Jan.] 



THE FORCING GARDEN. 



565 



pots were plunged in tan, sand, or saw-dust, it would be of 

 material advantage to the plants, by keeping both a more eoual 

 degree of temperature and moisture round their roots. 



CONSTRUCTION OF THE PINE-HOUSE. 



The fruiting pine-houses in the royal gardens at Kensington 

 may be considered complete of their kind, and are calculated 

 both for the cultivation of pines and vines, the former in the 

 bark-bed (a), as in the accompanying section ; and the latter 



up the rafters of the roof. These houses vary in length, from 

 thirty-three to fifty feet, and are fifteen feet wide within walls. 

 The pit for the plants (a) is nine feet wide, the back path {b) 

 forms a border for the roots of the vines planted against the 

 back wall. The bark-bed or pit is surrounded by a flue (c d) ; 

 the curb is twenty-seven inches from the glass in front (e), and 

 four feet eight inches from it behind (y). The vines are planted 

 in the back border (b), and trained under the roof directly over 

 it, and others are planted in the front border (g), and trained 

 up the rafters in the usual manner. 



Each house or division is heated by two furnaces, one of 

 which is for the most part sufficient, and the other as an auxili- 

 ary, when the state of the weather demands an extra supply 

 of heat. The first («), in the accompanying gi'ound plan, pro- 

 ceeds to the front of the house, and runs parallel to the bed 

 to the other end ; then along the back of the pit (d), passing 

 under the back path and terminating in the chimney {/), near 

 to where it entered. The extra furnace is placed at the other 

 end of the house (g), passes under the back path which con- 



