OCR Text |
Show nearly 100 degrees Fahrenheit without the wilting of a single leaf of the plants. The result of this rapid growing of vegetation is wonderful. The beds arc filled about three feet deep with rich stable refuse mixed with one-third silicia formation, found near by. The rich soil, the sun's light and the constant con-stant condensation of the steam from the hot stream make such a perfect I combination that vegetation has to grow night and day. "What has been the result ? The first seeds were put. into the ground on the Fourth of July last j'ear. Lettuce came up from dry seed in two days and cucumbers cu-cumbers in three daj-s, and other vegetables vege-tables in like quick time. Good-sized heads of lettuce were gathered in 15 to 18 days from the time of planting. In 28 days lettuce measured 22 inches across, which was as sweet and tender as anyone ever put into his mouth. Often the condensation of the steam would break down the larger leaves by the weight of water upon them. Cucumber Cu-cumber vines grew from 25 to 30 feet in length in less than 60 days without being watered, except from the moisture mois-ture in the air. "Roots hang down from the vines 15 to 20 inches long. The flowering on the various plants is exceptionally great. On some of the cucumber vines five full-sized full-sized cucumbers were gathered from a single joint; often three were grown. More brittle ones were never gathered from vines than those gfown in this novel greenhouse. Rhubarb, beets, mushrooms and other vegetables will grow to great advantage in this hot and moist temperature. Many tropical fruits could also be raised. "There is very little labor to be done after the soil is properly fixed and the seed is once in the ground. It is like pressing the button and nature doing the rest. There arc no weeds, no insects, in-sects, no stirring cf the soil, only to gather in the fruits and watch nature working in a harnessed condition. The leaves and all the plants show a very healthy condition and fine color. "Cucumber leaven measure 17 Inchcn across. The gTowth of a cucumber Is very rapid after it is once started. Many a time they measure about two inches long and within 24 hours increase in-crease an inch in length. Radishes grow so rapidly that they often split." Pittsburgh Dispatch. GROWN OYER A GEYSER. Great Vegetables Italsad In Yellowstone Yel-lowstone Park. A National Uothome In Which Phenomenal Phe-nomenal Growth Are At talnedTcn-root Co. Mother Nature has begun to experiment experi-ment with hothouses, ami the very first one, as well ay the vuiy one iu existence, exist-ence, is located in cuov.tonc park. A geyser furnishes all tuut is necdiiu to make tremendous growths, such as cucumbers ten feet long, and the like, 'llie hothouse, or greenhouse, us the gentleman who has charge of it, W. 1. Howe, terms it, is a model one of its, kind, although located away up in the mountains of the park. . Mature furnishes fur-nishes everything necessary to conduct it, except the building itself, giving heat, moisture and light. If Mr. Howe wanted to compete at the county fairs in the vegetable line he would, unless heavily handicapped, win all the prize3. Such lettuce, cucumbers, radishes, tomatoes and other thing3 to cat as the firm of Nature & Howe grows are bigger than the biggest fish story ever told. Almost everyone who lias ever been to Yellowstone Park hotel ho-tel within the last year will remember T ' the wonderful vegetables, for despite their size they are very delicate in flavor, although grown at an altitude of '7,400 feet, vhere ice forms every month in the year. Here is what Mr. Howe says about it: . "Travelers who have been in every climate on this broad earth never before be-fore had seen such a sight. Lettuce, cucumbers, cu-cumbers, radishes, tomatoes, mushrooms mush-rooms and the like are growing with the greatest success. The experiment is novel and very interesting; the growing grow-ing of vegetables over a hot stream of water often interested tourists more than the eruption of a geyser. "After procuring permission from Capt. George S. Anderson, acting superintendent super-intendent of the park, I built the greenhouse green-house over a hot steaming hole in the ground. The water had a temperature of 105 degrees Fahrenheit. It proved a great success. On December 1 4 the thermometer ther-mometer showed 35 degrees below zero, Fahrenheit, yet in this little crude slab house nature was caring for cucumbers, onions, radishes and lettxtce with a temperature tem-perature of 65 degrees Fahrenheit, all in fine shape, knowing nothing of the fierce blowing snow and wind outside. "The greenhouse is 25x50 feet, with a glass roof covering it. The building faces the east, with a front four feet high and raised to the height of 18 feet at the back. The heat is f urniebed from a running stream flowing from a seven-inch seven-inch hole in the formation at the south end, flowing north through the center of the building. The water comes from the ground at a temperature of 195 degrees de-grees Fahrenheit, which is about the boiling point at this altitude. Five-foot Five-foot beds surround the building on the inside, except at the north end. with a nine-foot bed in the center; all the beds are raised from 18 inches to two feet -for ci rculation a nd a place for the mushrooms. mush-rooms. An aisle runs around the building build-ing between the beds. "Often the temperature indicates |