OR, HOW I BECAME A FLORIST. 93 



planed on the inside, or towards the walk. Thus we have 

 left a narrow path, two feet wide through the centre of the 

 house. On each side of this walk about a foot from the 

 floor runs a four-inch iron pipe, which, when filled with hot 

 water from the boiler, keeps the place warm in the winter. 

 Outside the path is a long trough four feet wide and two 

 feet deep. This is to be filled with soil, and in or on 

 this soil the plants are to grow or stand in pots. When it 

 is full this is called "the border.' 7 The second house is 

 precisely like this, except that it is divided in the middle 

 by a partition, having a door in it. That portion I call 

 the east house ; beyond, the violet house. At the entrance 

 of each of these houses is a " cut-oif " in the hot-water 

 pipe, to regulate the heat. The borders in these three 

 houses form my winter farm. Their united length is four 

 hundred feet. In this space, four hundred feet by four, 

 or sixteen hundred square feet, I expect to produce all the 

 flowers I require in my business. Beneath the shed is a 

 deep pit, having the sides plastered over with cement. 

 The rain falling on the glass roofs runs into this, and sup- 

 plies the water for my plants. Directly over the walks, 

 and within easy reach, iron rachets are fastened to every 

 other sash. These enabled me to tilt the sashes up for 

 ventilation, or remove them altogether if wished. I did 

 not adopt Mr. McTernan's method of opening the ventila- 

 tors, partly because I had no high stage to climb, and 

 partly because my plan was cheaper. 



