108 



NEW ENGLAND FARMER. 



Txtracts from a " Joi roal of a Horticultural Tour 

 through some parts of Flanders, Holland, and the 

 North of France, by a Deputation of the Caledonian 

 Horticultural Society." 



STEAM IN II0T-H0r?E5. 



" For increasing' and keopintr steady the tem- 

 perature in several of his hot-houses, Mr. An- 

 drews has of late etn|>loyed sleam, in aid of the 

 ordinary dues convovins;' smoke and heated air. 

 The steam is carried through the house hy 

 moans of metal j>ipes, which are laid along the 

 top of the hrick flues. The pipes are of cop- 

 per, on account of its expanding less than lead. 

 They are of a square form, and are set on cd2;e, 

 so that any condensed vapor trickling' to (he 

 bottom may occupy hut litth^ roiim, or present 

 only a small surface. As in the common steam 

 ensjine, the holler is made to regulate itself by 

 a siuiple coutrivance : it is furnished with a 

 float, which descending in profjortion as the 

 witer is dissipated in steam, in due time raises 

 a valve and admits a new supply of water. — 

 The superfluous condensed vapor also returns 

 to the holler, there being no other provision 

 for disijo^ing of it. It is scarcely necessary to 

 add, that hy merely opening a valve, the house 

 can at pleasure be xlenuic:!, i. e. tilled with 

 steam, than which nothing can he more con- 

 ducive to the heallh and vi<i:or of plants contiu- 

 pd in a hot-hou*e We were assured that seven 

 bushels of coal go as far in keeping up the 

 steam-heat, as ten bushels do in maiut-iining an 

 equal temperature the other way. When the 

 aid of steain is resorted to, the temperature is 

 found to be more easily regulated, continuing 

 equable for a considerable length of time. Mr. 

 Andrews Junior, mentioned, that the furnace 

 being duly charge<l, and the boiler prepared, 

 he couM w.th confidence leave the hot-house 

 for eight or even ten hours together, being 

 satisfied that the temperature would continue 

 to be maintained for that length of time." 



MARKET FOR EUTCHEr's MEAT. 



" The market for butcher's meat in Ghent is 

 kept extremely neat and clean ; no oflTensivc 

 streams of blood are to be seen, every thing of 

 that sort being confined to the shambles. E^ich 

 dealer in meat keeps a carpenter's plane, with 

 which he daily shaves the surface of the table 

 «f his stall; so that a stranger would he apt to 

 think that all the tables were new." 



MAWER OF FORCING RASPBERRIES. 



"Raspberries are forced at Haarlem. The 

 bushes are planted on the North and SoiKli 

 sides of a pit tilled with tanner's bark, leaves 

 or stable-litter. The shoots of last year were 

 at this time laid down to a horizontal trillis 

 {structure of wood or iron] where they liad • 

 yielded^ fruit in the vernal month'. All means 

 •of artificial heat were now (the 29th August) 

 of course removed. The shoots of this year 

 were allowed to spring upright; and these will 

 in their turn be lai<l down to the trellis at the 

 approach of winter, when the others will be 

 cut away. The gardener told us that raspber- 

 ry plants thus treated yield large crops; nnd 

 doubtless they are better adapted to this mode 

 of forcing than vines." 



ON RAISING NEW VARIETIES OF FRUIT. 



"The experience of Mr. Vans .Alons (a fa- 

 mous Dutch horticulturist) confirms what has 



been observed by British horticulturists, — that 

 (he fruit produced by a seedling tree in the 

 first year of hearing, affords by no means a fair 

 criterion of its future merit. If a pear or an 

 apple possess promising qualities, a white and 

 heavy pnip, with juice of rather pungent acidi- 

 ty, it may he expected in the second, third and 

 subsequent years greatly to improve, in size 

 and flavor ; particularly if the buds, leaves, 

 bark and wood possess the characteristics of 

 approved bearing trees. Mr. Van Mons added 

 a remark which vve do not recollect to have 

 met with in horticultural writings — That by 

 sowing the seeds of new varieties of fruits, we 

 may ex[)ect with much greater probability to 

 obtain other new kinds of good quality, than 

 by employing the seeds even of the best old 

 established sorts. He likewise gave it as his 

 opinion that if the kernels of old varieties were 

 to be sown it would be better to employ those 

 of other countries similar in climate." 



NOTICES OF ENGLISH GARDENS AND IIOT-HOl'SES. 



" Mr. Grange, of Hoxton, in the neighbor- 

 hood of London, has fil'ty-seven acres under the 

 spade. It is about seventeen years since he 

 took possession of his grounds, and all the erec- 

 tions on them, connected with his establish- 

 ment, which are very considerable, have been 

 done at his own expense. It appears from a_ 

 sketclir",vhlch I took, that the hot-houses he had 

 erected might be about 580 feet in extent ; a 

 great part of which were double roof.'d houses, 

 projecting at right angles from a range of about 

 20U feet. At the back of these, sheds extend 

 the whole length, suitably fitted up for the ac- 

 commodation of his servants and other pur- 

 poses. It forms the largest establishment oi 

 the kind that ever fell under our notice. He 

 has introduced steam into two of his houses, in 

 which he forces early strawberries, grapes and 

 French beans to a great extent. In these houses 

 stages are erected pretty near the glass for sup- 

 porting the pots. He had about 15,000 pots of 

 the Roseberry-strawberry plant ready for forc- 

 ing, and said he had not been without ripe 

 strawberries for 13 months past. V.'lien I\Ir. 

 Grange shall have finished (he extensive suit 

 of hot-houses he is now erecting, and which is 

 to be heated by steam, he intends to force pea 

 ches, grapes, cherries, figs, pine apples, jargo- 

 nelle-pears and ajiricots. He has also a large 

 ice-house, chiefly above ground, and entirely 

 built of wood. It is divided into three parts, 

 and its roof has much the figure of a large 

 Dutch barn, approaching to the ground, and 

 thatched five or six l"ect thick. When the ice 

 in the first division is consumed, he opens ; 

 door into the second, and works through it inti 

 the third division. He keeps this for the sup- 

 ply of his elegant fruit-shop in Westminster 

 with ice." 



At Bruges, in Flanders, on the 12th of Au- 

 gust, the Committee observe : " In Ihe course 

 of our evening walk, we were attracted by a 

 novel ap[)earance in husbandry, the labors of' 

 the seed time and harvest seeming here to be 

 united and contemporaneous. We entered a 

 fine field of luxuriant rye, part of which re- 

 mained nncut, but a large proportion h id been 

 cut down this morning, (August 12.) The crop 

 had been carried aside; well rotted dung had 

 been pretty liberally laid on the stublde; l!ie 

 Flemish plough was now at work ; and to com- 



plete (his picture of industry and expediti 

 man was actually engaged in sowing turnif 

 the same portions of (he ploughed fields, 

 which the rye crop had been reaped in 

 morning."* 



" We must not orail fo take notice of a 

 large sort of hoe used for cleaning the gi 

 walks in the Duke of Aremberg's garden 

 is worked by tvvo men, and is furnished 

 wheels, which greatly facilitate its mnvemi 

 one man pulls forward, while the other 

 laics the hoe, according to the nature and 

 dance of Ihe weeds to be extirpated. The 

 ptitch thus afforded is great ; two men ,1 

 able eftectually, and without interfering 

 the olhcr garden operations, to do the 

 ivhich formf^rly occupied six men, fo the 

 lect of the ordinary business of the garde 

 Ihe time. It is best suited to the cleanii 

 lifi;ht sandy walks, but a similar impic 

 might, in many places, where there are e 

 sive gravel walks, be advantageously em 

 ed." A similar hoe is likewise in use 

 gardens near Paris. 



* The last number of the Mas.^achusetts Agricr 

 Repository contains the followino; remark on Ihi 

 sajr : " This example ought not to be lost on us. 

 SUM is much more powerful, and our vegetation 

 rapid than i i Flanders. We know that some f; 

 do raise second crops with us ; hut may we not 

 the system much farther ? We certainly can do 

 limiting the extent of our cultivated grounds, ai 

 stowing greater labor on the quantity we do culti' 

 Fur a remarkahlr example of raising turnips as 

 ond crop, we would refar to the statement of 

 Biie], Fsq. published in the first vol. of this paj 

 ]:J1. It appears by that article that Mr. Buel 

 Inrnips at the rate of 760 bushels to an acre, on g^ 

 wliich had previous!)', the same year, produced 

 of clover, rye, wheat, flax and peas. 



A hint to Stage or^iicrs. — The inconven 

 and misery of cold feet, while riding in s 

 in the winter, is obviated in the IN'or 

 France, by means of pewter tanks (made 

 the manner of water plates) being fitted ti 

 bottom of the stages, and filled with hot m 

 •at each stopping j)(ace, which impart no(i 

 warmth (o (he feet in the coldest weathe 

 a pleasant glow of heat through the y 

 «tage, similar to that experienced in a 

 room. == 



GOOD INK.— From Nilcs' Register. 



The following notice, copied from the il 

 mond " inquirer," and aildressed to the 

 of courts of justice" in Virginia, involves a<i 

 ler of great importance to the public ; an(H 

 every one may possess l.imself of ink (hatjiii 



rable, I republish, from the 17ih vol. o^ 

 •• Register," the following receipt, whicW 

 furnished to me by the lale Joseph Jiunesk 

 who was remarkable for his attention toi 

 ters of this nature, and withal a good chfll 

 and exceedingly fond of useful experii^ 

 The character of (he ink, made accorditti ill 

 his directions, is this — it is very strong aiA A 

 rable, yet flows freely from the pen : it | 

 commonly black, yet dries very quickly. • 

 1 repeat, once more, it to be importaj 

 ihe highest degree, that records, (which ( w 

 endure for ages,) be written with strong; e 

 ble ink : and it is much to he regreded Ih «r 

 former mild and friendly admonif.ous to a * 

 on (his siibjcci, have had little or no efTeoS 111 

 evil seems indeed to be progressive and gaii s 



