HO S 



304 



HOT 



ardour, astronomy and the culture of 

 flowers. The great Conde devoted his 

 leisure hours to that delightful pursuit, 

 and the vase of flowers was daily re- 

 newed upon the table of Lord Bacon, 

 while composing the volumes of his 

 sublime philosophy. In the cities of 

 Europe, ilower-markets, for the sale of 

 bouquets and ornamental plants, are as 

 common as those for fruits. In this 

 new world, these delicate daughters of 

 the sun have' not received that atten- 

 tion which indicates the highest state of 

 civilization : but a tafete for floriculture 



of heat, or hot-beds, in the gardener's 

 forcing department. 



A hot-bed is usually made of stable- 

 dung, of which that made by the best 

 fed horses is to be preferred. It should 

 be about ten days from the stalls, and 

 without too large a proportion of litter. 

 After being thrown into a heap, of conic 

 form, for five or six days, it must be so 

 turned over, that the inner parts are 

 brought to the outside, the clots well 

 separated with the fork, the heap being 

 re-formed conically as before, and left 

 for an equal number of days. By this 



ia increasing throughout the Union, I time and treatment the dung in general 

 and ornamental plants embellish the ! acquires a sufficient and steady heat; 



country seats of the opulent and the 

 dwellings of honest industry. Botani- 

 cal gardens have been established in 

 several of the states, and the large 

 cities can now boast of their marts and 

 exhibitions of flowers. One of the 

 greatest impediments to the progress 

 of horticulture in the United States has 

 been the deficiency of nurseries, both 

 as to number and extent. They are 

 not only requisite for furnishing the va- 

 rious kinds of trees and plants which 

 are demanded for utility and embel- 

 lishment, but to give publicity to the 

 most valuable and interesting species, 

 as well as to excite a taste for their 

 cultivation. These establishments, how- 

 ever, have been much increased and 

 improved within a few years, and there 

 are several in the vicinity of Boston, 

 New York, Albany, Philadelphia, and 

 in the district of Columbia, which are 

 highly creditable to the proprietors and 

 to the country." — Encyc. Am. 



HOSACKIA. Four species. Hardy 

 herbaceous. Division and seed. Com- 

 mon soil. 



HOSE-IN-HOSE is a form of double 

 flowers, when one corolla is inserted 

 within the other, as is frequently the 

 case with the primrose. 



HOSTA. Three species. Stove ever- 

 green shrubs. Cuttings. Peat and loam. 



HOT-BED. When a temperature of 

 45^, moisture, and atmospheric air oc- 

 cur to deaden vegetable matters, these 

 absorb large quantities of oxygen, evol- 

 ving also an equal volume of carbonic 

 acid. As in all other instances where 

 vegetable substances absorb oxygen gas 

 in large quantities, much heat is evolved 

 by them when putrefying; and advan- 

 tage is taken of this by employing 

 leaves, stable-litter, and tan, as sources 



if, however, it is very dry and fresh, it 

 must be moderately moistened, and left 

 for five or six days more. At the time 

 of forming the heap, as well as at every 

 turning, water should be applied if its 

 substance appears at all dry, as a regu- 

 lar state of moisture is of first import- 

 ance to the obtaining a favourable fer- 

 mentation. It should remain until the 

 straw in general assumes a dark brown 

 colour, when it should be immediately 

 formed into the bed. Leaves or tan 

 may be mixed with advantage, as heat 

 is thereby generated during a greater 

 length of time. In cold, wet, or bois- 

 terous weather, the heaps should be 

 covered to a moderate depth with lit- 

 ter. 



In making the beds, they must be so 

 situated as to be entirely free from the 

 overshadowing of trees, buildings, &c., 

 and having an aspect rather a point 

 eastward of the south. A reed fence 

 surrounding them on all sides is a shel- 

 ter that prevents anj' reverberation of 

 the wind, an evil which is caused by 

 paling or other solid inclosure. This 

 must be ten feet high to the northward 

 or back part, of a similar height at the 

 side, but in front only six. The wicket 

 or gate must be of sufficient width to 

 admit a loaded wheelbarrow. An in- 

 closure of this description, one hundred 

 feet in length and sixty broad, will be 

 of a size sufficiently large for the pursuit 

 of every description of hot-bed forcing. 

 But for cucumbers, melons, and a few 

 inferior articles, a space for six or eight 

 lights is sufficient. Fruit may be forced 

 slightly by being trained within it on 

 the southern aspect; the fence on that 

 side in that case must be of brick or 

 wood. 



To prevent unnecessary labour, this 



