Page:Architectural Review and American Builders' Journal, Volume 1, 1869.djvu/726

 584 The Architectural Review and American Builders' Journal. [Mar., CONSERVATORIES. OF all the appendages to modern residences, which owe their origin to the increasing refinement and civili- zation of the times, there are none, which so markedly indicate the possession of ease and elegance, as those which form the subject of this brief notice. They not only afford a useful and agreeable means of healthful exercise and recrea- tion, during inclement weather, but con- tribute greatly to form a striking archi- tectural feature, in the general appear- ance and design of a dwelling. We would wish to see them still more gener- ally adopted, than they are at present ; and there is no very cogent reason why they should not be ; nor why the size of the Conservatory should be regulated by • the size of the house. A cottage might just as well have a large Conserv- atory as a small one; because, after the cost of the first construction, and fitting up, the subsequent expense of the main- tenance is about equal, whether it be large or small. Besides, a Conservatory property be- ing intended for the growth of trees and shrubs, and not for mere plants in pots, a sufficiency of room must be given for these to expand themselves ; otherwise they will become puny in their growth, and blanched in their appearance. There has been much controversy, as to the distinction between a Greenhouse and a Conservatory ; and they have been so much confounded and misapplied, that it is a difficult matter, to define what is properly a Conservatory. The general meaning of the word may now, however, be taken to signify a structure, which differs from a greenhouse, in so far that, in the latter, the plants and shrubs stand in pots, which are placed upon stages ; whereas, in the former, the plants and trees are regularly set, in beds of the finest composts, into which they are removed from the pots and tubs taken out of the greenhouse. The general style of construction is similar in both ; but, as a necessai'y con- sequence, in order to give the shrubs and trees abundance of room to attain a full growth, Conservatories must be more spacious and elevated ; and are generally finished in a much superior style to greenhouses. The best aspect for any building, in which it is designed to keep plants, is in general the south, or any point between S.S.E. and S.S.W., in order that the ad- vantage of the heat, gained by the rays of the sun, during winter and spring, may be preserved. Nevertheless, when- ever this heat, so necessary to the vital- ity of the plants, can be obtained by artificial means, the aspect is a subject of very little importance ; and the glass may face any point, so long as it is not shaded by some other building, and the ventilation is not impeded, or interfered with. As regards the dimensions, there can be no arbitrary rule. The height should never be less, than that of the apart- ments with which it is connected ; and, as a general rule, the width should be one and a half times the height. The mode of heating Conservatories is, usually, either by smoke-flues, or by tubes of hot water, or steam, carried under the paths ; or, where there are stands, these tubes can be run through underneath them. In whatever manner the heating is carried out, the greatest care should be taken to have the method adopted altogether concealed, as nothing detracts more from the appearance and the appropriateness of a structure like a Conservatory — designed as much for ornament as use — than to have the tubes, by which it is heated, forming conspicuous objects of view. The architectural style of Conserva- tories must, as a matter of taste and