Devices for Forcing, Forwarding, and Protecting. 1 29 



right. When it is warm uniformly throughout the heap it 

 is ready for making into the bed. From first to last, the pre- 

 paration of the manure usually occupies about two weeks. 



Before beginning to make 

 the bed, mark out accu- 

 rately the space it has to 

 occupy, allowing, if very early 

 in the year and manure is 

 plentiful, sufficient margin 

 for it to project 18in. beyond 

 the lights all round, but if 

 manure is scarce less margin 



Manure Hot-bed on top of Ground. niUSt Suffice, though it ttlUSt 



never be less than 9in., or it will be found impossible to keep 

 up the heat on the outsides of the frame. Use the longest 

 stuff for the outsides of the bed, and keep this part a little 

 higher than the remainder until the full height is reached. 

 Except that on the outside, lay down alternate forkfuls of new 

 manure and that which has been stacked (or of leaves) in layers 

 about Gin. deep all over the bed, shaking it out so as to mix it 

 well and break any lumps. Beat it down with the back of the 

 fork as the work proceeds, and when it reaches the full height 

 tread it all down firmly and evenly. Finish by filling up any 

 hollow places with a little more manure. A bed made in this 

 way will " hold together," and will retain heat on the outsides 

 longer than when the manure is laid down indiscriminately. 



The thickness of the bed depends upon the time of the year 

 it is made and the purpose for which it is intended the earlier 

 the bed is made the thicker it should be. As a general rule, 

 for the early forcing of salads, it will give good results if made 

 15in. thick in January, reducing in thickness about Sin. for each 

 month it is made later. If made in March for cucumbers or 

 melons 2ft. is the minimum, and this can be gradually reduced 

 to 1ft. as the season advances. 



When the bed is finished it should be covered with four to six 

 inches of fibrous soil, consisting either entirely of sifted old hot- 

 bed manure as used in the French garden, or of a mixture of 

 half that material and half good garden loam; then put on 



the frame, thrust a soil thermometer into the manure, and shut 



9 



