568 THE PRACTICAL GARDENER. [Jan. 



faction ; and, we may add, that were such houses heated by 

 hot water, according to Mr. Atkinson's method, they would be 

 all that could be wished for, as far as the structure and mode 

 of heating are concerned, in this important branch of gar- 

 dening. 



The accompanying elevation, sections, and plan, are of a 

 pine-house, executed from the designs of W. Atkinson, Esq., 

 and heated by hot water, and have been found to give the 

 greatest satisfaction, and may be considered the perfection of 

 the principle ; the temperature here has been sufficient, under 

 every circumstance, to prove, that the hot-water system, as 

 recommended by that gentleman, is amply sufficient to bring 

 to perfection " the king of fruits." In this house, the roof- 

 sashes are fixed, and the air is admitted by the ventilators 

 (F and G). The boiler (a) is placed in a niche in the back of 

 the house, and is heated and managed from the sheds behind. 

 The pipes (d d) convey the heated water from the boiler to the 

 front of the house, along which it travels to the ends, and heats 

 the water in the reservoirs (B B), or rather displaces the cold 

 water in them, which finds its way back to the boiler through 

 the single pipe (E), which it enters near its bottom, as is shown 

 in the section. This house may either be divided by a glass 

 partition in the middle, and both divisions kept up to an equal 

 temperature, or, if desired, it may be all in one. In the former 

 case, it would be convenient, when it may be desired to grow 

 certain kinds of pines separately, one, for instance, being filled 

 with Queen pines, which produce their fruit many months 

 sooner than those which are of larger size, and generally de- 

 nominated Black pines ; or one division may be started into 

 fruit before the other; or may be dedicated to those which 

 have shown fruit in autumn, and are intended to ripen late in 

 winter, or very early in spring. Such houses as this, we con- 

 sider to be all that can be wished for, in the cultivation of the 

 pine ; and to those who prefer to continue the mode of heating 

 by smoke-flues, it is our opinion that none answer the purpose 

 better than the Kensington pine-houses, recommended in this 

 article. (See Plate.) 



Steam, as a bottom heat, has been repeatedly tried, but 

 without that success which was expected. This was predicted 



