928 



THE BOOK OF GARDENING. 



good watering given. A temperature of 55deg. to 6odeg. will 

 be high enough, and beyond seeing that air is admitted if the 

 temperature runs up too high, and careful watering, little further 

 attention is necessary. As the plants become exhausted they 

 should be thrown away, being no good afterwards. Unless 

 Asparagus is required very early, January will be soon enough 

 to commence forcing. 



Carrots. — At all times of the year small and tender Carrots 

 are much appreciated on the table, and gardeners in general 

 strive to meet requirements by forcing them as early as possible. 

 By means of hot-beds made up in frames heated by hot water 

 young Carrots may be had at almost any time during the 

 winter. Unfortunately heated frames of that description are 

 seldom available, except in very large gardens ; in smaller 

 establishments the best use must be made of cold frames 

 placed on hot-beds made up of strawy manure, leaves, &c. 

 In such cases the hot-bed should be made up early in January ; 

 it should be at least 3ft. deep, and should project about ift. 

 outside the frame all round. Take care to tread the hot-bed 

 thoroughly firm during the process of making up, or the heat 

 will soon become exhausted. It need scarcely be stated that 

 when the frame is put on the bed, it should face the south as 

 far as possible, to catch all the sun-heat. When the frame has 

 been placed on the hot-bed, a layer of fine sandy soil to a 

 depth of about 6in. should be spread evenly over the whole of 

 the inside surface (old potting soil that has been screened 

 through a Jin. sieve is excellent). On this the Carrot seed may 

 be sown broadcast thinly, and if the frame is kept close, only 

 giving a little ventilation to allow any rank steam to escape, 

 the seed will germinate in a few days. From this time onwards 

 more air should be admitted, the grower being guided as to how 

 much or how little by external influences. Overcrowding of the 

 plants must be avoided, otherwise they would choke each other. 

 If thinned out to about 2in. apart, the Carrots may be drawn 

 immediately they are large enough, and those remaining will be 

 able to develop into bigger ones. Towards the end of January, 

 another bed may be made up, which will keep up a supply 

 until those sown on a warm border outside are ready. With 

 frames heated by hot water, a sowing could be made monthly 

 from the end of September onwards, and a supply regularly 

 maintained with certainty in spite of bad climatic conditions. 

 For sowing in frames, the French Horn varieties are much the 

 best, being very reliable and quickly coming into use. 



Celery. — When Celery is wanted for exhibition very early, 

 the seed of white varieties is sown in heat in January, 

 and when the seedlings are large enough to handle, they are 

 pricked out into boxes of rich soil. When about 4in. or 5in. 



