30 



THE GARDEN MAGAZINE 



February, 1910 



What You Gain by Starting Seeds 

 in Heat 



HAVE you ever visited any of the numerous 

 flower and vegetable shows usually held 

 early in November? Have you not admired the 

 monster onions and great, heavy-stalked celery, 

 leeks as large as one's arm, and other vegetables 

 wonderful in size? I am not going to tell you that 

 you can grow the same things because I do not know 

 whether you can or not; but I am going to tell you 

 this — that some of those vegetables were sown 

 just as soon as the new seed could be procured, 

 usually toward the end of January or early in 

 February, especially the onions and leeks. 



Increased size, however, is not the only advan- 

 tage of early sowing. There are numerous other 

 reasons, the most im- 

 portant of which is an 

 early crop. With an 

 early start you can have 

 lettuce in April, cab- 

 bage in June, etc. And 

 then there is the prac- 

 tical side. A friend 

 once asked me why all 

 his cabbage split; he 

 was afraid he used too 

 much manure. I 

 laughed. I usually do 

 when any one speaks 

 of having used too 

 much manure, because 

 cases of that kind are 

 about as frequent as 

 springs in a desert. 

 But after learning that 

 my friend started his 

 seed in April, I found 

 the cause of his trouble 

 — the cabbage would 

 then be heading up in 

 July — in the hot weath- 

 er. Cabbage and cauli- 

 flower must be started 

 early in the season. 

 Make the first sowing of 

 seed any time during 

 February for early re- 

 sults, and another in 



whatever length you think you can afford sash 

 for. Board up the sides, giving the hotbed a 

 height of six inches above ground in front (which, 

 by the way, should be the south side so as to get 

 the maximum amount of light). The back of the 

 frame should be about six or eight inches higher 

 than the front. Partly fill the hole with fresh horse 

 manure well mixed with some leaves or bedding, 

 and tramp it down well, being sure it is well moist- 

 ened. Cover with about eight inches of good soil, 

 the top of which should be level with the outside 

 ground. Put the sash in place and wait for the 

 soil to get warm before you sow the seeds. 



But if you think you really want a good hotbed, 

 do not build it of wood, as the wood soon decays. 

 A concrete or brick hotbed will last a lifetime. A 

 very good idea in building one on these lines is to 

 have your back or north wall (which should be 

 about four inches thick) rise about two feet above 

 the level of the frame. Carry the ends down on 

 an angle to meet the front line, and you have a 

 very pretty and practical frame. This high back 

 is a wonderful protection for the frames. 



If you sow cabbage in February, you cannot 

 plant it out-of-doors in March, and neither can 

 you leave it in the frame just as you sowed it. The 

 plants will require more room, so therefore do not 

 put all your hotbed down at one time. One or 

 two sash will suffice in which to sow- the seeds for a 

 hotbed of twelve sash; so you can see that it would 

 be much more practical to divide the bed in some 

 way. 



Here is my way: For a twelve-sash hotbed I 

 would start two sash for the seedlings. I would 



A concrete frame for a hotbed will last a lifetime; wood soon decays. 



for the frames 



May for a late 



crop. 



Greenhouses are not an absolute necessity in 

 the starting of early vegetables. A good bay- 

 window will answer the purpose very well. Build 

 a stand so that the top comes even with the sill. 

 Make some seed boxes about two feet long, one foot 

 wide and about four inches deep. Leave space 

 in the bottom for drainage, which should consist 

 of about one inch of cinders or stones. Place a sod 

 over this; then put about one inch of soil in the 

 box, but do not have any manure in the soil. Firm 

 nicely with your fingers, then smooth with a board. 

 Sow the seed and place the box in the window. 

 If one box has a more favorable location than 

 another, change them around daily to give all an 

 equal opportunity, but this is not necessary until 

 the seedlings are showing themselves. Try to 

 keep the temperature in the room about 50 degrees 

 at night, and do not water too freely. 



Of course a small hotbed is better than the bay- 

 window method, and though it will cost a trifle it 

 will repay tenfold. Like other things, a hotbed 

 can be built well or just knocked together for the 

 occasion. I favor the former, but for temporary 

 use you can build a cheap one from boards. Dig 

 a hole about three feet deep, six feet wide and of 



have five sash ready to take the young plants about 

 three or four weeks later; and about two weeks 

 later I would have the others ready to take the 

 balance, which would consist of slow germinating 

 seeds. Some folks sow seeds in a hotbed in rows. 

 I prefer sowing broadcast, 'and I am conceited 

 enough to think that my method is the better, for 

 this reason — by taking full advantage of all the 

 room the plants receive the maximum amount of 

 light. Mark a space off with sticks, laying them 

 right in the soil; and always wait for the soil to get 

 warm before you sow any seed. This will usually 

 take a few days after the hotbed is made up. 



If you haven't any cover for your hotbed you 

 should provide one of some kind. If not a burlap 

 or straw mat, some straw or leaves will do; but 

 it must be removed on fine days to give the 

 plants air and light. Ventilate the frame a little 

 during the middle of the day on bright days, 

 especially after the seeds have germinated, and 

 never water the young plants in the afternoon, but 

 always in the morning and on a rising temperature. 

 Use a sprinkling can with a fine rose; the tempera- 

 ture of the water should never be lower than 50 

 degrees. Above all, do not get methodical in your 

 watering and give the plants a bath every day, 



whether they need it or not. Use a little judg- 

 ment and do not overwater. For the benefit of 

 the amateur I would say that when plants are small 

 and growing under artificial conditions, there are 

 a great many more killed from overwatering than 

 from not having enough moisture. 



Of course, the person with the small greenhouse 

 has really got the best of it. He can grow early 

 vegetables to perfection, and he is also able to have 

 early vegetables of various kinds that it is not 

 practical to start in a hotbed, such as carrots, beets, 

 corn, etc. But it is still a trifle early for these 

 vegetables, and they will not be considered until 

 next month. It is convenient to sow seeds in the 

 greenhouse in flats, as they are so easily moved 

 around; but this is by no means a necessity, as 

 the seed can be sown right on the benches or beds. 

 Another advantage of the flat is that when planting- 

 out time arrives the young plants can be shifted 

 to a coldframe to be gradually hardened off; but 

 if planted in the greenhouse benches the tempera- 

 ture must be lowered to do this, probably to the 

 disadvantage of something else. 



As to the vegetables that should be sown in 

 February, get onions in as soon as you can — that 

 is, if you want big ones that look like Bermudas 

 and are so mild in flavor that you could eat them 

 like apples. Handle leeks about the same as 

 onions, sowing at the same time. Celery is next 

 in order and should be sown about the middle of 

 the month, if you want early or late celery that is 

 far above the average quality. Toward the end 

 of the month is a good time to sow cabbage and 

 cauliflower, and if you ever have any trouble with 

 Brussels sprouts not 

 heading up, try sowing 

 them with early cabbage 

 and handling them the 

 same way. 



Space should be re- 

 served in the hotbed for 

 the more tender vege- 

 tables, such as peppers, 

 egg plant, etc. These 

 will also be taken up 

 next month. 



Now is the time to get 

 your manure in the gar- 

 den. I do not mean 

 dug under, but stacked 

 on the ground where 

 you intend to use it, 

 and if it is turned again 

 before it is used, all the 

 better. Every turning 

 the manure heap gets 

 improves it greatly. 

 Another advantage of 

 getting manure in your 

 garden now is the fact 

 that you can safely 

 drive heavy loads over 

 roads and beds which, 

 if you waited until the 

 frost is all, out of the 

 ground, would be cut 

 up very much. As a reminder, if you have not 

 yet secured pea brush, get it now. 



New York. W. C. McCollom. 



(Editor's Note. — Next month we will take 

 up the handling of seedlings, how to dibble them 

 off, sowing tender vegetables, how to prepare the 

 soil for starting the young vegetables, etc.) 



Self-sowing Varieties 



SELF-SOWING flowers offer a suggestion 

 to amateurs; and even some vegetables occa- 

 sionally self-sow. Fresh seeds can always be 

 obtained in the fall and sowed for early Crops the 

 next season. 



The seeds of the tender sorts of vegetables prob- 

 ably become buried deep enough to be protected 

 by the soil during winter. Lettuce, mustard, to- 

 matoes, squash, and others of the same tribe, 

 potatoes and sometimes corn are those most fre- 

 frequently seen growing from self-sown seeds. 



The best self-sowers amongst flowers are sweet 

 alyssum, portulaca, cornflowers, annual larkspur, 

 annual poppies and calendulas. 



New York. I. M. Angeix. 



Note the high back protection 







