

 wood, as it gets ample light. For heating such houses 

 when, say, 60 feet long by 20 feet wide, there should 

 be at least four rows of 4 -inch pipes round each side 

 and both ends. There cannot be a greater mistake 

 than that of under-heating with either pipes or boiler- 

 power. It is much safer and more economical to err 

 on the side of having too much than too little. It 

 saves fire, and keeps up the required temperature 

 without violently heating the pipes. 



For late crops to be ripened without fire-heat, and 

 when the object is to have peaches on to the end of 

 October, the span-roofed form of peach-house is also 

 best. At the same time, when an existing garden wall 

 can be covered with a lean-to glass roof, it answers 

 perfectly well. A house of this description say 11 

 feet wide, with trees covering the whole back wall, 

 and so far up the roof from the front as not to shade 

 the trees on the back wall gives great space for 

 peaches. There should be ample ventilation at front 

 and top, kept constantly on after all danger from frost 

 is over. I have gathered peaches Walburton Admir- 

 able and Sea Eagle as late as the 24th October ; 

 while earlier varieties in the same house were ripe in 

 the middle of August. In a house of this description 

 there should always be a flow and return pipe, to 

 keep frost from the trees when in blossom. I have 



