Gratiola 



(387) 



Greenhouse 



dried, and stored away for winter use. They come 

 in well for mixing with " Everlasting" and fresh 

 flowers, or tiny may be arranged in vases by them- 

 selves, or with other dried subjects. A short list is 

 Driven of plants that may bn thus grown : 

 *Agrostis elegans. minor. 



* nebulosa. Bromus brizarformis. 



pulchella. Eragrostis elegaus. 



Aira flexuosa. *Hordeum jubutum. 



*Briza maxima. *Lagurus ovatus. 



Some of these annuals may be sown about the 

 beginning of August if the weather be damp, at 

 the beginning of September if August be dry. The 

 seedlings will stand the winter, as they are 

 perfectly hardy, and naturally the seeds would be 

 self-sown about this time. The following year 

 they will develop sturdy plants, and extra big 

 panicles of flower. Those marked with an asterisk 

 are available for pot culture. Sow the seed thinly, 

 and cover it lightly, towards the end of February. 

 Thin the seedlings gradually until they are about 

 1" apart. Five inch and fi" pots arc the handiest, 

 and as the seed may be sown in them no repotting 

 is required. 



GRATIOLA. 



Herbaceous plants (ord. Scrophularineas), almost 

 all of which are quite hardy, and can be increased 

 in spring by division. A rich, moist soil suits. 



Principal Species : 



niuv;i, (>", Je., yel. ramosn, (i", Je., wh. (.\'/^. 



officinalis, 12", Jy., wh. quadrkleututu). 



striped pur. 



Other Species : 

 officinalis minor, 8", sum., pilosa, 12", sum., wh. 



bl. tetragona (nee Stemodia 



peru viana, 12", Jy., wh. lobelioides) . 



GRAVEL. 



Of the numerous sorts of gravel obtainable, the 

 C'roydon is the best. If screened before it is laid 

 down, to take out the big stones, and well rolled, 

 it soon sets hard, and makes a firm and agreeable 

 surface for walking on. Seaside gravel is of the 

 least value, as it does not set, but leaves a rough, 

 pebbly surface that is very uncomfortable for 

 pedestrians. (For particulars as to the making of 

 gravel paths, see PATHS.) 



GRAVESIA. 



Stove plants of dwarf habit (urd. Melastomacete), 

 closely allied to the Bertolonias and requiring 

 similar cultural conditions. 



Principal Species and Varieties : 



guttata, 1', HI. Several vars., all with beauti- 

 fully variegated Ivs., coloured with wh., grn., ro. ; 

 the best are albo-punctulata, margaritacea, roseo- 

 punctulata, and superba. 



GREEN FLY (sec APHIDES). 



GREENHOUSE. 



A greenhouse is distinct from a conservatory, by 

 reason of the fact that the latter is usually a show 

 house, plants only being taken into it when they 

 are in the height of their beauty, whereas in the 

 greenhouse they are grown on to the flowering 

 stage. In many cases, however, this distinction 

 does not exist, 'for the term "greenhouse" em- 

 braces houses of almost all forms and sizes. 



Points of a Good Greenhouse. Plenty of light 

 is the first essential. Without it plants will grow 

 spindly, and will flower badly. Provision must be 



(rrcen-gayf (sir J'l/imx). 



made for admitting plenty of air, for greenhouse 

 plants must never be coddled. Roof lights that 

 will lift up or slide down the former preferably, 

 as they admit air but keep out the rain should be 

 fixed. Gratings, opening and closing by shutters, 

 should be fixed in the supporting walls, so that the 

 air is warmed by passing over the hot-water pipes 

 in winter. Side lights, working on hinges beneath 

 I the eaves, are advantageous in hot weather. The 

 I greenhouse should be supplied with- the means of 

 I keeping out the frost in winter, and to this end 

 j hot-water pipes should be fixed. Without them 

 the utility of the house is much discounted at a 

 time when it should be greatest. (See HEATING.) 

 Aspect and Construction. The different makes 

 of greenhouses may be divided into three the 

 span-roof, the half-span or hip-roof, and the lean-to. 

 The first-named is the best of all, for it not only 

 gives the maximum amount of light and air, but 

 is the roomiest and handiest. The half-span and 

 the lean-to both need the support of a wall, and 

 one of these forms is usually adopted when the 

 greenhouse is built on to the dwellinghouse. In all 

 cases the structure should rest upon low, support- 

 ing walls of brickwork, except in the case of 

 tenants' fixtures, when posts driven into the ground 

 take the weight. The sides are then made of 

 rough weather boarding. The internal arrange- 

 ments of a span-roofed greenhouse may consist of 

 a central stage, a path all the way round it, and 

 side stages. The width of these will depend upon 

 the size of the house. Thus, for a house 12' wide 

 the central stage may be 4', the path 2', and the 

 side stages 2' wide. If desired, the central stage 

 may be built in several tiers of shelves, rising one 

 above the other, the highest in the centre. This 

 arrangement is to be recommended where the 

 majority of the plants grown are small, as they 

 are then brought up near to the glass. Where big 

 plants are included, aflat central stage is the IK-HIT. 

 The stage may be of the " wooden rack " kind, that 

 is, a strong trellis of woodwork, but this is open to 

 the objection that it is too drying for the plants 

 during the summer time. It is, however, cleanly, 

 and has its advantages. A favourite plan is to 

 have a slate bed, the slates being nailed 'on to a 

 stout framework, and covered with 1" or a little 

 more of white shingle, crushed coke, or " breeze." 

 This provides a moister " bottom " for the plants. 

 and suits them better than the wooden " rack." 

 Both the half-span or hip-roof and the lean-to 

 may have one broad stage fixed to the back wall, 

 a path going round two or three sides of it, and a 

 front stage. For a house 10' wide the back stage 

 may be 5', the path 2' 6", and the front stage 2' ti" 

 wide. These figures are only suggestive, and by 

 no means arbitrary. A span-roofed house should 

 run north and south, so that the sun is shining 

 upon some part of it all day long. Half-span and 

 lean-to erections should lie exposed to the south, 

 or south-east, or south-west, the first-named for 

 preference. A house facing to the north is of very 

 little use for flowering plants, and in many oasea 

 the unsuitable aspect is the true cause of failures 

 which are laid to the charge of the nurseryman for 

 supplying bad plants, or the gardener for failing t<> 

 look after them properly. A north house is reliable 

 for Kerns and foliage plants generally, but for little 

 else. 



Temperatures. Winter minimum. 40 for a cool, 

 50 for a warm house. During the day :i rise of 

 5 by fire heat and 111 by sun heat, with air. may 

 be allowed. During summer keep plenty of air on, 



