CUCUMBERS UNDER GLASS. 199 



growth of the plants and, later on, supply food for the 

 development of the crop of fruit. 



CUCUMBERS UNDER GLASS. 



Many growers have found the cucumber a profitable 

 crop, particularly to follow the second or third crop of 

 lettuce, to be sold during the early summer. While 

 cucumbers thrive in lean-to or span-roof houses, the 

 three-quarter span forcing house seems particularly 

 adapted to their growth. The house should be arranged 

 so as to provide for thorough ventilation, but as cold air 

 is injurious to the tender plants, the ventilators should 

 be so situated as to admit fresh air without producing a 

 draft. Ridge ventilators, hinged at the lower side, seem 

 best of all for this purpose. 



The heating apparatus should be arranged to fur- 

 nish a night temperature of 65 degrees, and the pipes 

 should be, at least in part, overhead. Perhaps the best 

 arrangement will be to have the flow pipes overhead, 

 and one or two returns on each side brought back on 

 the plates, with the remainder under the benches, where 

 they will provide the necessary bottom heat, when raised 

 benches are used, or in the walks in houses with solid 

 beds. This arrangement will prevent any downward 

 currents of cold air upon the plants. The tables or beds 

 may be arranged as in a rose house, or they may consist 

 of a wide bench in the center and a narrow one at each 

 side (Fig. 74). A house eighteen feet wide will be 

 adapted for growing cucumbers, but any width up to 

 thirty feet may be used, and the wider houses will gen- 

 erally be preferable. 



When used as a succession crop, the cucumbers are 

 not started until about December or January, but with 

 a good market they will be found, profitable if started 

 in the fall, and fruited during the winter. The seeds 

 should be sown either in four-inch pots, or in trans- 



