Page:The Amateur's Greenhouse and Conservatory.djvu/254

236 the end of May the house is filled with seedling geraniums in tiers one above the other from ground-line to roof. Of course these need artificial heat, and that is provided in the usual way by means of hot-water pipes. But there is an end of firing here long before the cucumbers are planted, and these, as above remarked, are grown without the aid of heat from first to lastthat is, as the word “heat” is commonly understood.

The seeds are sown in small pots, in light stuff, about the end of March, but the early part of April is none too late. The seed pots are placed on a top shelf in this same house, or in any other house where they can have the full benefit of sunshine. In due time the plants appear, and they are not stopped. By careful nursing they soon take their places in 48-size pots, and by the time they have filled these pots with roots the house is being cleared for the summer. The shelves are all removed, and a bed of fresh soil is made up in the border on each side. This consists chiefly of turfy loam, with a small allowance of rotten manure and gritty leaf-mould. A rich soil is not to be desired, but the bed should have at least a foot depth of fresh material on it every year; for the stuff that has received the drip of watering all the winter will not do for cucumbers.

The plants are not put out until the border has been well warmed by the sun, this process being hastened by shutting the house close for a few days. In the centre of every light is placed a plant with a stick to support it; and thereafter at every opportunity a careful man constructs a trellis, first by means of a few lengths of stout copper wire running length-ways, and then vertical lengths of cheap tarred twine are added as required by the advancing vines. It may appear by the story a tedious business, but in truth it is all so simple that it is almost a wonder that enough can be said about it to make even one short chapter. The house is kept close for at least a week after planting, unless, indeed, the sunshine is very strong, and then air is given. But the management of the plants is directed to securing a vigorous growth, and if there is an early show of fruit we remove it; in fact, not one cucumber is allowed to swell until the vines have nearly reached the top of the house. As the house stands east and west, the south side has to be slightly shaded. This is accomplished by splashing the glass with thin whitewash, so as to