HOTBEDS SI 



strip of canvas large enough to cover the entire bed 

 and extend down the sides, and coated with preserva- 

 tive paint or oil, is an excellent investment, as it 

 can be used spring and winter. If the corners are 

 mitred or folded and secured with loops to fasten 

 them about the frame so that they cannot be blown 

 away, one can tuck away the hotbeds on the stormiest 

 nights with no fear of frost. 



It is rarely expedient to start the hotbed before the 

 frost is out of the ground. Taking into consideration 

 the time in which the slowest seed will germinate — 

 say two weeks — and allowing six weeks more for the 

 plants to have attained sufficient size for transplant- 

 ing into the open ground after danger of frost is 

 passed (which each one will know in his particular 

 latitude), it will be a simple matter to decide just 

 when the beds should be started ; it may be February 

 in the vicinity of Philadelphia or further south, or 

 late March or April in Michigan where we often find 

 April 1st quite early enough. But north or south, 

 east or west, it will be six or eight weeks before "corn 

 planting time." 



When all the plants are up and growing, lath 

 screens over the sash during the hottest part of the 

 day will be of benefit, especially as the weather grows 

 warmer. Later these may be replaced by screens of 

 wire if it is necessary to protect the beds against 

 chickens, cats and other predatory attacks. Pull ex- 



