Hotbed Covers 



355 



wool quilted in it. Various hotbed mattings are sold by 

 dealers in gardeners^ supplies. 



In addition to the coverings of straw or matting, it is 

 sometimes necessary to provide board shutters to protect 

 the beds, particularly if the plants are started very early. 

 These shutters are made of half-inch or five-eighths-inch 

 lumber, and are the same size as the sash — 3 x 6 feet. 

 They are used above the matting to keep it dry and to 

 prevent it from blowing off. In some cases they are used 

 without matting. 



In very cold weather, it is sometimes necessary to keep 

 the mats and shutters on the hotbeds for two or three 

 days at a time. During this time, when the plants are in 

 comparative darkness, they are likely to become somewhat 

 soft and tender, and great care must be taken that they 

 are not scalded when the covers are removed and the sun 

 comes out. The stockier and the tougher the plants are 

 grown, the less is the danger of sun-scalding; but after a 

 long period of cloudy weather, this danger is greater and 

 the operator must watch his beds closely. 



Hotbeds are usually more difficult to manage than forc- 

 ing-houses, since the operator can be inside the forcing- 

 house whatever the weather. In very cold and windy 

 weather, hotbeds cannot be opened. The operator works 

 from the outside. In many of the Plains regions, the 

 strong winds make it difficult to handle the hotbed sash. 

 In such case, the cheap forcing-house structure made of 

 frames and heated either with fermenting manure or 

 with pipes is more advantageous. 



Beginners are likely to start the hotbed too soon. The 

 age of the plant does not count for so much as its stocki- 



