By Thomas Andrew Knight, Esq. 227 



ventilation, at this period, as will give the requisite degree 

 of dryness to the air within the house, is highly beneficial ; 

 provided it be not increased to such an extent as to reduce 

 the temperature of the house much below the degree in 

 which the fruit has previously grown, and thus retard its 

 progress to maturity. The good effect of opening a Peach- 

 house, by taking off the lights of its roof, during the period 

 of the last swelling of the fruit, appears to have led many 

 gardeners to over-rate greatly the beneficial influence of a 

 free current of air upon ripening fruits; for I have never 

 found ventilation to give the proper flavour or colour to a 

 Peach, unless that fruit was at the same time exposed to the 

 sun without the intervention of glass ; and the most excellent 

 Peaches I have ever been able to raise, were obtained under 

 circumstances where change of air was as much as possible 

 prevented consistently with the admission of light (without 

 glass) to a single tree. 



