188 



JOTHRXAL OF HOKTICUIiTtJKE AND COTTAGE GAKDENEE. 



[ Jtavch 7, 18C5. 



■would need no wall beneath, and the linings would at onpe 

 act on the bed. There would be little danger from tan, but 

 there would be from rank dung in the lining, if the bed 

 inside were not fully 1 foot above the top of the opening. 

 If this deep pit, when cle.ared out, should be used for keeping 

 tall plants in during the winter, it would be better to fil in 

 the openings of the arches with brick-on-bed, and better still 

 if well done with brick-on-edge, and cement joints. Brick- 

 on-bed would be more secui-e if tried with a thuiup from the 

 fork. In finishing such a wall a bent pipe should be inserted 

 beneath each arch, to admit moist heated air into the atmo- 

 sphere of the pit when deemed desirable. We need not say. 

 how dry heat could also be obtained for the atmosphere of 

 the pit, by allowing this wall to project into the pit a couple 

 of inches, and on this projection ILxing slates or sheet iron, 

 li inch from the nine-inch wall, but making all steam-tight. 

 A very simple plan for securing top heat from the linings 

 would be to have two or thi'ee holes, say 2 or more inches 

 square, in each arch, and then build the nine-inch wall 

 above it hollow. The heat that rose from the lining would 

 thus rise through the wall, as well as heat the bed against 

 which the lining was placed. With plenty of heating 

 material anything might be done in such a pit, and more 

 especially if from Sovember to May a little straw were 

 neatly tied against the outside walls abo%'e ground. This 

 is much belter than using litter, and it does not require so 

 severe a frost, if continuous, to go through a solid nine- 

 inch wall. Many have carefully protected the glass and let 

 the enemy in by the wall.] 



HEATIN-G AND GLAZDifG A SilALL 

 CO^"SEETATOEY. 



What is the best way of heating a conservatory about 

 18 feet by 12, where economy of construction and working 

 is a consideration? I want, if possible, to avoid the neces- 

 sity of having a fireplace, chimney, &c., on account of ap- 

 pearance. Are any of the systems which do not require 

 this, thoroughly effective? Mussett's Patent, for instance. 

 which is a moveable coU of pipes, heated by two lamps ? I 

 have heard that there is something in this and similar sys- 

 tems, which have the fire inside the building, injurious to 

 plants, if not unpleasant to the smell ? 



Is ribbed or fluted glass suitable for the roof of a con- 

 servatory, or does it obscure the sunlight too much ? — N. P. 



[Eelative to heating, we can add very little to what has 

 tieen advanced in previous Numbers. We strongly object 

 to heating by oil lamps, or gas, whether as a stove or with hot 

 water, and to stoves with prepared iuel, unless there is a pipe 

 or other arrangement for taking the products of combustion 

 ont of the house. Many small conservatories close to the 

 mansion are heated from a kitchen boiler on a lower flat, but 

 then you will be a little dependant on the cook. The most 

 economical of all for such a small place, would be a brick 

 stove with a pipe through the wall. The least cumbersome 

 would be a small iron stone with a pipe through the glass 

 roof, as the whole could be taken out from the middle of 

 March to the end of October. The brick stove miglit be fed 

 from the outside, the iron one from the inside. A little care 

 in damping when cleaning out, and using a little dry wood 

 for lighting, a fev.- nodules of coal then, and coke and cinders 

 aiterwarde, would involve but little trouble, and cost much 

 leas than oil or gas. We have no doubt that Mussett's 

 Patent and other stoves and boilers do well with common 

 care and attention, heated either by candle, oil, or gas, the 

 laet two tlio best. If, an said above, there is a pipe to take 

 off the smoke, however little, that pipe will also give out 

 beat; but, as stated the other week, the minutia; must bo 

 attended to. We prefer ribbed, fluted, or rough glass, if 

 good, for the roof of a conservatory. Plenty of light will 

 pass through it, and you will need no shading. The front 

 lights of clear glass, liowcver, look best.] 



How TO KEBP Fe\bs. — Permit me to correct one or two 

 slight misprints, owing doubtless to ray crabbed handwriting. 

 In the second paragrajjh "other pots" should be "these 

 pota." At the end of the third paragraph " these very late 

 Pears " should be " the very late Pears." — T. 11. 



GROWING ilUSHEOOMS AND BLANCHED 

 TEGETABLES IN A CELLAE. 



Could Ehubai-b, Sea-kale, and Mushrooms be grown in 

 any of the cellars hereafter described without fear of engen- 

 dering damp and unwholesome smells ? 



1. An underground cellar, paved with brick, about 7 feet 

 by 7 feet, 6 feet high, with a small window to the open air 

 near the top, and situated under a dwelling-house. 



2. A cellar level with the ground floor, 6 feet by 6 feet, 

 S feet high, gravel bottom, no communication with the outer 

 air, a living-room over it. 



3. A cellar level with the ground floor, not communicating 

 with the house, gravel floor, door to the open air, no window, 

 a living-room over it, 12 feet by 10, and 8 feet high. 



If Mushrooms could be grown in any of the above without 

 fear, what would be the best time to commence a bed ? — 

 Banks of the Thames. 



[For the first there would be no danger whatever. If the 

 room is ceiled, all damp affecting it would be neutralised by 

 brushing the ceiling over with boiled oil ; but with a window 

 we do not think there would be any damp to injure any- 

 thing. The advantage of an underground cellar is its equable 

 temperature. This would answer well for Mushrooms in 

 summer, if the window were blinded to keep out the heat. 

 A bed may be made at any time. 



2. This can hardly be called a cellar, and it would be of 

 no more use than any other close room or shed. It would 

 not do for Mushrooms in summer unless kept cool, and 

 Rhubarb, Soa-kale, and Mushrooms in winter could only be 

 gi-own by artificial heat. If there is a door to take the ma- 

 terials in without going through the house it would do very 

 well. With no ventilation the ceiling should be secured 

 with oilcloth, or oil brushed over it. 



3.^ The advantage of this is having the door to the open 

 air. This would do for Mushroom-beds all winter by cover- 

 ing the beds when made, according to the weather. Ehubarb 

 and Sea-kale would be produced all the winter by placing 

 the roots in a mUd hotbed. The ceiling should be protected, 

 or a ventilator placed above or on the top of the doorway. 

 Such a place, kept at about 55° or 60° will give good cuttings 

 all the winter. There is no necessity for the place as a 

 whole being kept to that temperature, but the roots may be 

 covered so as to secure that temperature about them, taking 

 off the covering when not wanted.] 



WINTEE-FLOWEEING PLANTS. 



The following are .a few more of the usefid winter-flower- 

 ing plants not in Mr. Jones's list, and I hope they will aid 

 in giving a still more lively appearance to his already on- 

 livening collection. The cluef of these have been in flower 

 sinoe November, or will do so before April. 



In the stove : — Franciscoa cximia, confertiflora ; JEschy- 

 nantluises ; J^chmoa fulgens ; Torenia pulcherrima and 

 asiatica; the beautiful Gesnera cinnabarina, sjilendens, and 

 zebrina splendens; Jasminum gracile ; Kogiera cordata; 

 Begonia Digswelliana, one of the freest of winter-flowering 

 plants. We have at the present time plants in 24-sized 

 pots, 14 inches high by 18 inches in diameter, covered with 

 bloom; besides standard plants in r,2-pots, 14 inches high in 

 the stem, and having compact heads, 7 or S inches in diameter 

 loaded with pendant rosy purplish flowers. Besides these 

 there ai-e the elegant little Sonerilas, with their feathery- 

 looking rosy pink blossoms. Gardenias Fortuni, florida, 

 and citriodora are more or less commencing to flower. In 

 stove bulbs there are the bright-coloured Amaryllis aulica 

 fulgens, .Tohnsoni precox, crocata, &c., Imatophyllum minia- 

 tum, Eucharis amazonica, Pancratiums, and others. 



In the greenhouse are : — Daphne odorata alba, the sweeter 

 one of the two; forced Oranges in flower; llovca Cclsi ; 

 Habrothamnus elegans, in flower all the winter ; Acacia 

 longiflora magniflca; Coronilla glauca; varieties of Cytisug, 

 witli forced Lilacs, Weigelas, Deutzias, Sweet Briar, Mig- 

 nonctte, Nemophila. Ac. In greenhouse bidbs the most 

 prominent and useful are the Cyclamens in their several 

 kinds ; Coum, persicum rubrum, persicum album, -Vt- 

 kinsi, and others are the most showy; though 1 regret to 

 say that in consequence of the great demand for them the 



