154 THE BEGINNER'S GARDEN BOOK 



when it is delivered. It should be so fresh as to be 

 already steaming, and should contain only a third of 

 the bedding material, which is best of straw. It is not so 

 good, if of leaves; and it should never, for our purpose, 

 be of sawdust. 



Pack the manure in a thick bed about two feet deep. It 

 may be left on the surface of the ground, or may be put in the 

 frame. Leave it for two or three days, and then fork it over, 

 putting in the middle what was first on the outside. By this 

 time the first heat of the manure, which was more than we 

 need, has gone, and we can at this second handling safely 

 pack it inside the frame, treading it down in layers of three 

 or four inches, watering each one when packed. With a 

 thermometer made for the purpose, or with an ordinary 

 thermometer very carefully used, so as not to break it, daily 

 test the heat of the bed. When it approaches ninety degrees, 

 it is safe to put in the soil. 



The earth may be from six to nine inches deep over the 

 manure, and when leveled, should come to about the surface 

 of the ground. Put on your frame now, carefully bolting it 

 in place. Sift in, finally, a last layer of soil, making it per- 

 fectly smooth. Now put in your rafters, unless you think 

 they will be in your way when seeding. Some people find 

 them useful at that time. 



Sow your seed next, just as if you were sowing them in 

 flats, but more thickly. The hardiest and the slowest grow- 

 ing of the full season plants (parsley, cabbage, asters, car- 

 nation) may go in first, along with some of the very quick 

 yielders, such as lettuce and radish. Remember to put the 

 tallest growing plants at the back of the frame, where they 

 will have the most head-room. Save your quick-growing, 

 long-season tender plants for a little later sowing ; for such 

 things as tomato and nasturtium, if started in the hot-bed 



