Popular Science Monthly 



447 



Hotbeds in Which Safely to Start 

 Early Plants 



IN the North, the most common method 

 of starting early plants is by means of 

 the hotbed. The hotbed consists of an 

 inclosure covered with sash and supplied 

 with some form of heat, usually ferment- 

 ing stable manure, to keep the plants 

 warm and in a growing condition. As a 



Typical hotbed made in the earth. It is framed to hold several 

 sash for admitting the sun's rays and keeping out the cold at night 



rule, the hotbed should not be placed 

 wdthin the garden inclosure, but near some 

 frequently used path or building, where it 

 can receive attention without interfer- 

 ing with other work. The hotbed 

 should always face the south. The 

 south side of a dwelling, a barn, a tight 

 board fence, a hedge, or of anything 

 affording a similar protection, furnishes 

 a good location. 



The Department ot Agriculture in- 

 structs that in the North, the hotbed 

 should be started in February, or early 

 in March, in order that such plants as 

 the tomato and early cabbage may be 

 well grown before it is time to plant 

 them in the open ground. There are 

 two or three forms of hotbeds that are 

 worthy of description. The plans sug- 

 gested may be modified to suit local 

 conditions. 



location, where the bed will be sheltered, 

 shake out the manure into a broad, flat 

 heap, and thoroughly compact it by 

 tamping. When compacted, the manure 

 heap should be 8 or 9 ft. wide, 18 to 24 

 in. deep and of any desired length, 

 according to the number of sash to be em- 

 ployed. The manure for hotbed pur- 

 poses should contain sufficient litter, such 

 as leaves or straw, to prevent sogginess, 

 and it should spring 

 slightly when trodden 

 upon. 



After the manure 

 has been properly 

 tramped and leveled, 

 the frames to support 

 the sash are placed in 

 position, facing to- 

 ward the south. 

 These frames are gen- 

 erally made to carry 4 standard hotbed 

 sash. The front board should be from 4 

 to 6 in. lower than the backboard so that 



Cross section of a temporary hotbed 

 which is built entirely on the surface 



A temporary hotbed, such as would or- 

 dinarily be employed on the farm, is 

 easily constructed. Manure from the 

 horse stable can be used as a means of 

 furnishing the heat. Select a well-drained 



A cross section of a permanent hotbed with 

 heating material and soil below the earth's 

 surface and within walls made up of boards 



water will drain from the glass. When 

 the frame is in position upon the manure, 

 the surface hotbed will appear as shown in 

 the illustrations. The area inclosed by 

 the glass should be covered with a good 

 garden loam or with a specially prepared 

 soil, to a depth of 3 to 5 in. Then the 

 sash is put on and the bed is allowed to 

 heat. At first, the temperature of the 

 bed will run rather high, but no seeds 

 should be planted until the soil tempera- 

 ture falls to 80 deg. F., which it will in 

 about three days. 



Hotbeds, having more or less per- 

 manence, may be so constructed that they 



