Chapter FOUR 



Ci)t ilotfeetu Coiteframe auto 



THE hotbed is an enclosure, affording 

 bottom heat and protection from cold, 

 for the propagation of tender plants 

 unsuited to sowing in the open ground, 

 and for starting plants too early in 

 the season for open-air operations. The hotbed is 

 usually started in February or March in the latitude 

 of Philadelphia, while April is early enough in the 

 latitude of Detroit and Chicago. Plants are trans- 

 ferred to the open ground when all danger of frost is 

 past. With the exception of a few plants like Poppies, 

 which do not bear disturbance, all seeds yield better 

 results if planted where they have protection in their 

 early stages from drying wind, burning sun and nip- 

 ping cold. This protection the cold-frame gives, while 

 the hotbed affords the additional advantage of artifi- 

 cial heat. Plants thus started will be ready to trans- 

 plant about the time seeds could be started in the open 

 ground an important gain in northern latitudes, 



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