172 
JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
[ March 3, 1881. 
class certificate was awarded for it, and a similar award was 
also granted for it at one of the Royal Botanic Society’s Exhi¬ 
bitions. Mr. Ware of Tottenham has a stock of the plant under 
the name I have employed, which is the one accepted at Kew. 
—L. Castle. 
PRIZES FOR LABELS. 
Will you allow me to ask any of your readers who are using 
at all out-of-the-way plant labels, and all label makers, to send 
specimens as soon as possible to the Society of Arts, John Street, 
Adelphi ? I hope the Society will get up a good exhibition, and 
then hand over the exhibits to the Royal Horticultural Society. 
The prize would have been offered through the latter Society had 
I not thought that in the Society of Arts many ingenious heads 
would be led to consider the subject for the first time, while in 
the Royal Horticultural Society most—or at any rate many—of 
the Fellows know by sad experience the want of a thoroughly 
satisfactory label ; besides, as an old member of the Society of 
Arts Council, I knew the Society’s influence and power of 
publication.— George F. Wilson. 
NOTES ON BOILERS AND THEIR HEATING POWERS. 
While the severe winter is still fresh in our memory I write 
these few remarks, and while giving my own experience I desire 
that your readers will record theirs. More especially do I wish 
for the co-operation of your scientific correspondents in a few 
plain inquiries. 
First, can anyone give me the difference in heating power of a 
Wit-ley Court boiler with two flues, said to heat 1200 feet of 4-inch 
pines, and a Wright’s Endless Flame boiler to heat the same 
length of piping ? By difference I mean, Which is the best for 
hard work and which is the most economical ? I have had no 
practice with either of the above, but wish to ascertain all I can 
from practical men as to their utility. In setting, which would 
take the least depth? Is it advisable for the flow from any 
boiler to dip from the top of the boiler to enter the main, espe¬ 
cially if I have several houses attached ? 
I found in practice this winter that a 4-feet saddle boiler with 
check bridge, which is estimated to heat 1000 feet of 4-inch pipes 
and in ordinary weather 1300 feet, will in severe time heat a 
lean-to Cucumber house 80 feet long with five rows of pipes on 
the surface and three under the bed, thus making 700 feet; and 
the same boiler heats one division of early vinery GO feet long, 
six rows of pipes, say 400 feet of piping—1000 feet in all; the 
vinery at 55°, and the Cucumber house at 65°. To maintain this 
temperature with the chimney damper out 3 inches and the bottom 
doors open, requires attention at night every four hours in sharp 
frost. Apart from the question of extra labour and attention in 
firing, should I save by having larger boilers ? and if so how much 
larger ? My own idea is that a large boiler in temperate weather 
is not as economical as a smaller one. On the other hand, I 
believe that a fire which often needs replenishing wastes fuel. 
Supposing I had larger boilers, would this necessitate greater 
consumption of fuel ? 
In another case here I have a boiler of the same size and make 
to heat a Cucumber house 70 feet long with six rows of pipes on 
the surface and two under the bed, but this house is 40 feet from 
boiler, and can this be considered as good for heating as a house 
close to boiler ? I have 600 feet length in this house. Now 
I am heating a span vinery 50 feet long with four rows of pipes, 
and another with one row only all round, this bringing it up with 
the mains to about 1000 feet. I cannot maintain the heat I require 
in this Cucumber house when the others are at work unless I keep 
up a very good fire ; I therefore propose adding another boiler 
and connecting the whole of the boilers, so that I might work the 
three together in severe times or separately as required. I have a 
50-feet span Muscat house and GO-feet early vinery unemployed, 
being afraid to trust to my present boiler power. I have houses 
at 40°, 60°, and 70°; but if it takes a good fire to get the heat 
when there is no frost, how must it be when there is say 20° of frost ? 
To be safe I should suppose if a boiler is estimated to heat 
1000 feet it would only work 500 feet in severe weather. This is 
the conclusion I arrive at. On the other hand, I again maintain 
a larger boiler than what is really required is not the most 
economical, and to overcome the difficulty a supplementary boiler 
would have to be added. To go a step further, I may say I con¬ 
sumed for about eighteen months, or rather from October, 1879, 
to this time, 80 tons of fuel in equal proportion of coal and coke. 
Perhaps some will say how this quantity agrees with theirs. On 
the coal and coke question I would say a few words. I like coal 
for very sharp weather, as it raises heat quicker than coke ; but 
I find when the heat is up coke is the most powerful and lasting. 
A ton of coke costs me the same as coals ; which should give most 
heat ? My mains are all smaller than inside pipes, thus 3-inch 
mains running into 4-inch pipes. Do your readers agree with this ? 
Briefly I sum up my case thus : I find the nearer the houses 
to be heated are to the boilers the quicker are they heated and 
the better is the heat maintained. A good boiler which heats a 
given number of feet of piping now, would in severe times re¬ 
quire the assistance of another boiler; or, to put it in another way, 
Which is the cheapest to keep up—a 3-feet boiler to work a given 
number of feet of piping, or one, say, 5 or 6 feet ? In one house 
I have a 2-inch main to it, and this always heats quickly, and 
there is little difference in the heat of the return and flow pipes ; 
this I attribute to its quick circulation. I know it is not possible 
in all cases to do without long distances from boiler to house, but 
I maintain that the nearer the house to be heated is to the boiler 
the better it works, even though mains be cased and kept from 
the weather. I also find that one flow pipe running into two 
returns gives as much heat as two flows and two returns, the heat 
through the one flow seems to be so powerful. 
How many of your numerous readers have been able this 
winter to make up the fires at 9 p.m., and leave them until 6 or 7 
next morning ? I have been told of one such instance this season, 
but in this case they must be well supplied with boiler power. 
Speaking from my own practical experience, and from what I 
have seen since 1859, I never yet was so fortunate to meet with 
such a case, nor did I ever see or hear of such until now. In 
ordinary weather, of course, I could do this, but not in the past 
severe winter. I might also ask if there be any who see no use 
for dampers in chimneys, as I am told they are not required, the 
draughts of the fire to be regulated by ashpit doors. I do not 
attempt to say which is the best form of boiler, nor do I wish to 
disparage any form. Doubtless there is no boiler but what the 
maker or inventor could work well and make it succeed, and 
another one would fail at the same boiler. I consider that not 
nearly so much care and attention is given to stoking as ought 
to be done ; in many cases it is simply opening damper and doors 
and throwing on the fuel as necessary.— Stephen Castle, The 
Vineyard, West Lynn , King's Lynn, Norfolh. 
We have again to approvingly notice Miss E. A. Ormerod’s 
annual production, “Notes of Observations on Injurious 
Insects,” the report for 1880 having just been received. As 
usual it contains a large amount of useful information regarding 
the insects which infest the chief garden and farm crops. De¬ 
scriptions of the habits of the various species are given, with 
particulars of the methods which have proved efficacious in 
destroying them, and as the latter are the experiences of prac¬ 
tical men they are thoroughly reliable. The authoress cordially 
acknowledges the great assistance she has received from her 
numerous correspondents, and announces that the next report is 
likely to be on a much more extended scale, as contributors have 
so largely increased in numbers. It is also stated that a work is 
in preparation by the same lady upon the remedies and means of 
prevention for the attack of insects on food crops, forest trees, 
and fruit, which will undoubtedly prove of considerable interest 
and utility both to gardeners and farmers. We may remind our 
readers that the report we have briefly noted is published by 
Messrs. W. S. Sonnenschein & Allen, 15, Paternoster Square, 
London, and by Messrs. J. Menzies & Co., Hanover Street, Edin¬ 
burgh, price 1.?. All inquiries or information upon this subject 
should be addressed to Miss E. A. Ormerod, F.M.S., Dunster 
Lodge, near Isleworth ; the Rev. T. 4. Preston, Marlborough ; 
or E. A. Fitch, Esq., Maldon, Essex. 
- “ D. L. M.” states that he has had a charming display of 
Snowdrops in pots obtained by digging up some clumps of the 
single variety from the borders immediately the frost departed 
