460 
THE GARDENERY’ 
CHRONICLE. 
[Juty 8, 
| their masters ; but we would now entreat the latter 
to follow the example of the Royal Duke, whose kind 
Ht heart would, we are well persuaded, be in no way more 
gratified than by finding that he had succeeded in 
i awakening the sympathies of those who can so well 
afford to part with a part of their abundance for the 
HH relief of the oup and destitute Gardener. 
THE TANK SYSTEM. 
I} I nave lately altered the mode of heating my hothouse, 
by introducing Mr. Rendle’s tank system ; and as I have 
differed from the plan proposed by him in some material 
"i points, I think that many of your readers may be inte- 
| rested by an account of it, and may possibly be induced 
to follow the mode which I have adopted, which appears 
to me to be an improvement in some respects on that of 
Mr. Rendle. I send you a drawing of the house, with the 
tanks, as now at work. It is drawn to a scale of 4, inch 
to a foot, so that a pair of compasses will at once give the 
dimensions. A is the boiler, the top of which is level 
with the floor of the house, the fireplace being in a back 
shed. The boiler is a small conical one, made by Messrs. 
Hood, ironfounders, Earl-street, Blackfriars. 
B1 and 
Ve 
B 2 are the tanks; C is a trap-door, opening into the 
\ tank, which I can lift up at pleasure, and fill the house 
with steam. The arrows indicate the course of the water 
through the tanks and pipes. The two pipes, though 
drawn side by side (to show themselves) are really one 
above the other—the return-pipe being, of course, the 
lower ; above these pipes is a stone shelf. Tank B1 is 
i made of Oak, the other (B 2) of Elm; the wood of each 
Hi is 23 inches in thickness, and they stand on Oak blocks 
| 3 inches thick, to raise them from the floor ; this not 
i only tends to prevent their decay, but promotes at the 
| same time a freer circulation of the hot air. The bottom- 
i boards are placed the lengthway of the tank, and not 
“across the bed,’’ as recommended by Mr. Rendle. All 
it the carpenters to whom I have spoken on the subject 
agree in saying that they should not be placed across but 
lengthwise, and as the tank ought invariably to stand on 
blocks about two or three feet asunder, it is impossible 
that the boards can be strained by the weight of water, 
inasmuch as each board receives a support from every 
block. The bottom as well as the sides of the tanks are 
bolted together by iron bars, five-eighths of an inch in 
thickness, passed through the wood, and screwed up as 
tightly as possible. Each tank is divided by an inch-and- 
half Elm board, and is covered with common roofing 
\ slate, those that are generally called ‘‘ Princesses;’’ being 
j 24 inches long and 14 wide. Mr. Rendle recommends 
(p. 15) that ‘these slates should be 14 inch thick, that 
the edges should be cut square, and the joints well stopped 
with Roman cement or Aberthaw lime, to prevent a 
| superfluity of steam from escaping into the house ;”’ and he 
adds (p. 30)—‘ The slates need be of the best quality, to 
withstand the heat of the water, and care should be taken 
that their edges be made evenly ; the slates for this pur- 
pose cost me (at Plymouth), 33d. per foot.”” I foundon 
inquiry that I could not have got slates of such a thick- 
j ness, of the best quality, and carefully cut square at the 
j edges, under 10d. or 1s. per foot, which would much have 
i increased the cost of the work. T therefore tried the 
common Welsh roofing-slates, which cost me not quite a 
} penny per foot, and I find that they answer the purpose 
i remarkably well. I did not cut the edges square, but I 
used them just as I purchased them, and stopped the 
j joints merely with wetted clay. There is no fear of too 
i much steam escaping into the house. I am constantly 
forced to syringe and open the trap-door, to let out more 
steam. As the divisions of tank B 1 were 15 inches wide, 
Thad a small strip of Oak nailed on the inside of the 
tank, of sufficient thickness to allow the slates (which were 
j 14 inches wide, to reach across. Round the edges of the 
i tanks I placed (as Mr. R. recommends) an inch board 
| 11 inches deep, and the plunging material which 1 use 
is fine sand. The slates carry the weight of this sand, 
though 11 inches deep, with ease, not one of them having 
cracked as yet; indeed, they would bear a much greater 
weight, for I saw one of the masons stand with his whole 
on Ina 
t 
i 
NE 
v< s 
y: 
a 
This much increases the bulk of water, the 
22 hogsheads instead of about four and a | a 
are destroyed by a few degrees of frost. 
be remembered, that all suffer alike from excess of 
moisture during winter; they are, therefore, best cal- 
culated for growing in pots, as the summer and autumn- 
flowering kinds may then be plunged in the open borders 
through the flowering season in their pots, and taken up 
again before winter, and placed in some dry situation 
until the following season. 
placed on the back shelf of the greenhouse, and kept 
rather dry during the winter, and gradually watered more 
as the spring advances. 
about the end of May, or beginning of June following, if 
properly treated, while those sown in the spring should 
not be removed from the seed-pans before the following 
pans, well drain and fill them with the same kind of soil 
as that in which the seeds were sown, and transplant the 
the roots. Return them to the cold pit or frame, and 
keep 
half; and I find that my boiler, though a small one, is 
fully able to heat this quantity; indeed, I conceive that 
I could heat with the same boiler another house equally 
large; I have some idea of trying this soon, and should I 
do so I will, if you wish it, communicate the result to 
you. If I carry out my proposed plan, the boiler will 
have to heat nearly 60 hogsheads of water. I have no 
fears in my mind as to the result, judging from the 
apparent ease with which 22 are heated. I have a ther- 
mometer fixed in the tank, the bulb being immersed in 
the water, and the upper part being inclosed in a small 
box at the side of the tank, by which means I can at any 
time see the heat of the water, and I find 114° or 115° 
of Fabrenheit is high enough to keep the house at a tem- 
perature of 70° at night. I also find that a moderate 
fire kept up for five or six hours in the 24 is abundantly 
sufficient, The hothouse was heated before by four-inch 
iron pipes, besides having a large bed of tanner’s bark 
(eight large waggon-loads), in the centre, and I could not 
produce the same heat as that now given by the tanks 
without keeping up an incessant fire night and day, added 
to which the temperature of the house was then dry, 
instead of being moist, as at present. The difference in 
the colour of the leaves of all the plants, and the rapidity 
of their growth is surprising already, though the system 
has not been at work more than six weeks. Every lover 
of horticulture ought to feel much indebted to Mr. 
Rendle for his system ; for, though there may be nothing 
new in the principle, to him is justly due the merit of 
bringing it, in its present form, before the public. The 
saving in fuel is immense—at least one-half; but the 
greatest advantage is the equability of temperature which 
it produces ; so large a body of water, when once warm, 
retains its heat for a very considerable period, rendering 
the temperature of the house more uniform and regular. 
To illustrate this I give the following fact: I desired my 
servant one day not to light the fire (which he generally 
did about six o’clock in the evening), in order that I 
might see how much such a body of water (22 hogsheads) 
would coolin 12 hours. At night, when I last saw it, the 
thermometer stood at 113°; the next morning, at about 
eight o’clock, it was 109°, having sunk only 4° in that 
time. When the water was perfectly cold it took a good 
brisk fire for 24 hours before it had attained the tem- 
perature of 120°; but this I found to be too hot, and I 
now keep it at from 112° to 116°, and this is easily 
effected by lighting the fire about five or six o’clock in 
the evening, making it up the last thing, to burn during 
the night as long as it will. No fire need be applied at 
any time in the morning or midday. In short, I am 
delighted with the system, and strongly urge all to adopt 
it, even if it be for economy’s sake alone; keeping this 
fact in view, that the body of water can never be too 
large, provided only that the fire applied be able to heat 
it; and J feel quite confident that 50 hogsheads would not 
be too much for any of the common-sized conical boilers. 
—John Huyshe, Clisthydon Rectory. 
ON THE CULTIVATION OF CYCLAMENS. 
In few plants are so much combined, for the admirer 
of either’ curious, gay, ‘or fragrant flowers, as in the dif- 
ferent species and varieties of Cyclamen; yet they are 
hardly to be found in cultivation, and any one inted 
the beginning of July, when the pots or pans should be 
plunged, and the plants fully exposed both day and night, 
taking care, however, that the soil in the pots does not 
get sodden with too much rain or become too dry. They 
will require no more trouble, except keeping free from 
weeds and slugs, till the middle of September, when they 
should be potted singly into small 48-sized or 60 pots, 
(according to the size of the roots,)ifilled with the same 
kind of soil as that previously used. 
In potting, the bulbs should never be entirely covered 
with the soil, but about one-third left exposed. When 
potted they should be placed on the back shelf of the 
greenhouse, or in a cold pit, where they can be kept dry 
and free from frost until they begin to grow. 
If they are the early flowering kinds, a few may be 
placed in the window of the sitting-room, and’ but 
sparingly watered until they commence growing, when 
they should have a more liberal supply. 
The roots will begin to bloom the second season, and. 
may be placed on the shelves of the greenhouse; or if 
they are of those hardy kinds which flower in summer or 
autumn, the pots may be plunged in the open border. 
When done flowering, they should be returned to the 
cold pit or frame, where the lights must be kept on 
during the night in cold or wet weather, but where they 
can have plenty of air at all times; observing. as they 
cease growing, that water should be withheld, and, finally, 
the roots gradually dried. The roots, when dry, should 
be allowed to remain in the pots, and not be shaken out, 
as is frequently done; for, when taken out of the soil, 
they are almost sure to get too much dried before they 
are again potted. This is particularly the case with the 
early flowering sorts. 
The proper time of the year for resting the flowering 
roots entirely depends on the sorts. C. persicum will be 
at rest when the C. Europ and will 
be in full bloom, and vice versd, 
The roots should be shaken from the soil and repotted 
directly the least sign of vegetation is observable. But 
the early spring-flowering kinds may be forced earlier into 
bloom by potting a few of the strongest roots sooner, 
and placing them in a warm dry place. They must not 
be excited too rapidly, or watered freely ; for, if they are, 
the leaves are almost sure to damp off during the doll 
winter months, and particularly those of the beautiful 
C. persicum and its varieties.— George Gordon. 
— 
AMATEUR’S GARDEN.—No. XXVII. 
In continuation of the hybridrising and cross-breeding 
of plants, as noticed last week, it is not only necessary 
where fertilization is impracticable, that seed be gathered 
from those flowers only which possess the finest qualities, 
but that they, as far as possible, be kept from the vicinity 
of inferior flowers. Nor is this practice to be confined to 
florists’ flowers only, but it also applies with equal force 
to every kind of flower whatever, and to every plant which 
is commonly propagated by seed. Thus the careful growers 
of Turnip and Onion-seed plant none but perfectly-formed 
bulbs, for if they were to do otherwise the kind would 
degenerate, and after a few years be unworthy of cultiva- 
tion. Now, ifso much care is necessary in saving the 
seed of plants which are cultivated by the acre, and where 
a 
with their pretty appearance might well be surprised to 
find such beautiful objects so much neglected. Flowering, 
too, as they do, at various seasons, but particularly during 
the winter and spring months, and lasting in flower for a 
considerable time, the greenhouse or even the windows of 
the amateur’s sitting-room may be made attractive with 
such plants during all the spring months, by growing a 
few of the early flowering kinds. 
In cultivating the different sorts of Cyclamen, it must 
be observed that some are much hardier than others, and 
may remain in the open border all the winter ; while some 
But it must also 
The Cyclamen is increased in two ways: first, by cut- 
ting the largest roots into pieces, which is a bad practice, 
as they are very liable to rot during the first season after 
cutting, or while in a dormant state, unless the parts are 
kept very dry, a thing very injurious to the early- 
flowering kinds; secondly, by seeds, which should be 
sown when ripe, whether it be autumn or spring, in pans 
or pots well drained, and filled with a mixture of equal 
parts of sandy loam and leaf-mould, to which should be 
added a small portion of well-rotted dung. Then place 
he pans or pots in a cold frame or pit, kept close if sown 
in the spring ; but if sown in the autumn, they should be 
The autumn-sown plants will be fit for transplanting 
pring 5 they will by that time have formed roots about the 
ize of a Hazel-nut. Prepare then some large {pots or 
‘oung roots from the seed-pans into these, placing them 
bout three or four inches apart, according to the size of 
them close until they begin to grow ; afterwards, 
air freely by day, but keep the pit close at night till 
dit 
plants would be scarcely noticed, how 
much more so is it requisite in gathering seeds for the 
flower-garden, where nothing of inferior description should 
be allowed to grow? For this reason it is necessary, when 
it is desired to keep seed true to its kind, much more to 
improve the kind, that all inferior flowers be removed 
from the garden as fast as they show bloom, and before 
there is any possibility of their pollen being conveyed to 
other and better varieties by insects and other means. 
To raise seeds properly they require to be grown in a 
garden to themselves, where the removal of inferior kinds 
and making gaps in the beds would be of little conse- 
quence. The most successful raiser of annual seeds 
was Mr. Weeks, gardener to J. Sheepshanks, Esq., who 
used {to reside in Blackheath Park. There the ground 
was prepared with as much care as for the choicest plants; 
and a single row of Nemophila insignis, the seeds one foot 
apart in the row, would generally cover a bed four feet 
wide. The finest seeds ever seen in London were grown at 
that place, and no expense was spared to attain perfection. 
The amateur, if he has not already commenced, must 
lose no time in getting in his pipings of Pinks; for, if 
the plants are not strong in the autumn, no after treat- 
ment in the spring will make the flower strong in the 
summer. The best way to proceed is to make up a bed 
of spent dung, which you are sure will not heat violently $ é 
over that place an old door, plastering the sides securely; 
to prevent the escape of heat; and on the door place the 
compost in which the pipings are to be planted. The best 
compost is two parts perfectly decomposed leaf-mould, 
with one part of loam and one part of silver sand; these 
should be well incorporated together, sifted through @ 
rather coarse sieve, and placed on the door to the depth 
of three inches, 
In preparing the cuttings or pipings, all that is neces- 
sary is to remove the lowermost pair of healthy leaves, 
and cut close under the joint with a sharp knife. The 
pipings’must then be pressed into the mould to the depth 
of one inch, taking care to make the soil firm round their 
bases, and after they have received a liberal watering, the 
frame or hand-light must be placed over them, and they 
will require little more care, except keeping nobis 
close, shading from the sun, and sprinkling cece 
in an evening with clean water. It is also a good plan We 
remove the glass on warm dewy evenings ; but it must 
replaced before the pipings are dry in the morning. ¢ Car 
‘ same treatment applies to the propagation o ‘Gal 
nations and Picotees, which may be increased with eq 
