GREENHOUSE 



to the light adapted to the plauts for which it is pro- 

 vided. 



It -nill readily be seen that to locate and plan a range 

 of glass to the best advantage requires skill and expe- 

 rience In 1 communication recentlj received bj the 



GREENHOUSE 



687 



"X 





fM 



Wk 



i-tk 



ered Plant hou 



wiiter from a superintendent of one of the most im 

 portint botanic gardens in the country, it was remarked 

 that "when the architect prevails, the gardener fails. 

 It is also true to a greater degree than in almost any 

 other class of buildings that the beginner or amateur 

 who undertakes to plan and construct his own Green- 

 house is likely to pay well for his experience, and will 

 at least sympathize with the "lawyer who pleaded his 

 own cause and found he had a fool for a client." This 

 is perfectly true, as many know to their cost. To plan a 

 Greenhouse satisfactorily the designer must have a 

 practical knowledge of the requirements. To meet this 

 increasing demand, specialists can bo found, known as 

 "horticultural architects," who devote their entire 

 time to this branch of work. 



Grnrl!ng. — The floor of the Greenhouse should be a 

 few inches above the outside grade. As most Green- 

 houses are necessarily built low to accommodate the 

 plants, a small terrace around them adds to the eleva- 

 tion and the good appearance of the structure, 

 usually be best to keep the floor of a Greenhous 

 one level. When the variation in the grade of the 

 is not too great, the floor line should be at the highest 

 point of the grade. In the case of a long 

 house, the floor line is sometimes made the 

 same as the natural grade, but such an ar- 

 rangement is to be avoided when possible. 

 For locations on a hillside, the different 

 apartments may have different floor levels, 

 with necessary steps between 

 them. 



All the sod and loam should be 

 removed from the space to be 

 covered by a Greenhouse, and all 

 the filling necessary made with 

 subsoil. The latter should be laid 

 in thin layers and each wet down 

 and thoroughly tamped. Loam 

 used for filling under a Green- 

 house is apt to become sour, and 

 will continue to settle for a long 

 time, causing much trouble and 



An inexpensive wall of rubble stone work or of concrete 



is all that is needed in the ground. The part of the wall 



showing above grade may be of plain brick or faced with 



stone, to correspond with the construction of other 



surrounding buildings A good substitute for these 



masonry walls i, f„ii„d in the use of cast-iron 



posts in conn i i m ' il Ii boarding. A 



lemovible 1) I 1 lint which can 



] [' ^y leadilybeiii m nuKh to the 



I ""^ MlueofthisL n , I I lug It durable 



I ind satisfianj Ul 1 Lcii quite exten- 



siMly adopted bj lluusts in houses for 



■ nnmercial purposes and for small and inex- 



I iisneGieenhouses It is lecommended for 



u h houses 



»i»Ho)A —The construction best 

 3d for conser^ itories, park houses and 

 houses, and for private places where 

 ' ih iinpio\enieiits iiedesired tobepermanent 



, 111 h 11 11 ti 1 tiul itti ictne in appearance, is 



fc ^ 1 1 1 oml iiiatum ot lion and wood In this 



. t Ul, the ill ini fi une which supports the 



I ulit and sti ml is of uon oi steel, wood 



J I iii„' Ubed lu the fumes foi the setting of 



' /_ 111 glass, and to foim a non conductor, of 



, - 11 It advantage in the heating of the house. 



I I lie ironwork in this stj le of construction 



usually consihts of cast iion sills capping 

 the foundation w ills, wiought uon rafters 

 setting on the siUs, about 8 feet apart and 

 running from sill to iidge foinimg the side post and 

 rafter in one piece, cast uon gutters, and angle-iron 

 purlins between the rafters, all secuiely bracketed and 

 bolted together, forming a complete framework of 

 metal, light, strong and durable. The wood used con- 

 sists of light sash bars for the setting of the glass, 

 sashes for ventilation, and doors. This woodwork being 

 entirely supported by the metal frame, and not being 

 used where it will be continually wet, will be found as 

 durable as any other material, and for many reasons 

 better adapted for the requirements of a Greenhouse 

 roof. This combinatipa system of metal and wood con- 

 struction has been extensively adopted by florists and 

 large growers of cut-flowers, though generally with the 

 cast-iron post style of foundation. The first cost is 

 somewhat increased over an all-wood construction, but 

 in view of its greater durability and saving in repairs, 

 it will be found in the end 

 the better investment. In 

 cases in which the roof 

 water is not needed for 

 watering the houses, an 



-Too ; 



Founrlat 

 cannot be given to tl 

 of good foundation 

 usually of brick, but may be made 

 of stone or concrete, the brick 

 walls take up less room in the 

 house than stone, and are usually 



less expensive. The foundation walls should be extended 

 down to a point below the frost line, generally 3 or 4 feet 

 deep, and are usually raised about 2 feet above the grade. 



44 



3 preparation 



990. Even-span curvilinear Greenhouse. 



With cast-iron piping. 



angle-iron plate is s 

 as to allow the sni 

 the roof entirely cl 



abstituted for the gutter, so framed 

 w and ice to slide over it, keeping 

 ar from such accumulations, which 



