COUNTRY GENTLEMAN'S COMPANION. 
December 18. 
203 
the tuber was afterwards to he found, though, doubtless, 
it will make its appearance somewhere above ground next 
year. 
Would not this suggest the plan of planting in beds lined i 
with tiles, at the same time securing a good drainage?— 
S. D., Guernsey. 
ORCHARD HOUSES. 
{Continued from puye 184.) 
[ As we are as variours in our w'aj's and tastes as the 
I roads we take, I shall describe another house, and call it 
i No. 4; it is twelve feet wide; two feet of brickwork in front, 
and three feet of glass ; the air is given by pushing down the 
j Ii'ont sashes, the brickwork being left hollow for the purpose; 
the back wall twelve feet in height; tlie top lights are fixed, i 
i a few ventilators are placed here and there at the top, in i 
case of a very hot summer, which may be opened in the \ 
middle of June and sliiit the end of August. Now, to meet | 
' Mr. liivei-s with Hoses, Strawberries, &c., I introduce a shelf 
i above the two hot-water pipes in front, and another half 
way up the front glass, tiie latter being a temporary affair, 
and taken away in summer. Need I tell the stay-at-homes 
that two or three extra ones could be made room for, allow¬ 
ing five feet for the path, which, of course, w'ould form part 
of the border. Tliere arc three feet left on each side for the : 
trees, which should be trained on the pyramidal system, and 
not planted opposite eacli other. By covering the back wall 
it will give you a surface I have not seen equalled for fruit, ; 
by what is called an orchard.-house; and here, again, you 
have a promenade worth the name. The borders could be 
covered w ith Calceolarias and a host of interesting plants; i 
liere you would have to water; but a good syringing, and i 
watering at the roots once weekly will be sufficient, Avith the 
exception, of course, of the plants in pots. This must be 
new ? tRiite to the contrary; a hedge, again, not only suggests 
the idea, but was the means of its present form to the tune 
of 140 feet in length. How was this? The late Mr. At¬ 
kinson, architect, nearly forty years ago, Avas employed to 
erect a range of conservatories; there Avas a long wall, and i 
a privet hedge stood in front of it part of the Avay, about j 
fourteen feet from it; the Avail, of course, could not be set I 
back. The noble proprietor put his shoulder to the hedge; j 
there Avas no saying, Nay. IMr. Atkinson Avas in a fix, and | 
though there are feAV disliked more to Avork against his Avill ^ 
than Mr. Atkinson,—-the house Avas erected betwixt. The ' 
hedge, of course, had to succumb even before the house Avas ; 
finished; —a sample of I Avill do Avith my OAvn as I like. 
Noav for No. 0 . We shall not suppose some of the navroAv ' 
j glens in Austria, nor yet one of the rocky dells in Africa, | 
j left dry by the summer heat, are covered Avith glass, Avhere | 
you, aye, and some of the stay-at-homes too, could, Avith 
poAver, AA'ork AA'onders in. Oh, no; I must be satisfied Avith 
smaller things. Well, therefore, I shall suppose a feAv men 
are. employed in a high and dry airy situation, fo excavate, 
on a small scale, an imitation of one of the above; it might j 
vary from tAventy to fifty or 1000 feet in breadth, ten to lOO 
in depth, taking the form of a corkscrcAV, by Avinding up or I 
any other Avay to suit the fancy of the proprietor. I need I 
hardly tell Mr. Rivers hoAV easily a place of this description, j 
on a small or large scale, could be realised, and how nicely ; 
groups of liis pet trees might be brought out. A group of ; 
i Mr. Lane’s Morello Cherries would be very tempting for the ! 
I ladies, besides masses of Roses, Camellias, half-hardy ever- I 
green shrubs, trees, such as Araucaria, Excelsa, &c. Ac. 
This may appear a A'ery extravagant affair; I think other- 
Avise. What can be erected cheaper? No hedges, no boards, 
no bricks, no upright glass, no pots, no stages; the banks 
Avould do for all ; besides, tlie roof need not he all glass ; 
large cosy corners and recesses might lie made for Ferns, or 
thoiAsands of other plants, that could be covered with the 
cheapest material in use, placing here and there a light. I 
should have no costly Portland stone foundations, but drive 
in piles of larch or oak to rest the roof on. I should have 
good, Avide Avalks inside, anil, of course, give it as Avild and 
irregular an outline as possible, forming a variety of glades 
and recesses. 
No. (J is a lean-to Vinery, Avhich I call, also, a storehouse. 
It is tAvelvofeet Avide and fourteen in height; it is in four 
divisions, and about 130 feet in length. A look will be 
sufficient to shoAV that it can be Avell packed, and only one 
roAV of pots used. Against the Avail, and underneath the 
top bed, is shoAvn four rows of Geraniums, tied up in moss, 
quite at home in their snug quarters. Don’t you, brother- 
stay at-homes, see hoAV easily you may groAv StraAvberries, 
French Beans, Cucumbers, Ac., in these beds, Avithout pots? 
and Avhy not three roAvs of nice iRvarf Peach-trees ? You 
Avould not see the top roAV, certainly; but look hoAV early 
you Avould get them. Besides, if you are as enthusiastic as 
our friend, you Avould not begrudge mounting the ladder, 
even at night, Avith a lantern, to see your pets ; and there is 
even room for a lady to Avalk along the path, though out of 
place here. The top bed is constructed on the same prin¬ 
ciple as in No. 2. 
No. 7, a lean-to Peach-house. What! Peach-trees 
trained only half up under the glass ! Yes; but look, the 
back is covered also, and I can tell you the back trees are 
little injured by the front ones, giving the largest space for 
Peach-trees Avithin so little room I have seen. This is also 
in four divisions, and is nine feet Avide and tAvelve feet in 
height, and 170 feet in length. 
No 8 is a sketch of a Dutch pit, used by them for forcing 
