MAKE COLD AIR FLOW AWAY IN 
WINTER, BUT POCKET IT IN SUMMER 
Cold air, like water, flows downward and settles at the low- 
est point. Early frost sometimes flows in a layer two or three 
inches above the ground. It requires only a slope of a foot or 
so on a lot to set up this air movement. In the average yard 
early frost pockets can be eliminated by a gate in the hedge 
on the lower side of the garden. Conversely, in the summer, 
by keeping the gate closed a cool pocket of air will collect on 
the lower side of the garden, thus making a cool place to sit 
on hot summer nights. 
PLANTS MAKE THE SUN WORK 
WITH YOU, NOT AGAINST YOU 
There are many ways to make the sun work with you. 
Shrubbery and lawns do this, especially by keeping you 
cooler in summer. The temperature of plants is many de- 
grees cooler than that of pavement in the hot sun. By 
use of shrubbery and grass the rays of sun are not re- 
flected against the house from the pavement to make the — 
house doubly hot in summer. Glare, too, is eliminated. eee oe 
Plants, on the other hand, transpire and evaporation of 
the moisture rising from them makes the air cooler. 
PROPERLY DIRECTED SHADE 
MAKES YOUR HOUSE MORE LIVEABLE 
The hottest part of the day is in the early afternoon, the 
rays pour directly on the west wall of the house, heating it 
to an uncomfortable degree. A tree located to shade the wall 
and roof may reduce wall and roof temperatures as much as 
20 to 40° Fahrenheit. In the spring, fall and winter, the tree 
shading your house will not interfere with the sun, which at 
the time sets in the southwest. The tree having shed its leaves 
will allow the sun to shine on the property during the cold 
season when you need all the natural warmth you can obtain. 
KEEP YOUR HOME WARMER IN WINTER 
COOLER IN SUMMER 
The coldest winds come from the north, northeast, and north- 
west. In the summer on the other hand, they usually emanate 
from the west, southwest or south. By curved plantings of trees, 
shrubs and evergreens in the form of a windbreak the wintry 
blasts can be guided around your home. This type of planting 
can save considerable fuel in the winter. When you reduce the 
wind from 12 to 3 miles per hour at 32 degrees Fahrenheit it will 
take only half the fuel to heat your house. In fact, the fuel re- 
quirement is a little larger for the combination of 32 degrees and 
a 12-mile wind than it is for zero temperature and a 3-mile wind. 
In a state experiment station test of a windbreak, it was shown 
that the fuel cost was reduced 22.9 per cent. By the same token, 
in the summer when you want breezes from the west they will be 
guided into a pocket. 
[26] 
