100 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER. 
June 10. 
Northampton, Jane 39, Rose and Pink; July 27, Car¬ 
nation; Sopt. 27, Dahlia. 
Oxfordshire (Royal), June 23 ; July 29; Sept. 23. (Secs., 
C. Tawney, and W. Undershell, Esqrs.) 
Peebleshire, July 13th, Sept. 14th. (Sec., J. Stirling.) 
South Devon Botanical and Horticultural, July 13; 
Sept. 7. (Sec. J. Cree Hancock, Esq., Stonehouse.) 
South London (Royal), June 17t, 23, July 15+, 21, 
Aug. 19+, Sept. 2t, 8, Oct. 14|, Nov. 11+, Dec. 9+, 10. 
Shacklewell, Sept. 1. 
Surrey Amateur (George Canning, Grove Lane, Camber¬ 
well), Sept. 15, Dahlia. 
Trowbridge (Grand Exhibition), Aug. 25. 
Turriff, June 11, Aug. 0, Sept. 17. 
Whitehaven, July 9, Pinks; Sept. 17, Dahlias. 
poultry shows. 
Agricultural Society (Royal), Lewes, July 12. 
Bath and West of England (Taunton), June 9, 10, 
and 11. 
Bury and Radcliffe (Lancashire), Sept. 3 (Radcliffe). 
f For seedlings only. 
ORCHARD HOUSES. 
(Continued from page 82.) 
Having promised to look a little farther over this 
subject in a practical way, we return to it, not so much 
in the hopes of throwing any particular light upon the 
subject, as of helping to attract attention to a most 
deserving improvement in fruit culture. That such 
houses will be well adapted for fruits without artificial 
heat there is no ground for disputing. Rut this ad¬ 
mitted, the case can by no means rest here. So various 
are the horticultural wants or aims of the present day, 
and so varying the means and amount of enthusiasm of 
the different grades of society, that if any one point of 
high gardening be touched in a way to inspire confidence, 
hopes of an expansion of the idea seize the mind of 
thousands. Thus, indeed, it ought to be, and thence 
| progression; a feature of marked prominence in the 
British Isles at the present day. 
The form of roof was adverted to in our last paper; 
this is a first consideration. Mr. Rivers, the ingenious 
schemer of the orchard-house, has set forth the leau-to; 
whether this is the very best form or no, we are not 
perfectly assured. This time-honoured mode, we are 
afraid, has tended to cramp progress, and to forge 
manacles not easily broken. The present Sir Joseph 
Paxton was amongst the first to open this question 
wider, and in our day, men of the soundest practice, 
hacked by no inconsiderable amount of appreciable 
science, have not been wanting in their attempts to 
escape from this horticultural vassalism. The form-of- 
roof question is therefore still an open one, and likely 
to remain so for awhile; nothing but a settlement of 
the comparative virtues of our different kinds of glass, 
with, in addition, well-defined objects, can settle these 
things on a satisfactory basis. So much for the present 
position of gardening affairs, as connected with the 
orchard-house, the glazed promenade, &c., forming as 
they do a sort of architectural hybrid, or a transition 
state, from the simple coping, through the conservative- 
wall, and up to the hothouse. Cheap glass, cheap bricks, 
and a tolerably high degree of national prosperity, has 
accomplished all this, and we see little to lament in the 
change; pointing as it does to the increased comfort 
of thousands, besides constituting an incentive to the 
employment of labour. But somebody may say, why 
all this prelude to a simple question ? By your leave, 
good friend, not so very simple. It is, as it were, un¬ 
trodden ground, and as by the proverb, “Eools rush in 
where angels fear to tread,” so we are reminded that 
both modesty and circumspection are needed in such a 
case. 
To make some progress, however, we will first observe, 
that it is extremely likely that a span-roof, running 
north and south, and of course presenting an east and 
a west, or morning and evening roof, will be found the 
best for those who seek simplicity in management. Such 
roofs are more easily ventilated, for we dare not divest 
the question of the necessity of ventilation, which, how¬ 
ever, may be rendered so simple, that any domestic 
servant, giving two minutes trouble—morning and 
evening—may carry out every requisite in this respect. 
If, however, the house is required to be of a mixed 
character, a fruit and flower promenade, it may in many 
cases be required to subserve the general effect archi¬ 
tecturally, and this may in some degree bo permitted to 
dictate both form of roof, and the direction of the house. 
Whilst on this part of the subject, glass trails naturally 
come in view, and as in duty bound, we must beg to 
refer to them. With every respect for the inventors, 
there is some doubt whether these will accomplish what 
they are designed for, if not, they will be found some¬ 
what expensive toys to play with. As for the suggestion, 
that “by widening they become elegant hothouses,” it 
really sounds very like what is termed an Irishism. To 
advance to the climax, we suppose that by another extra 
stretch they would become Crystal Palaces. However, 
we much fear they will prove too expensive, and we 
really could have wished that, like Mr. Rivers’s orchard- 
house, a successful case could have been pointed to by 
the ingenious inventor. 
Since, then, a roomy house may be had for little more 
than a glazed promenade, or glass walls if you will; 
and since we do think that such will accomplish all that 
the walls cau do, and something move, we feel bound 
to adhere to the idea of an orchard-house as a very 
necessary structure for the million, and as an appendage 
to extensive gardens by no means disreputable. We 
see no reason to depart from the title, which would be 
an act of gross injustice to Mr. Rivers; there has been 
quite enough of this “ winning with another man’s 
horse.” If any one chooses to appropriate such a struc¬ 
ture to plants alone, why it ceases to be an orchard- 
house of course, and is simply a plant-house. It is ne¬ 
cessary, in discussing this matter, to keep up a kind 
of distinctiveness; to keep constantly in view the 
peculiar features of the plans of the inventor. 
Repetition may he permitted here, and we may again 
observe, that in the building affair a more severe eco¬ 
nomy lias been carried out than hitherto practised in 
hothouse building; and that this economy extends to 
the interior arrangements, the extreme simplicity of 
which involves so trifling an expense, as to be scarcely 
worthy of consideration. As for the beech-hedge back, 
it, of course, is part and parcel of the original plan; 
but this, we fear, will prove economy mu mad; for our¬ 
selves, we cannot gravely entertain the idea. Fitting 
it may be for a nurseryman, but when gentlemen, not 
possessing extensive gardens and hothouses, indulge in 
the luxury of an orchard-house, we do hope they will 
have courtesy enough towards the female members of 
the family, to secure them an interesting house where, 
in the winter, they may receive a perfect immunity from 
the north wind, the biting frost, and the drifting snow. 
We must go further, and endeavour to persuade our 
friends not to be alarmed at the introduction of a couple 
of hot water pipes, so placed as scarcely to be perceived 
in the structure, and certainly not permitted to interfero 
with the fittings-up of the interior. In securing the 
power of applying artificial heat, however, under adverse 
circumstances, we would confine ourselves to simply 
keeping out frost, or, at most, encouraging a tempera¬ 
ture of 50° maximum; whatever would not submit to 
this ordeal, we would exclude from our collection. It 
will here be perceived, that we would fain make it a 
I decorative affair, combining the useful and ornamental; 
