Home-Made Straw Mats for the Hotbeds— By n.w. Robinson 



Massa- 

 chusetts 



UNABLE to find in the stores mats thick 

 enough for warmth in the earlier part 

 of the season, I decided to make some myself. 

 I took two pieces of 2 x 4 inch rough spruce 

 timber about ten feet long, laid them on the 

 floor, parallel and about eight inches apart, 

 joining the ends with pieces of J-inch stock, 

 four inches wide. 



The frame. Two pieces of 2 x 4 inch spruce ten 

 feet long and eight inches apart. The central piece, 

 or rod, pulls the mat down during the maKing process 



Take a handful of rye straw 



Starting about 18 inches from one of the 

 ends of this frame and about an inch from 

 the edge, I drove in six-penny wire nails at 

 intervals of seven inches. Back of these rows 

 and a little to one side, I drove two other rows 

 of wire nails, making rows of cleats on both. 



Among the odds and ends of lumber about 

 the place I found a pole such as rugs are 

 wrapped around, which I placed between the 

 outer pieces of the frame. 



My first outlay of cash was for tarred mar- 

 lin, known to the trade as No. 4%. A ball 

 usually contains about 300 feet. 



Having decided on the size for the mat, 

 mark off the necessary number of cleats for 

 the width of the mat, allowing for three or 

 four inches of the straw to extend beyond 

 the outside strings of marlin. For example, 

 for a mat to cover a 6 x 6 foot sash, eleven 

 cleats will be used, giving ten seven-inch 

 spaces. The straw when trimmed should 

 extend beyond the outside strings of marlin 

 three inches on each side. 



To begin operations, cut the tarred marlin 

 into lengths 3^ times the length of the mat. 

 Fold the marlin, to get the centre of the 

 length, and with the centre over the pole 

 fasten it to two opposite cleats. Repeat until 

 you have a sufficient number of strands 

 fastened on the frame. This is the warp in 

 the weaving process. For convenience 

 shorten up the lengths of marlin by making 

 loops on the ends. 



With staples, tack the marlin to the pole. 

 Support the frame at a convenient distance 

 from the floor or suspend from a beam 

 overhead. Take a handful of rye straw — 

 the larger the handful, the thicker the mat — 

 and lay it across the strings of marlin, heads 

 toward the middle of the frame; add enough 

 straw to cross over all the strings, and extend 

 beyond the ends about a foot. Distribute 

 the straw so that the strand is of uniform 

 thickness (a ij-inch diameter gives a good, 

 heavy mat). Unfasten a length of the mar- 

 lin — the centre one is the best to start with — 

 cross over the ends, pull taut and fasten again. 

 Repeat, working toward the ends, smoothing 

 out the straw and don't forget that putting 

 the heads and loose ends inside the strand 

 makes a neater piece of work. The weight 

 of the mat as it hangs in the frame will cause 

 it to stretch, and therefore allow three or four 

 extra strands of straw. 



When you have woven in sufficient strands 

 finish off by tying with a square knot the 

 pieces of marlin as you weave the last time. 



With a pair of shears cut the projecting 

 strands of straw, to give the sides of the mat 

 a straight edge, leaving a margin of at least 

 three inches beyond the outside strings of 

 marlin. Trim off loose ends and heads all 

 over the mat, and the work is done. 



Tighten each string, working from centre to the ends 



Finish off by tying each string with a square knot and 

 trimming the sides of the mat 



Lay it across the strings, heads toward the centre 

 making sure that the straws lie close and parallel 



Use straw sufficient to extend beyond the size of the 

 finished mat, to allow for trimming 



23 



A mat like this — a little larger than the frame— will 

 keep all quite snug 



