Heating with Manure 



61 



consistency or texture of good hotbed manure. That 

 which has too much straw, and which will therefore 

 soon part with its heat, will spring up quickly when 

 the pressure of the feet is removed. Manure which 

 has too little straw, and which therefore will not heat 

 well or will spend its heat quickly, will pack down 

 into a soggy mass underneath the feet. When the 

 manure has sufficient litter, it will give a springy 

 feeling to the feet as a person walks over it, but will 

 not fluff up when the pressure is removed. 



The amount of manure which is to be used will 

 depend (1) upon its quality, (2) the season in which 

 the hotbed is made, (3) the kind of plants to be grown, 

 (4) the skill of the operator in managing the bed. 

 Careless watering, by means of which the manure is kept 

 soaked, will stop the heat in any hotbed. The earlier 

 the bed is made, the larger should be the quantity of 

 manure. Hotbeds which are supposed to hold for two 

 months should have about two and one -half feet of 

 manure, as a rule. This is the maximum. For a light 

 hotbed to be used late in the season, six or eight 

 inches may be sufficient. 



Sowing the seeds. — Ordinarily the manure will heat 

 very vigorously for a few days after it is placed in the 

 bed. A soil thermometer should be thrust through the 

 earth to the manure, and the frame kept tightly closed 

 with sash and covers. When the temperature is pass- 

 ing below 90°, seeds of the warm plants, like tomatoes, 

 may be sown, and when it passes below 80° or 70°, the 

 seeds of cooler plants may be sown. By the time the 

 beds are ready for planting, the weed seeds probably 



