THE QUAINT AND DURABLE THATCHED ROOF 



plants, the charm of the heather-covered roofs of 

 rural Holland is readily achieved. The practical 

 points concerning durable thatching are of most im- 

 portance, however ; the decorative touches are merely 

 a pleasing afterthought. 



We are inclined to look upon a thatched roof as a 

 temporary affair in this country. But with the 

 wider experimenting during recent years, it has been 

 found that even with -our unskilled thatching, in- 

 tended merely for garden decoration, a well-laid roof 

 of straw or reed can be depended upon to last from 

 fifteen to twenty years with very little repair. Many 

 of the thatched roofs of England and Holland last 

 for thirty or forty years with care in renewing the 

 weak spots ; while in Japan, where bamboo strips ajnd 

 tile ridges are used in connection with thatching of 

 tough reeds, the roofs frequently outlast the struc- 

 tures which they cover. 



The usual grades of soft meadow hay should not 

 be used for thatching. Many dilapidated specimens 

 of unsatisfactory roofs are failures merely because 

 the thatching material was unwisely chosen. Good, 

 firm straw is dependable, especially rye, wheat, and 

 oat straw. There are various tough reeds and 

 rushes that may be plentifully gathered in our 

 marshes, that will provide a roof practically inde- 

 structible when carefully laid. 



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