CONSTRUCTION OF MANURE HOTBEDS 



63 



by this violent heating. After the bed has heated up, and then 

 cooled dowTi to 85° r.,the seeds may safely be so\vn. 



The hotbed frame should be twelve inches high in front and 

 sixteen or eighteen inches high at the rear, and should face the 

 south to get the full benefit of the sun. Since most hotbed sash 

 are six feet long, the frame should be six feet wide, outside measure, 

 and long enough to accommodate the number of sash required; 

 or if a large amount of hotbed space is required, it is a common 

 practice to make a series of beds of four sash each. Since a 3' x 6' 

 sash is often a little over three feet wide, the frame may need to 

 be over twelve feet long to accommodate four sash. It is a good 

 plan to measure the exact width of the four sash to be used and 

 cut the lumber for the frame accordingly. In making the back of 

 the frame avoid having a crack near the top of the bed. If only 



Fig. 36. — Cross-section of simplest form of manure hotbed. 



a small amount of hotbed room is needed, a bed may be made 

 with only two, or even one sash. Unless the hotbed is of the per- 

 manent type, it is advisable to have the frame put together with 

 screws, so that it may be taken down at the close of the season 

 without splitting the lumber. The frame can be stored in a small 

 space until needed the next season. The accompanying diagram 

 shows the arrangement of the different parts of such a frame made 

 for two sash, together with enlarged views of the corners and joints 

 (Fig. 35). 



With a hotbed frame made as indicated there will be room for 

 four inches of soil in which to grow the plants, and still leave eight 

 inches of space between the soil and sash at the front of the bed. 

 A cross-section of a hotbed of the simplest and cheapest type, 

 showing the location of manure, soil, and sash, is shown in Fig. 36. 



