PLANTING 95 



The simple routine necessary in caring for a cold frame is 

 easily followed. The slanting sash should be lifted a little 

 while each day to secure ventilation. A thermometer hung 

 inside the frame registers the temperature, which will be kept 

 always near summer heat. This gentle warmth is furnished 

 by the decomposition of the manure that has been mixed 

 with the soil, as well as by the sun's rays, which pass through 

 the glass but are prevented by the glass from radiating. 



One year's success with a cold frame tempts a gardener to 

 try a hotbed. This is not so difficult a matter as a beginner 

 might suppose. A little skill, to be sure, is required to con- 

 trol the heat, which in this case is furnished by fresh stable 

 manure. In the fall the gardener mixes the manure with 

 straw, piling it in a dry place to let it ferment. Later he 

 forks it over several times. When he starts his hotbed, he 

 spreads this dressing so that it will partly fill a shallow pit 

 somewhat larger in area than the wooden frame, packing it 

 down hard and spreading on more until it has reached a 

 depth of two feet. He then sets down the rectangular frame, 

 forcing the sides into the dressing until it stands firm. Within 

 the frame, which is built at least a foot higher at the back 

 than at the front, to give a good slant to the glass, he places 

 a layer of dry leaves or straw. The reason is obviously to 

 separate from the dressing the layer next above it, which is 

 to consist of rich soil. This soil is now spread on layer by 

 layer. It will be at least six inches thick, so that the seeds 

 will not be in danger of touching the hot manure. The ther- 

 mometer, we will suppose, has been pushed down a little way 

 into the soil as a telltale. This must be constantly consulted, 

 for it is necessary to know the amount of heat that is being 

 generated. The temperature before planting begins should 

 be steady, ranging between sixty and eighty degrees Fahren- 

 heit. If it runs higher, some safety-valve holes must be made 



