IMPROVEMENTS IN STRUCTURES FOR PROTECTING FRUIT TREES, VEGETABLES. AND OTHER PLANTS FROM FROST, COLD WINDS, OR RAIN, ALSO IN HEATING SUCH AND OTHER STRUCTURES
Year: 1868

page_text: LETTERS PATENT to William Edgcumbe Rendle, of 68, Welbeck
Street, Cavendish Square, in the County of Middlesex, for the
Invention of "IMPROVEMENTS IN STRUCTURES FOR PROTECTING FRUIT
TREES, VEGETABLES. AND OTHER PLANTS FROM FROST, COLD WINDS, OR RAIN,
ALSO IN HEATING SUCH AND OTHER STRUCTURES."
Sealed the 14th July 1868, and dated the 27th January 1868.
PROVISIONAL SPECIFICATION left by the said William Edgcumbe
Rendle at the Office of the Commissioners of Patents, with his
Petition, on the 27th January 1868.
I, WILLIAM EDGCUMBE RENDLE, of 68, Welbeck Street, Cavendish
Square, in the County of Middlesex, do hereby declare the nature of
the said Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS IN STRUCTURES FOE PROTECTING FRUIT
TREES, VEGETABLES. AND OTHER PLANTS FROM FROST, COLD WINDS, OR RAIN
ALSO IN HEATING SUCH AND OTHER STRUCTURES," to be as follows:-
This Invention has for its object improvements in structures for
protecting fruit trees, vegetables, and other plants from frost, cold
winds, or rain, also in heating such and other structures. I employ
cases or frames of wood, earthenware, slate, or glass covered over at

page_text: the top with slabs or sheets of glass.
The cases or frames are made
in sections or lengths which can be put together end to end, each
section is composed of two parallel sides which are held together at
a distance apart from one another by distance pieces or tie bars, one
of the sides is made higher than the other so that the slabs of glass
which are to cover over the tops of the frames may be inclined
downwards to allow the sun to shine into the interior of the case and
to permit rain to run off freely. The sheets of glass which are to
cover over the tops of the frames or cases are made to slide into grooves
at the top of the frame, or slits might be made at the top for the glass
to slide through, and the sheets of glass are made with a flange at
their upper end' to prevent them slipping off, or pegs can for this
purpose be passed through the sheets of glass into the top edges of
the frame. By the above arrangements the glass can very readily be
either entirely or partially removed whenever desired either in fine
weather for giving air or for watering. If tiles be employed for form-
ing the sides of the frames I employ a framework of wood, zinc, or iron
to fit the top grooves or slits being made in the framework to receive
sheets of glass.
The tiles forming the sides are also made to fit in
grooves in the framework.
Holes are also formed in the upright tiles
for the purpose of fixing to them distance pieces or tie bars to keep
all firm together, grooves may also be formed in the front of the
framework to receive sheets of glass whenever it is required that the
structure should have a glass front. The frames or cases which I
call the protectors may be made of various sizes, small ones about
six inches in height for strawberries, for example, others nine inches
for peas, others about three feet for vines and fruit trees; the vines
and fruit trees should be trained expressly for the cases when young.
Boxes for protecting single plants may also be made to be covered
over with a slab or sheet of glass in a similar manner to that above
'described.
In some cases I form the protectors or frames with double sides the
space between the sides being filled in with cocoa-nut refuse or sawdust
or other non-conducting material.
In some cases (more especially for growing vines) I form a protector
of tubes of glass made in short sections or lengths which are laid along
the ground and fitted together end to end to form continuous tubes,
along the interior of which the vine cancs are trained; openings are

page_text: formed at intervals for giving air, these openings are fitted with suitable
covers; or in place of thus forming a protector of tubes of glass a
protector may be formed of half tubes or parts of tubes or curved
tubes similar in form to drain tiles; these tiles are laid along the
ground end to end to form a continuous channel open at the top.
Sheets or covers of glass are laid over the open top, and these sheets
are made to incline downwards by the tiles being placed in position
with one edge higher than the other, the sheets of glass are made with
a flange to prevent their slipping off; where the ends of two sheets
of glass abut together they may be covered by a strip of lead or other
metal or material the ends of which are bent downwards to clip over
the tile and so hold down the sheets of glass. Complete tubes of glass
or other material may be used either alternately or at intervals with
the parts of tubes or curved tiles, the ends of the parts of tubes or
tiles fitting into the ends of the tubes. The parts of tubes or curved
tiles I form of glass, metal, earthenware, concrete, cement, or other
material, or they may be built up of brick or stone or other material,
the parts of tubes or tiles may also be made with a flat surface at the
bottom to rest upon the ground. Parallel rows of structures thus
formed may be be formed along a sloping bank so that they shall be onc
below the other; or in place of the tubes or tiles being laid along the
ground they might be otherwise supported, they might also be placed
vertically or inclined in place of horizontally; some of the tubes or tiles
are formed at the bottom with an opening for the stems of the plants
to pass through.
When the protectors or frames are to be used for forcing the rows
of plants or trees which they are to cover should be planted below
the level of the ground in trenches with sloping sides, the whole or
a portion of the protectors or frames may thus be below the surface
of the ground and may be covered over by filling the trench with straw,
leaves, litter, or other similar material; where it is desired to obtain
very early crops I propose to employ artificial heat in addition, this I
do by means of long flues, hot air pipes, or hot water pipes or tanks
placed below the rows of plants or trees and covered over with sand,
gravel, or similar substance so that the heat shall be given out gradually;
other structures may be similarly heated.
I also propose in some cases to cover over the protectors or frames
with straw or reed covers made conical to cover them completely over.

page_text: I also propose to use the protectors or frames in the interior of ordinary
greenhouses with a small boiler and tank for forcing or propagating
purposes.
SPECIFICATION in pursuance of the conditions of the Letters Patent,
filed by the said William Edgcumbe Rendle in the Great Seal Patent
Office on the 27th July 1868.
TO ALL TO WHOM THESE PRESENTS SHALL COME, I, WILLIAM
EDGCUMBE RENDLE, of 68, Welbeck Street, Cavendish Square, in the
County of Middlesex, send greeting.
WHEREAS Her most Excellent Majesty Queen Victoria, by Her
Letters Patent, bearing date the Twenty-seventh day of January, in
the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and sixty-eight, in
the thirty-first year of Her reign, did, for Herself, Her heirs and
successors, give and grant unto me, the said William Edgcumbe
Rendle, Her special licence that I, the William Edgcumbe Rendle,
my executors, administrators, and assigns, or such others as I, the
said William Edgcumbe
, my executors, administrators, and
assigns, should at any time agree with, and no others, from time
to time, and at all times thereafter during the term therein expressed,
should and lawfully might make, use, exercise, and vend, within the
United Kingdom of Great Britain and Ireland, the Channel Islands,
and Isle of Man, an Invention for "IMPROVEMENTS
PROTECTING FRUIT TREES, VEGETABLES, AND OTHER PLANTS FROM FROST, COLD
WINDS. OR RAIN, ALSO IN HEATING SUCH AND OTHER STRUCTURES," upon the
condition (amongst others) that I, the said William Edgcumbe Rendle,
my executors or administrators, by an instrument in writing under my,
or their, or one of their hands and seals, should particularly describe and
ascertain the nature of the said Invention, and in what manner the
same was to be performed, and cause the same to be filed in the Great
Seal Patent Office within six calendar months next and immediately
after the date of the said Letters Patent.
IN STRUCTURES FOR
NOW KNOW YE, that I, the said William Edgcumbe Rendle, do
hereby declare the nature of my said Invention, and in what manner the
same is to be performed, to be particularly described and ascertained in
and by the following statement thereof, that is to say:-

page_text: This Invention has for its object improvements in structures for pro-
tecting fruit trees, vegetables, and other plants from frost, cold winds,
or rain, also in heating such and other structures.
The improvements consist, firstly, in employing a combination of
earthenware and glass in forming cases or frames for protecting fruit
trees, vegetables, and other plants. The cases or frames I form in
sections or lengths, which can be put together end to end; each section
is composed of two parallel sides, which are held or formed together
at a distance apart from one another; one of the sides is made higher
than the other, so that the slabs or sheets of glass which are to cover
over the top of the frames may be inclined downwards to allow the
sun to shine into the interior of the case, and to permit rain to run
off freely. The sheets of glass which are to cover over the top of the
frames or cases are made to slide into grooves at the top of the sides
of the frame. If tiles be employed for forming the sides of the frame,
they may either be supported by a framework of wood, zinc, or iron,
or they may be held in position by embedding their lower ends in the
ground; distance pieces or tie bars may also be employed to keep all
firm together.
In some cases, more especially for growing vines, I form a frame
or protector of parts of tubes or curved tiles similar in form to drain
tiles; these tiles are laid along the ground end to end to form a
continuous channel open at the top. Sheets or covers of glass are
employed to close over the open top, and these sheets are made to
incline downwards by the tile being placed in position with one edge
higher than the other. The curved tiles or parts of tubes may be
also made with a flat surface at the bottom to rest upon the ground.
Parallel rows of structures thus formed may be ranged upon
sloping bank, so that they shall be one below the other; or in place
of the parts of tubes or curved tiles being laid along the ground
they might be otherwise supported; they might also be placed vertically
or inclined in place of horizontally. Some of the tubes or tiles are
formed at the bottom with an opening for the stems of plants to pass
through.
a
In place of employing earthenware in constructing frames or pro-
tectors of the forms above described, such frames or protectors may be
constructed of metal or other material.
On Sheet 1 of the Drawings hereunto annexed are shown forms

page_text: of tiles suitable for constructing frames or protectors such as are above
described.
Figures 1 and 2 show end views of tiles suitable for constructing
two parallel walls of earthenware at a short distance from one another.
Figure 1 being an end view of one of the tiles for the back wall,
and Figure 2 a similar view of one of the tiles for the front wall;
these tiles may be made in lengths of two or three feet, or of other
convenient length, and at each of their ends a projection a is formed
upon them, through which projection a rectangular opening a' is formed,
as shown.
When erecting a frame or protector from tiles, such as shown in
Figures 1 and 2, the tiles for forming the front and back walls of the
frame or protector are placed together end to end, with their ends
embedded in the ground, and into the rectangular openings formed
in the projections at the end of two adjoining tiles short lengths of
laths or strips of wood are inserted to hold the tiles together. At the
top of cach tile a groove is formed for the sheets of glass to be slipped
into, which sheets of glass are to cover over the space between the
front and back walls of the protector.
Figure 3 shows an end view of a curved tile with the front and
back of the protector formed together in one tile, such a protector may
be used either for nailing to a wall to serve as a protector to a branch
or shoot of a fruit tree, or may be used for protecting small plants
or vegetables, in this latter case holes should be formed at intervals
through the bottom of the tile for the stems of the plants or vegetables
to pass through, at the upper part both of the front and back of the
tile grooves are formed for strips or sheets of glass to be slipped into,
as shown.
Figure 4 shows another similar form of tile, also adapted for being
fixed to a wall to serve as a protector to the shoots of fruit trees;
the manner in which this may be effected is shown at Figure 5, the fruit
trees being specially trained to allow of the protectors being thus adapted
to them.
Figure 6 shews an end view and Figure 7 a perspective view of
a protector more especially adapted for growing vines. In this case
the tile is made of larger dimensions, and by preference it is formed
at each of its ends with projections upon its exterior to form feet,

page_text: upon which the tile may rest, or in place of forming such a curved
tile all in one piece, it might be formed in two parts, as shown at
Figures 8 and 9, the two parts being formed to fit together, and
to be secured by wooden keys or strips fifting into grooves k, k, in the
two parts of the tiles. A perspective view of a vineyard or grapery,
composed of protectors or frames thus constructed is shown at Figure 10.
The grooves formed in the tiles to receive the sheets or strips of glass
I prefer to be sufficiently broad to receive two sheets of glass one
above the other, so that the amount of air admitted into the protectors
may be regulated to any degree by slipping one or more of the sheets
of glass one over the other.
Figure 11 shows how a wooden stageing may be employed for support-
ing several rows of protectors or frames of curved tiles, such as are above
described. This arrangement for supporting the protectors is specially
adapted for growing pears and such like fruit.
When using the protectors or frames for forcing vegetables or plants,
the rows of plants or vegetables which they are to cover should be
planted below the level of the ground in trenches with sloping sides,
the whole or a portion of the protectors or frames may thus be below
the surface of the ground, and may be covered over by filling the trench
with straw, leaves, litter, or other similar material.
When it is desired to obtain very early crops, I propose to employ
artificial heat in addition, this I do by means of long flues, hot air pipes,
or hot water pipes or tanks placed below the rows of plants or trees,
and covered over with sand, gravel, or similar substances, so that the
heat shall be given out gradually. A transverse section of a protector
thus heated is shewn at Figure 12.
When a whole set of the protectors or frames, as shewn in Figure 10,
has to be heated, I construct a long centre flue running under the
centre portion with separate branch flues running right and left under
cach protector or frame, so that hot air or hot water pipes may be carried
from end to end of each protector or frame, and by means of a valve or
damper at the end of each the heat may be turned on to or shut off
from any one protector or frame, so that by this arrangement it would
be possible to keep up a constant succession of fruit by bringing forward
the protectors or frames one after the other. Other structures may be
similarly heated.

page_text: I also propose in some cases to cover over the protectors or frames
with straw or reed covers made conical to cover them completely over;
hot water pipes may also be introduced into the semi-tubes, so as to
impart heat to the fruit.
I also propose to use the protectors or frames in the interior of
ordinary greenhouses with a small boiler and tank for forcing or pro-
pagating purposes.
In witness whereof, I, the said William Edgcumbe Rendle, have
hereunto set my hand and seal, this Twenty-second day of
July, in the year of our Lord One thousand eight hundred and
sixty-eight.
W. EDGCUMBE RENDLE. (L.S.)