124 The Hotbed and Cold-Frame 



the side opposite from the wind there will not be 

 danger of creating a draft. 



Hotbeds are not expensive luxuries as the home 

 gardener often thinks. One large enough to hold 

 nearly a thousand young plants at one time need 

 cost only fifteen dollars. Small hotbeds and 

 several of them, however, are more satisfactory 

 than one large one. Small ones are easier to 

 handle and plants of different ages may be venti- 

 lated in safety if they are kept to themselves. 



Plants grown in a hothouse, hotbed, or cold-frame 

 will require hardening before planting in the garden. 

 This should be begun by ventilation and by reduc- 

 ing the amount of water applied to the plant bed, 

 though the plants should not become so dry that 

 the plants will wilt or have their growth checked 

 seriously. After a few days, the plants should be 

 left uncovered during a mild day and on mild 

 nights. 



In the North the hotbed should be started in Febru- 

 ary or early in March, in order that such plants as 

 the tomato and early cabbage may get a good start 

 by the time the open ground is ready for them. 



The hotbed should always face the south, and the 

 south side of a dwelling, tight-board fence, or a 



