THE COTTAGE GARDENER AND COUNTRY GENTLEMAN, June 1, 1858. 
notice, about nine leet wide, heated as “ A Beginner’s,” with 
two flues ; the top of the one at back being three feet and a 
half from the glass, and the front one about two feet. The 
owner had lots of old, stout, unequal rough slabs lying about; 
and he was anxious to make a platform from these, above the 
flues, so that there his plants might stand in winter, and 
Cucumbers, Melons, &c., be grown in summer. The follow¬ 
ing was the plan adopted :—The slabs were cut to an uniform 
length, so that, whilst abutting against the back wall with one 
end, they would rest on the inner side of the front flue with 
the other. But there was no intention to char them by 
placing their ends in the flue. Along the flue, at four or five 
leet apart, two bricks on bed were securely fastened. As the 
pit was wide, posts, at about four feet apart, were driven in a 
line longitudinally along its centre; on these posts, and also 
Oil these bricks on the flues, stout rails were placed longitu¬ 
dinally, and on these the slabs were placed crosswise ; thus 
supported at the ends and middle. Holes were made at the 
back, in the slabs, opposite each light, for a drain-pipe to stand 
up, and to be plugged or opened at pleasure. The whole of 
the other holes, between the rough slabs, were stuffed with 
clinkers, stones, &c.; and then something like an even surface 
made, by spreading rough concreting with a spade. This 
still left an opening, between the end of the slabs and front 
flue, of the depth of the two bricks on bed and the rail. Part 
! of this was filled up with rough brickbats ; but, as time was 
| of importance, thick turfs were cut wider than the opening, 
j and these turfs jammed in between the flue and the rail. Two 
thirds of the top of the front flue were exposed; its inner 
side and the whole of the back flue were thus inclosed in a 
chamber. Holes were also left at the front, not only to let 
out heat when desirable, but also for pouring water down into 
i the chamber, which caused it to be supplied with moist 
air. The flues being capable of being heated separately, by 
means of dampers from the same furnace, it was easy to make 
i the back flue instrumental for bottom heat, and tile front flue 
for top heat. When deemed advisable, pans placed on the 
latter gave a moist top heat. When it was deemed unadvisable 
to allow the moist heat to escape from the chamber—when 
i the plugs of the drain pipes were opened—both flues con¬ 
tributed to the heat of the atmosphere of the house. I have 
previously stated how, by a single flue in the centre, and a 
chamber over it, or a rough suiTOunding of large stones, the 
i same object was gained. Perhaps some of these reminiscences 
may be useful to our correspondent. I should have liked 
to be more useful to him; but he will still be a gainer if he 
now clearly sees, that the first step towards securing a clear, 
plain answer, is to make a clear, plain statement of his case. 
For instance, if his pit is wide, he might grow other things 
in it for a time; and get Melons quite as good by giving them 
a depth of twenty inches, or two feet, of soil, and a width of 
thirty inches, as if they revelled in a width of five or seven 
feet.—R. Fish.] 
ARRANGEMENT OF HOUSES-HEATING VINE 
BORDERS, &c. 
“ I propose to build vineries, and a range of small span- 
roof houses, as shewn in plan. Will you kindly give me your 
opinion of the merits of this plan in The Cottage Gardener, 
j especially as to putting the hot-water pipes under the paving, 
| which wall compose the bottom of Vine borders. The rafters 
I of the vinery will be sixteen feet long, at an angle of 45°, or a 
| very little flatter. The Vines to be planted inside. (No front 
lights). Be so good as to notice the air drains opening under 
j hot-water pipes. The rafters will be one yard apart, and the 
j Vines trained on the spur system between them. The front 
| wall will be on arches ? ”—G. H. A. 
[In addition to your statement, to save giving your rough 
| plan, I may mention, that two vineries facing the south—each 
j twenty-four feet by twelve, length of rafter sixteen feet, at 
; an angle of 45°, and the base-end near the ground surface, and 
there being no front lights—are furnished with borders twenty 
feet by sixteen feet, with a walk in front of them. Beyond 
the walk the boiler is placed, and beyond that, and opposite 
the centre of the united border, a span-house goes farther 
! south, twenty-four feet by twelve, and nine feet in height, and 
j the houses are heated from that boiler. I will now notice the 
| peculiarities, and thus, so far, answer your questions. 
1. Paving the bottom of Vine Borders. —This I consider an 
excellent plan, where there is danger of the Vines getting deep 
into uncongenial soil; but, unless they are laid so hollow, 
that the moisture can easily pass through them, I should 
wish to have from four to six inches of rouble upon the top 
of them, with a good drain in front, in order that no stagnant 
moisture may be retained in the soil above. I should prefer 
this to having the flagstones laid open ; as, wherever water 
can easily get through, roots will also penetrate ; and, unless 
the vacuity below should be deep—say two or three feet, 
instead, as yours seems to be, of merely so many inches—the 
roots will pass through the fissures of the stones, and get 
down in dry seasons into the uncongenial subsoil, and your 
whole trouble and expense of flagging or paving would go for 
nothing. In examining Vine bordei'3 so made, I have found 
the roots got too easily down. If, therefore, I went to the 
expense of paving, I would wish to have the joints c^ase, 
rouble above, and a good drain in front. Few gardeners 
could manage to get such a thing done. One of the most 
perfect things of the kind was constructed by Mr. Mackie, the 
very able gardener at Kingston Hall, near Derby ; but there 
is an open chamber below; that chamber is heated by pipes, 
as you propose ; and the heat from that chamber is admitted 
into, and shut out from, the house at pleasure; a house 
which, when I saw it some years ago, was one of the finest 
sights, as respects grape culture, I ever witnessed. 
2. Heating the Border with Pipes. —It will, therefore, be 
evident, that I have no objection to your flow and return 
pipe passing beneath your border; nor should I have any 
objection if that piping was doubled, though it would be de¬ 
sirable to have the means of shutting the heat off when you 
merely wished to exclude frost from the house. The deep 
drain would be the next best thing to a chamber, and, of 
course, the bottom of the border so constructed that the heat 
would nermcate all the wav underneath it. In such circum- 
-L v 
stances, it would be advisable to have openings, to admit air 
beneath the border, and other openings communicating from 
beneath the border with the house. This would always, when 
deemed necessary, give you a supply of heated and moistened air. 
3. Banger of Pipes Freezing. —If you sink your pipes, as 
you propose, they will be more than twenty inches from the 
surface; but, if even at that depth they should be freezed to 
bursting, there will be some danger of rupturing the Vine 
roots above them. Why not secure both, by placing a little 
firm, loose, long litter, or even evergreen branches, or other 
covering, over the border for the winter ? 
4. Giving Air. —Your mode of having openings in the 
front of the house, passing down through the border, and 
rising immediately under the four pipes which heat the house, 
and are placed not far from the front of the house inside, is a 
very good one ; but still the idea suggested in the last para¬ 
graph might also be carried out. These pipes should be per¬ 
fectly clear of the border. At present, they are seemingly 
sunk considerably below the level of the inside border. The 
heat will not tell quite so quickly as if the pipes were above 
it. The air-gvving at top is all right. 
5. Circulation of Air. —Allowing your pipes to remain as 
they are—supposing you had openings at the back of your 
house inside, every four or five feet, and drains beneath your 
inside border, running across, until they opened just below 
your hot-water pipes—it would be next to impossible to have 
stagnant air in any part of your house, when the weather 
forbade the propriety of introducing much fresh air from the 
outside. It is seldom that gardeners can get such things 
done ; but, in new jobs, the extra expense would not be great. 
The Polmaise principle would thus so far be brought into ope¬ 
ration. The air near the pipes would be heated, and expand 
and rise ; colder and moister air would be drawn from the 
drains, to supply its place, and the colder and drier air would 
just as regularly find its way to the openings at the back of 
the house; and thus there would be continuous movement 
whenever the pipes w r erc heated. 
6. Planting Inside. —This has many advantages, and espe¬ 
cially with such a house as yours. A great weight of grapes 
can be obtained from such a rafter, going at once from the 
ground to the top of the wall; and, at such an angle, grapes 
can be grown well early or late; whilst, in the case of the 
latter, they will have every chance to keep well, as the danger 
from drip will be greatly minimized.—R. Fish.] 
