22 L- 
'Y lib: rural NBW-VORKKK 
February 14, 
AN INEXPENSIVE GREENHOUSE. 
Part I. 
Advantages of Greenhouse. —Do you 
have a few sash under which you grow 
vegetable plants for Spring sales, or pos¬ 
sibly a few early vegetables for the home 
table? Did it ever occur to you while 
digging a trench a few feet deep to ac¬ 
commodate manure, or afterwards while 
wading through mud to ventilate, make 
and care for same, or repairing sasli 
blown round by a sudden gust of wind, 
that it would be much more pleasant to 
work inside or under the sash on the out¬ 
side? 
Building With Sash. —Anyone hav¬ 
ing to 6 to 12 or more sash can easily and 
cheaply convert them into a small, though 
satisfactory greenhouse in which a much 
larger variety of plants can be grown, 
and grown in a better and more sturdy 
manner, as conditions are more under 
control of the operator and the work can 
be done at odd times when the other 
work is not pressing. With the hotbed 
you must work when the weather per¬ 
mits, and there are some seasons that 
have a few suitable days for sitting 
above a hotbed to transplant plants, etc. 
The greenhouse has one drawback, 
though. When the hotbed is covered with 
rye-straw mats, or shutters, it is usually 
safe for the night. The greenhouse on 
the other hand, must have a good heating 
arrangement, so that attention to same is 
not too binding, and of sufficient size to 
carry fairly uniform heat seven to eight 
hours without attention. Even consider¬ 
ing this feature as an objection, I feel 
sure that after a few weeks’ experience 
with heating, watering and ventilating 
the greenhouse, you would not of your 
own volition go back to the very much 
limited hotbed, especially when the wide 
range of utility of the former over the 
latter is considered. In using sash for 
greenhouse constructive purposes we set 
good-sized posts in the ground five feet 
four inches, centers of height wished, and 
nail rough hemlock boards inside of posts. 
Frame Used. —Having a lot of sash, 
and becoming tired of the continuous and 
unpleasant attention they required, and 
their limitations as to usefulness, we con¬ 
structed a house 10% feet wide by 100 
feet long of them. We find this much 
more practical, economical, and easily 
managed. Our conditions though, are 
different from the average small property 
owner with a small hotbed, as we hud 
steam heat available, and run one two- 
inch flow pipe to far end and returned 
with live 1%-inch returns. This gives 
us all the heat required for crops grow¬ 
ing in carnation temperature, such as 
lettuce, radish, most vegetable plants, etc. 
Our posts are about two feet above 
ground level, and two hemlock boards are 
nailed inside, and earth banked up on out¬ 
side near top edge. This allows sash 
supports placed directly in notches cut 
in top edge of board between each, as un¬ 
der each sash joint, and earth being 
banked up on outside holds entire weight 
of roof without spreading, and without 
posts inside. Under ridge we dug out a 
walk of sufficient depth to allow com¬ 
fortable head room. 
Ventilation. —We also had a lot of 
old ventilation sash 24 inches wide that 
had been used along ridge of a green¬ 
house, which we used for ventilation at 
top of this house. If you wish to trans¬ 
form a lot of sash into a sash house and 
do not care to purchase narrow sash 
(e’ten a 12-inch opening would do) to 
place at top for ventilation, the house 
would then be about eight to 8% fe t 
wide, and every third or fourth sash 
would have to be hinged at bottom so as 
to allow raising at top to ventilate. At top 
edge in each side inside we nailed an or¬ 
dinary roofing lath 1x2% inch; on south 
side, for rafters every six feet we used a 
2x4, and used two pieces 2x4 for ridge, 
one nailed fiat on top of other. The top 
piece has a rabbet on each edge, under 
side, which allowed top of sash to project 
%-inch under same. It does not matter 
how hard it rains or blows, no water can 
enter at that point. 
The sash in each side are hinged to this 
ridge cap. The rafters on north side 
are lx3-inch under each sash joint. The 
narrow ventilation sashes close down on 
sash rest about two inches from top. and 
lower 3x6 sash are hinged to this leader. 
This arrangement allows a sash anywhere 
to be raised at lower edge, on warm days 
for additional ventilation, or removing 
plants, or renewing soil. 
Heating. —Now I have said this house 
is satisfactory but 1 do not Irish it to 
appear that / advocate the purchase of 
sash with the construction of such a 
house in view. The construction of a 
small house from new material will be 
treated separately. Next and more im¬ 
portant than the construction is the heat¬ 
ing of this small sash house. If in size 
it is less than 10x20 feet it can be heated 
safely and very satisfactory by a good- 
sized cheap stove. Dig out a pit several 
feet deep in north side of walk near cen¬ 
ter or a few feet farther toward end from 
which your cold prevailing winds blow. 
If house is built north and south put 
heater at north end. Around this stove 
place a piece of sheet iron without open¬ 
ings except a foot or more at bottom, 
and allowing it to extend well up toward 
roof top of stove. Allow 10 to-12 inches 
clear inside round stove. You will find 
this will make a remarkable difference 
in causing an air circulation, over the 
exposed stove in house. When heated 
you can test this circulation by burning 
tobacco stems, or making any other smoke 
over stove. You will find it go to far 
end of house and back at lowest point to 
base of stove in a short time. This shield 
also protects nearby plants from direct 
drying heat of stove, which is deleterious 
to healthy plant growth. As an addition¬ 
al help the above pipe can run from 
wherever stove is placed to far end of 
house overhead, or under bench if benches 
are used and stove is placed low enough. 
In a house 30 to 40 feet long a stove 
could be placed at, or near each end. pre¬ 
ferably in the house, so all the heat would 
be available. Beyond these limits a liot- 
water system would be more desirable 
and reliable, and will be discussed later. 
Preparing For Radishes— A house 
of above description will lend itself to 
many uses and a wide variety of crops 
can be grown, especially plants, radishes, 
lettuce, and as a fallow crop, tomatoes. 
If your location is near a small town you 
could grow radishes and Grand Rapids 
lettuce, and in a very short time build 
up an excellent trade for same. Icicle 
is possibly the best white forcing radish 
and Cardinal Globe the best scarlet. 
Icicle should be sown in rows four to 
five inches apart and thinned to 1% inch 
in rows. Cardinal Globe can be sown three 
inch rows and thinned 1% inch. The 
latter matures earlier than Icicle, but in 
our market does not sell as well. Rad¬ 
ishes require a very rich soil, one-fourth 
manure, and a high-grade fertilizer at 
rate of nearly one ton per acre is not too 
much of an application for this crop. 
The manure should be well rotted and 
thoroughly incorporated with the soil in 
preparation for seed. The fertilizer can 
be applied when plants are an inch or 
two high, and watered or cultivated in. 
A mixture of 100 pounds nitrate of soda, 
300 pounds dissolved bone and 100 pounds 
sulphate of potash gives a good quick¬ 
acting manure. Water should be used 
freely as radish is nearly all water, chem¬ 
ically, and when beds are kept saturated 
toward finish of crop maturity is very 
rapid. A crop should mature in about 
six weeks; 4S deg. at night and 65 deg. 
on bright days is about right for temper¬ 
ature ; 55 deg. is proper for cloudy days. 
The Lettuce Crop. —Grand Rapids 
lettuce should be given same soil and 
temperature, but not quite as much 
water, and should be planted 6xS to Sx8 
inches each way. In growing lettuce it 
is necessary to have good strong plants 
ready to plant in beds as soon as a crop 
is off, as no time should be wasted after 
plants are set in beds. Great care must 
be exercised to keep lettuce clear of green 
fly or aphis. Many growers mulch heavi¬ 
ly with fresh tobacco stems between 
plants for each crop, or use tobacco stems 
to fumigate. This can be done in an old 
galvanized iron bucket with large holes 
punched in bottom for draft, or by burn¬ 
ing paper in walls and placing a pile of 
wet stems on same. Care must be taken 
not to make application too strong. A 
safer way would be to purchase some 
tobacco solution from your seedsman and 
spray according to directions. 
Lancaster Co., Pa. klmer j. weaver. 
School Teacher : “What lesson do we 
learn from the busy bee?” Tommy Tuft- 
nut : “Not to get stung.”—Philadelphia 
Telegraph. 
See How Easy It Is 
In writing simply say: Mail me in¬ 
surance -pari<mIars for mv aoe as per 
Rural New-Yorker for Feb. 14. 
in tour Letter lie sure to give 
7. Your Full Name. 
2. Your occupation. 
3. The Exact Date of your Birth. 
No agent will be sent to visit you; 
the Postal Life employs no agents. 
STRONG POSTAL POINTS 
First : Standard policv- 
reserves, now nearly 
$ 10 , 000 , 000 . Insurance in 
force nearly $.'>0,000,000. 
Second : Old-line legal 
reserve insurance — not 
fraternal or assessment. 
Third: Standai d policy- 
provisions, approved by 
the Stale Insurance De¬ 
partment. 
Fourth : Operates under 
strict State require¬ 
ments and subject to the 
United States postal 
authorities. 
Fifth : High medical 
standards in the selec¬ 
tion of risks. 
Sixth: Policyholders' 
Health Bureau provides 
one free medical exami¬ 
nation each year, if de¬ 
sired. 
In subsequent years you get the 
Renewal Commission other compa¬ 
nies pay their agents, namely 7)4%, 
and you also receive an Office-Ex¬ 
pense Saving of 2%, making up the 
POSTAL LIFE BUILDING 
35 Nassau St.. New York 
Annual 
Dividend of 
Guarantee d 
in the Policy 
And after the first year the POSTAL pays contingent divi¬ 
dends besides, depending on earniugs as in the case of other 
companies. 
Snell is the POSTAL way : it is open to you. Call at the 
Company’s offices, if convenient, or write now and find out 
the exact sum it will pay you at your age—the first year 
and every other. 
POSTAL LIFE INSURANCE COMPANY 
The Only Non-Agency Company in America 
WM. R. MALONE, President 
3S Nassau Street, New York 
Assets: 
nearly 
$10,000,000 
Insurance 
in force 
nearly : 
$50,000,000 
The Postal Life Insurance Company 
pays you the Commissions that 
other Companies pay their agents 
r FHF. POSTAL LIFE is the only Company that opens its 
1 doors to the public so that those desiring sound insurance- 
protection at low cost can deal directly for it, either personally 
or by correspondence. 
Whether you call or write, you make a guaranteed saving cor¬ 
responding to the agent’s commission the first year, less a mod¬ 
erate advertising charge. This first-year Commission Dividend 
ranges up to 
y# Of ° f the Premium 
Us O on Whole-Life Policies 
To Maple Sugar Makers 
One ol' the most successful of twenty-one Vermont. Maple Sugar Makers’ Conventions has been put on 
t'cc'^-aiul with it. the Grimm Utensils were placed at the bead of the list. 
TllJii IIIC« 1 1 J'iS I bCORK oil i\Iuple Syrup was 99 points, and the highest 
with the GRIMM Apparatus 
This little pleasantry has been going on for twenty-one consecutive years. It is conceded by those who 
know that if all the Maple Syrup and Sugar produced in the United States were made with Grtiiim Utensils, 
the extra quality would increase its value over $2,000,(100,00 annnaily, and the saving in time and 
fuel would bean additional large Item. 
Assuming that Grimm Sap Spouts were exclusively used for tapping next 
season, the increased production of sugar would amount to 25,000,(100 pounds, 
one-fourth of the approximate total of 100,000,000 pounds. At a ion estimate 
Of 10c per lb., there would be a net gain of $2,500,000.00. 1 his being 
a Tact, can we afford to cling to the old methods, considering, too, that 
patented tllore is au unlimited demand for a pure maple product, and that no other 
ft " farm crop pays a better dividend ? Valuable information and Sample 
O' CHAMPION EVAPORATOR CO . Hudson, Ohio IMM, Rutland, Vermont 
“ASK FOR 
CATALOG E’ 
-YS& 
1914 Crops 
« V I * I 1 f T A 4 I 
Every progressive farmer is planning 
NOIV for this year’s crops. No in¬ 
dividual or farm can stand still. Your 
Farm will go forward , and the lands become more and more 
productive—or they will deteriorate and produce less bountiful 
and less profitable crops. Which will it be in YOUR case? 
Make This a FORWARD Year 
Use Hubbard’s BasE Fertilizers 
They are the result of Scientific Research, and contain a Maximum 
amount of Plant Food per dollar invested. Let us co-operate with 
you, to the end that the Science of Fertilizers may be applied to the 
Business of Farming. 
Write today for our booklets “Soil Fertility,” “The Grass Crop,” “The Apple” 
and Hubbard’s Bone Base 1914 Almanac, which contains much valuable infor¬ 
mation about soil, fertilizers and other farm subjects. Sent free to any address. 
THE ROGERS 8 HUBBARD CO., Address Dept, a, Middletown, Conn. 
Office and Works, PORTLAND, CONN. 
--- 
When you write advertisers mention The R. N.-Y. and you’ll get a 
quick reply and a “square deal.” See guarantee editorial page. ; : ; 
