produce an early maturing crop, and lie harvested in 



two cuttings. 



The Seed Bed. 



In the southern portion of the state large seed-beds 

 are prepared in the open, while in the northern part 

 of the state cold frames or hot-beds are used. If the 

 seed-bed is prepared in the open it should be made in 

 a new place each year. For the hot-bed. select an ele- 

 vated place where drainage is good. A southern or 

 southeastern slope is preferable, with a fence or build- 

 ing, wdien possible, on the north or northwest as a 

 windbreak. A pit should be dug 10 or 12 inches deep, 

 6 feet wide, and long enough to acconmiodate as many 

 plants as desired. Construct a frame of good heart 

 lumber, 1% to 2 inches thick. The board for the back 

 should be 14 inches wide, and the one for the front 8 

 inches wdde, with the end pieces sloping to fit. The 

 frame should fit into the place excavated, resting on 

 the manure. Strips of 2x4 inch material are nailed 

 across the frame at intervals of three feet, to hold the 

 sash. The standard sash is 3x6 feet in size, exclusive 

 of the drip board at the foot, which projects a few 

 inches bej^ond the side of the frame on the lower side. 

 The excavation should be filled with fresh stable ma- 

 nure, which has been thoroughly moistened and mixed. 

 It should be reworked each day until it heats uniform- 

 ly. It is then leveled, packed down firmly and a layer 

 of dark, rich sandy loam soil is put on top of the ma- 

 nure to the depth of 4 inches. 



It w^oiild be rather troublesome to move the cold 

 frame or hot-bed, so the best method would be to fill 

 the frame with new soil each season. The soil should 

 be taken from an area on which neither a crop nor a 

 seed-bed of cabbage or any species of the cabbage fam- 

 ily has grown for several years. One should take this 

 precaution as a safeguard against disease. 



The soil used for the seed-bed should be of a light- 

 loamy character, fairly rich, and one that will not bake. 

 It should be thoroughly ])ulverized. and all rocks 

 sticks, and trash of any kind should be removed. Fhe 

 seed may be .sown broadcast or in close drills, the lat- 

 ter being commonly preferred. The drills are made by 

 using a narrow board with a straight edge. The edge 

 of the board is pressed into the soil so as to make a 

 furrow about Ihree-fourlhs of an inch deej). Sow th-> 



