228 
THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY GENTLEMAN. Jan c Alt Y 11. 1851). 
of the boiler from the other side,—heating is a matter of 
simple certainty, if the boiler is at all nicely fixed. 
We lately saw a small house for young plants, with such 
a two-feet wide tank along the front, covered with refuse 
house slates, large cinders, &c., placed on the top for four 
inches ; finer ashes next; and then sand, for plunging the 
cutting-pots in. The tank was within eighteen inches of 
the top of the front wall. The house, or pit, was about 
seven feet wide, allowing a walk of two feet, and a little 
platform stage behind, where the plants were placed after 
they were struck. The back wall was eight feet high, 
so that in such a house plants of a good size could be 
kept on the stage. 
The same principle will apply in a small span-roofed 
house. I know a little one that answers admirably : it is 
eight feet wide, thirty feet long; side walls, four feet 
high; height to apex, seven feet and a half; house sunk 
inside below the ground level, two feet. The stove, 
which heats a couple of these, is at the end opposite the 
door. In one house, the tank goes all round, except at 
the door, and this house is used chiefly for cuttings; the 
other has the cuttings only on one side, and plants 
hardening off on the other. A two-feet walk in the centre 
leaves a platform of three feet on each side. Under 
such an arrangement, the person in the pathway must 
stoop a little to get at the plants next the sides. 
The cost of such tanks will depend considerably on the 
position. Securely made, they are jhst as good, but no 
better, than iron pipes. If covered securely, the heat 
from them is just as dry as from a pipe when it is hot. 
One presumed advantage, is the supposed kind, moist 
heat they admitted. This is a mere popular fallacy. If 
not securely covered, it is possible there may be too much 
of a moist heat. If some parts of the covering are left 
loose on purpose, by removing these you can allow hot 
vapour to permeate the house at will, which you could 
not so easily do with iron pipes. A great thing in their 
favour is, that, after procuring the boiler, the bricklayer 
and carpenter in your neighbourhood will pretty well 
manage all that you require, with an hour’s assistance 
from the smith, or plumber. The reason why I spoke of 
connecting the boiler with the tanks (after the three first 
feet or so, which should be iron) with lead pipes, was, to 
avoid the expense of knee-pieces, bends, &c., with their 
sockets, if of iron. Whatever form of tank be used, it 
would be advisable to have a part of the cover to move, 
where the flow and return pipes are respectively situated, 
so as to examine them frequently, and see that no leaf, 
or other matter, has got into them. 
Notwithstanding their simplicity, and the ease and 
comfort with which tanks are managed, did we, upon 
inquiry, find, that, owing to having to bring wood, bricks, 
or workmanship, from a distance, iron pipes would, on the 
whole, be as cheap, or cheaper, then we would decidedly 
rrefer them for all purposes. It is just as easy to get 
jottom heat from pipes, as from tanks ; and dry, or moist, 
heat, at will. This matter, however, has frequently been 
referred to. A couple of four-inch pipes, enclosed in a 
chamber, or surrounded with open rubble, terminating in 
finer material, would give enough of bottom boat to a 
bed wide enough to be easily got at. If the house was 
large, other pipes would be required for top heat. Or— 
say, in a house twelve feet wide, six feet high at front, 
and twelve feet at back—four pipes might be enclosed 
in a four feet wide chamber, or covered over to a neces¬ 
sary height with open rubble, and slides left in the side 
walls, to allow the heat to come out as wanted. The 
moistening the material round the pipes will always cause 
a moist heat when required. The same modes will apply 
to span-roofed houses. 
One great argument in favour of tanks—viz., the 
forming a great reservoir of heat, after the fire has 
got low, or even gone out—can hardly be much depended 
on, since the practice has commenced of making them 
allow, because, when deep, the lower strata of water 
hardly ever becomes much heated. Tanks of any fair 
size are, in one sense, much better than a too small 
amount of iron piping; as, in the latter case, to keep 
up a desired amount of heat, the pipes must be made 
hotter than is good for vegetation around them. It 
is seldom that tanks require to be made so hot, owing 
to the extent of their surface. It is always mistaken 
economy to limit too much the extent of piping for 
heating a house, and the same rule holds good as respects 
tanks. About 180° is a heat beyond which the water in' 
either case should not often rise. When either pipes, 
or the surface exposed, of tanks, get much hotter, the 
air next them is parched, and rendered unhealthy for 
plants. R. Fish. 
SUDBROOKE HOLM. 
The Seat or R. Eliisson, Esq. 
About the middle of last October, I had the pleasure of 
visiting this beautiful place. It is situated on a very gentle rise; 
but the country round it is rather flat, and, in consequence, the 
mind of a visitor is drawn to examine more closely, as it w r ere, 
the home scene, not being distracted with distant objects. The 
place is seven miles from the ancient and picturesque city of 
Lincoln. The cathedral is of a noble and very elaborate style 
of architecture, and is worthy of a close inspection, and a long 
journey to see it. From Lincoln station, there is a railway and 
station within half a mile of Sudbrooke Holm. At a very short 
distance from this station, I was directed to a gate, through 
which I passed, and found a winding walk, which led me over 
a bridge and through a plantation of young, thriving trees, chiefly 
Oak, to a kind of temple seat, facing a long, straight, broad 
walk, bounded on the right by a dense mass of evergreens, whicli 
at that time of the year were in their best attire; on the left there 
are several irregular groups of ancient Oaks, Ash, and Elm, 
evidently many generations older than the walk, or the dark 
evergreens on the right. As I gently moved along this noble 
walk, I caught glimpses here and there of a lake in the park, the 
extent of which is skilfully concealed. It was the middle of the 
afternoon, and the beams of the lowering sun danced upon the 
water, and the luminary itself was reflected in the limpid element. 
The trees had put on then- autumn livery, so loved by the artist’s' 
eye, and all bore that quiet, pleasing, reposing look, that only such a 
scene and such a season can give. I was alone, and, excepting two 
men at work clearing out the sedges in the lake, no other signs of a 
living world was visible. It was a truly English and, to me, a 
delightful scene, not easily forgotten. I turned occasionally to 
look at the evergreens, which w r ere chiefly fine, thriving Portugal 
Laurels, intermixed occasionally with spiral Conifers. The walk 
terminates with a dial, flanked by a pair of lofty, well-fonned 
Red Cedars, and backed by a dense mass of Laurels. To the 
right is the way to the walled gardens, and to the left a second 
arbour, which faces another walk, leading through a Pinetum, in 
which I noticed many fine specimens of Pines,—such as Cedrus 
deodara, C. Libani , Araucarias, &e,,—all in strong health. I then 
turned towards the gardens, and noticed that, to take off the 
dull uniformity of a brick wall, there were square pillars at 
regular distances, carried up rather above the level, and sur¬ 
mounted with stone globes. These had a very good effect. Over 
the central gate, out of this pleasure ground, there is a pair of 
eagles cut in stone. 
The gardens within the walls cover an area of rather more than 
four acres. The form is a parallelogram, which has the advan¬ 
tage over a square of giving a greater length of the valuable south 
wall. A cross wall divides the garden into two parts: one is 
much less than the other. In this lesser part, I found the forc¬ 
ing and plant-house, where I met Mr. M‘Bey, the chief of the 
gardening establishment. Like all good gardeners, he greeted 
me with a hearty shake of the hand, and that pleasant look which 
showed as plainly as possible that he was not ashamed of his 
place, but, on the contrary, proud to show me what he had been 
able to do in it, backed by his liberal employer. The houses are 
numerous and extensive, and kept in excellent order. We first 
entered the stove, in which I noticed—a good Stephanotis, in 
full flower; two or three species of the golden-flowered Alla- 
manda; a very fine Rondeletia speciosa major; and the good 
old plant Aphelandra cristata —a plant that is truly valuable for 
autumn decoration. There were also some good Dipladenias, 
