2119. The disadvantages of steam as a vehicle for conveying heat to hothouses are few. On a small scale it is more expensive than the mode by flues, and more trouble is required to attend to one boiler than to one or even two or three furnaces. It is also somewhat more expensive than heating by hot water. These are all the disadvantages we know of. It has been stated by some that steam draws up or etiolates plants, and lessens the flavour of fruits; but we are inclined to consider such effects, when attendant on plants or fruits in houses heated by steam, as resulting from some deficiency of management in other points of culture.
