STO 
thefe Stoves the plants are placed on {helves of boards 
. laid on a fcaffold, riling above each other like the 
dears in a theatre, for the greater advantage of their 
Handing in fight, and enjoying an equal fhare of 
light and air. In thefe Stoves are commonly placed 
fhe tender forts of Aloes, Cereufes, Euphorbiums, 
Tithymals, and other fucculent plants, which are im- 
patient of mo iff u re in winter, and therefore require 
for the moft part to be kept in a feparate Stove, and 
not placed among trees or herbaceous plants, which 
perfpire freely, and thereby often caufe a damp air in 
the houfe, which is imbibed by the fucculent plants 
to their no fmall prejudice. Thefe Stoves may be re- 
gulated by a thermometer fo as not to over-heat them, 
nor let the plants fuffer by cold ; in order to which, 
all fuch plants as require nearly the fame degree of 
heat, fhould be placed by themfelves in a feparate 
houfe, for if in the fame Stove there are plants placed 
of many different countries, which require as many 
different heats, by making the houfe warm enough 
for fome plants, others, by having too much heat, 
are drawn and fpoiled. 
The other fort of Stoves are commonly called bark 
Stoves, to diffinguifh them from the dry Stoves 
already mentioned. Thefe have a large pit, nearly the 
length of the houfe, three feet deep, and fix or feven 
feet wide, according to the breadth of the houfe, 
which pit is filled with frefh tanners bark to make a 
hot-bed, and in this bed the pots of the moft tender 
exotic trees and herbaceous plants are plunged. 
The heat of this bed being moderate, the roots of 
- the plants are always kept in aftion, and the moifture 
detained by the bark, keeps the fibres of their roots 
in a duftiie ftate, which in the dry Stove, where they 
are placed on fhelves, are fubjeft to dry too faff, to 
the great injury of the plants, In thefe Stoves, if 
they are rightly contrived, may be preferved the moft 
tender exotic trees and plants, which, before the 
ufe of the bark was introduced, were thought impoffi- 
ble to be kept in England ; but, as there is fome fkill 
required in the ftructure of both thefe Stoves, I fhall 
not only defcribe them as intelligibly as poffible, but 
alfo annex plans of both Stoves hereto, by which it 
is hoped every curious perfon will be capable of di- 
recting his workmen in their ftruCtu re. 
The dimenfion of thefe Stoves fhould be propor- 
tioned to the number of plants intended to -be pre- 
ferved, or the particular fancy of the owner, but 
their length fhould nofexceed forty feet for one fire- 
place ; but where there are two fires it will be proper 
to make a partition of glafs in the middle, and to 
have two tan-pits, that there may be two different 
degrees of heat for plants from different countries 
(for the reafons before given in the account of dry 
Stoves •,) and were I to ereCt a range of Stoves, they 
fhould be all built in one, and only divided with glafs 
partitions, at leaft the half way toward the front, 
which will be of great advantage to the plants, be- 
caufe they may have the air in each divifion fhifted 
by Hiding the glaffes of the partitions, or by opening 
the glafs door which fhould be made between each di- 
vifion, for the more eafy paffage from one to the other. 
Thefe Stoves fhould be raifed above the level of 
the ground, in proportion to the drynefs of the place, 
for if they are built on a moift fituation, the whole 
fhould be placed upon the top of the ground, fo that 
the brick-work in front muft be raifed three feet 
above the furface, which is the depth of the bark-bed, 
whereby none of the bark will be in danger of lying 
in water ; but if the foil be dry, the brick- work in front 
need not be more than one foot above ground, and 
the pit may be funk two feet below the furface. Upon 
the top of this brick-work in front muft be laid the 
plate of timber, into which the wood- work of theframe 
is to be mortifed •, this fhould be of found Oak felled 
in winter, without fap, the dimenfion one foot wide, 
and fix inches deep, and the upright timbers in front 
muft be placed four feet afunder, or fomewhat more, 
which is the proportion of the width of the glafs doors 
or fafhes j thefe fhould be about fix feet and a half. 
STO 
or feven feet long, and placed upright; their dimers 
fion fhould be nine inches by fix, of yellow Fir ; but 
from the top of thefe fhould be (loping glaffes, which 
fhould reach within three feet of the back of the 
ftove, where there fhould be a ftrong crown-piece 
of timber placed, in which there fhould be a groove 
made for the glaffes to Aide into ; the dimenfion of 
the Hoping timbers fhould be ten inches by nine of 
yellow Fir, and the crown-plate one foot by nine or 
ten inches of the fame timber. The wall in the back 
part of the Stove fhould be at leaft thirteen inches 
thick, but eighteen or twenty-two inches, which is 
two bricks and a half, will be better, for the greater 
thicknefs there is in the back wall, the more heat 
will be thrown to the front, whereby the air of the 
Stove will be better warmed, and the building will be 
fo much ftronger ; for to this back wall the flues, 
through which the frnoke is to pafs, muft be joined. 
This back wall fhould be carried up about Hxteen or 
twenty feet high, or more for tall Stoves, that they 
may be of a proper height to fupport the timbers of 
the back roof, which covers the fhed behind the Stove. 
The roof is fattened into the crown-piece before-men- 
tioned, which in tall Stoves fhould be about thirty 
feet above the furface of the tan-bed, which will give 
a lufficient declivity to the Hoping glaffes to carry off 
the wet, and be of a reafonable height for containing 
many tall plants. The back roof may be Hated, co- 
vered with lead, or tiled, according to the fancy of 
the owner ; but the manner of the outfide building 
is better exprefled by the annexed plan, than is pofii- 
ble to be deicribed in words. 
In the front of the houfe, before the tan-bed, there 
fhould be a walk, about two feet wide, for the conve- 
niency of walking ; next to which the bark-pit muft 
be placed, which fhould be in width proportionable 
to the breadth of the houfe. If the houfe is fourteen 
feet wide, which is a due proportion, the pit may 
be eight feet wide, and behind the pit fhould be a 
walk two feet wide, to pafs, in order to water the 
plants, &c. then there will be two feet left next the 
back wall to ereCt the flues, which muft be all raifed 
above the level of the bark-bed. Thefe flues ought 
to be one foot wide in the clear, that they may not be 
too foon flopped with the foot, as alfo for the more 
conveniently cleaning them ; the lower flue, into 
which the frnoke firft enters from the fire, fhould be 
two feet deep in the clear ; this fliould be covered 
with broad tiles, which fliould be a foot and a half 
fquare, or one foot by a foot and a half long, that 
they may be wide enough to extend over the 
wall in front of the flues, and to take fufficient hold 
of the back wall •, over this the fecond flue muft 
be returned back again, which may be twenty inches 
deep, and covered on the top as before ; and fo in 
like manner the flues may be returned over each 
other fix or eight times, that the heat may be fpent 
before the frnoke paffes off. The thicknefs of the 
wall in front of thefe flues need not be more than 
four inches, or three will do very well if they are 
carefully carried up, but it muft be well jointed with 
mortar, and pargitered within fide to prevent the 
frnoke from getting into the houfe : the outfide ihould 
be faced with mortar, and covered with a coarfe cloth, 
to keep the mortar from cracking, as is praCtifed in 
fetting up coppers. If this be carefully done, there 
will be no danger of the frnoke entering the houfe, 
which cannot be too carefully guarded againft, for 
there is nothing more injurious to plants than frnoke, 
which will caufe them to drop their leaves, and, if it 
continue long in the houfe, will entirely deftroy them. 
The fire-place muft be made at one end, where there 
is but one ; but, if the Stove is fo long as to require 
tv/o, they fhould be placed at each end of the fhed, 
which muft be made the length of the Stove, that the 
fires and the back of the flues may not fuffer from 
the outer air ; for it will be impoffible to make the 
fires burn equally, where the wind has full ingrefs to 
it, and it will be troublefome to attend the fire in wet 
weather, where it is expofed to the rain, 
The 
