Growing Flowers 211 



plants will not grow taller than that before being 

 transplanted. A little compost mixed with the top 

 layer of sand will be beneficial. A thermometer 

 should be kept in the hotbed while the manure is 

 standing and should reach 120 degrees and then 

 drop to 90 before the top layer of soil is added, 

 when it will be time to plant the seed. 



A hotbed made of concrete is there to stay and there 

 will not have to be a renewal every few years 

 because the manure has rotted the boards. It will 

 not be more expensive in the long run, but the 

 selection of site should be made carefully for it 

 cannot be changed. In order to make a concrete 

 hotbed there should be set upright in the ground 

 a double layer of boards for forming the walls, just 

 as would be done for a wooden hotbed. The con- 

 crete should be poured into this while soft and 

 the boards left in place until the concrete has 

 hardened all the way down. 



Good drainage for the hotbed may be secured by 

 placing at the bottom, before the manure is put in, 

 a four-inch layer of cinders. Drainage is necessary 

 if the plants are to thrive, and to place the hotbed 

 in a well drained spot will be advisable whether 

 or not the cinder bottom is used. 



