286 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY GENTLEMAN, February 12, 1861. 
RHUBARB. 
For the two rods of early I do not know any better sort than 
the Royal Albert, and for the one rod of late the Yictoria. You 
need not look out for one of the earliest places in the garden to 
plant the early Rhubarb in, as these places will pay better for 
other things, and the Rhubarb will grow almost anywhere. A 
shady place, so that there are no large roots of trees in the soil, 
will do better for either early or late Rhubarb than a place full 
in the sunshine. I very seldom miss selling my first gathering 
at 4 dc per pound. In looking over my books I find that I began 
to gather Rhubarb in 1859, on February the 26th, and in 1860, 
on March 28th. Looking farther back I find that I generally 
began to gather in March. 
When you have fixed upon the place to plant them, have about 
four tons of good rotten manure. Dig it deep and well into 
about three rods of land; mark this space out into three-feet- 
wide beds; then cut your Rhubarb into very small sers, and 
plant one row on each bed 3 feet from each other in the row for 
the early, and 4 feet apart for the large late. Do not cover their 
crowns more than one or two inches. Rake over the beds, and 
make them look tidy, and do not trouble yourself any more 
about them until you begin to gather for market. 
RASPBERRIES. 
The next thing to look to will be the Raspberries. For these 
fix upon a place where you will want a walk across the middle. I 
Mark it out three yards wide, then take one ton of good manure, 
and spread it upon the two outside yards ; dig it in deep and 
well, leaving one yard in the middle for the walk. The walk is 
to be dug deep and well, only not to put the manure upon it. 
Forty-two yards in length will be about two rods. Then get 
the earliest and best sort of Raspberry canes you can hear of, 
and plant them three canes to a stool half a yard from each, 
outside of the bed, and 4 feet from stool to stool. You will 
then find that you have thirty-one stools in each row; and, 
remember, that you cannot plant them too shallow. Tread the 
soil well over the roots, so that the wind will not blow them 
down, and never mind stakes. Remember, the chief aim is 
profit: therefore, do not cut them off close to the ground, that 
they may make better canes for next year. I will tell you in 
proper time how to have a good crop this year and next, if you 
get the right sort of Raspberries. I am sorry that I cannot 
tell the name of my Raspberries, as I do not think there is a 
better sort in England. I planted them seven years ago this 
February, and I made 6d. per stool of them the first year, and 
I have made very nearly Is. per stool per year of them ever 
since. I always sell the first week’s gathering at 8 d. per quart. 
In looking over my books I find that I began to sell in 1859, on 
June 27th, and in i860, on July the 14th. Looking farther 
back I find that I generally began selling about the latter end 
of June. 
GOOSEBERRIES AND CURRANTS. 
If your garden is fenced in with a hedge, the first thing to 
set about is to make a walk all round the outside close to the 
hedge. Then, mark out a space one yard wide next the walk. 
Two feet six inches will be quite wide enough for the walk. 
You will want these walks in all about 320 yards in length: 
therefore, if your outside borders are not that length, you must 
make more across the middle the same as for the Raspberries. 
These borders will contain five rods, which will be a sufficient 
quantity for the Gooseberries, Currants, and Strawberries. Then 
put on four tons of good rotten manure, dig it in deep and well, 
and plant your Gooseberry and Currant bushes 8 feet from bush 
to bush in the centre of the borders. Let the Gooseberries 
be about one-half of them good early sorts that will come first 
into market, and the other half good Rough Reds. The Cur¬ 
rants about two-thirds Black and the other third Reds. If you 
have to plant any of them across the middle of the ground let it 
be the Currants, particularly the Red ones, as the birds will not 
be so likely to take them from the middle as from the outside ; 
and let your soil be whatever sort it may, be sure not to plant 
them too deep, and remember that they are to be planted the 
full length of the borders, and you may sow the spaces between 
with Onions and Lettuces, to draw for salads. 
In July next will be the time to get some plants of the Black 
Prince Strawberry, and plant a row from bush to bush all round 
your plot. 
You will find that these borders will take 118 bushes to plant 
hem, and if they only make 1 \d. per year each, that will come J 
to 14s. 9(7., which is 2s. 9 d. more than I have set down in the 
table. I do not reckon my bushes to make less than 3 d. per 
bush one year with the other.— Thos. Jones. 
(To be continued.) 
FORCING. 
(Continued from page 273.) 
HEATING BY TANKS OF HEATED WATER. 
This was more in vogue a few years ago than it i3 now. It 
was erroneously supposed to give out a moister heat than pipes, 
even when made airtight as well as watertight. When securely 
covered by iron, stone, or slate, the heat wa3 just as dry as from 
any other mode of heating. As the heat, if the tank was of 
any great depth and size, could hardly be so warm as in pipes, 
openings in the tank so as to allow a moist vapour to escape 
were found to be very advantageous in cases where a high moist 
temperature was required—as in growing early Cucumbers, 
tropical plants in general, and the propagating of softwmoded 
tender plants ; as thus all other means of securing a moist 
TANK. 
AO 
B O 
SECTION OF DITTO. 
A Flow-pipe from boiler. | B Return ditto to boiler, 
atmosphere by evaporating-pans were rendered unnecessary, and 
when a dry air instead of a moist one was wanted, the openings 
could then be shut. The principle of heating by them is just 
a 3 simple as heating by hot-water pipes. Whatever the width 
of the tank, it should be divided in the middle except at the 
extreme end, so that the water may flow right round. The 
figure will show r a tank of wood 20 feet long and 3 feet wide, 
A being the flow-pipe from the boiler and b the return-pipe. 
A boiler will heat such a tank by being almost on its level, 
but the more feet the boiler is below the tank the quicker the 
circulation. Tanks are chiefly useful for one house, and, how¬ 
ever long it be, it must be quite level. Even in a range of 
houses, and where a tank might be continued along them all, 
it is found that the circulation is impeded at every junction or 
sluice. A great depth is totally unnecessary; from four to five 
inches will be found deep enough for anything. They may be 
made of iron, of earthenware, of brick and Roman cement, or 
even of slate, made secure at the junctions, or of one-and-a-half 
or two-inch-tliick red deal, covered with stout slate or other 
conducting substance. The last mode is perhaps the best of 
all for the amateur, as with wood tressles he may place his tank 
at once on the desired level. The wood, it is true, will give 
out little heat, but it will confine it and send it to the con¬ 
ducting top covering, and this may be so managed as to give 
both bottom and top heat. A tank 3 or 4 feet wide, covered 
with slate from a half to three-quarters of an inch thick or 
more, will heat a large house. When a little tank is used as 
an auxiliary for propagating in a small house, 18 or 24 inches 
will be wide enough, and might be heated by a small boiler 
set over the furnace, or by a band of pipes placed over the fire 
as in fig. 14. For such latter purpose common house slates 
would do for covering, and very close covering need not be 
cared about. For regular general heating the slate covering, 
or whatever it is, should be fixed securely with a mixture of 
red and white lead or other cement. Some, to secure a great 
amount of moist heat when desirable, take flow' and return-pipes 
along the tank to heat the water. I have no objection, unless 
on the score of expense. On the whole, though tank-heating 
either for bottom or general heating is good enough, where each 
tank communicates directly with the boiler, yet in hardly any 
case can we see their superiority, either as respects economy 
or utility over cast-metal pipes, from which dry or moist heat 
can be obtained at pleasure. R. Fish. 
(To be continued.) 
