120 THE KITCHENGARDEN. [Feb. 
the great steam to pass oft; and it is necessary to cover the lights 
every night with mats, putting them on about half an hour before the 
time of sun-setting, or a little earlier or later as the weather happens 
to be either mild or severe, and uncover them in the morning, 
as soon after the sun begins to shine on them, or after sun-rising as 
the state of the weather will permit*, in covering up, observe, that 
while the bed is very hot, and the steam copiously rising, never to 
let the ends of the mats hang down over the dung outside of the 
frame, which would draw up a hurtful steam, and stifle the plants. 
Air must be admitted to them every day, when the weather is 
any way favourable, by raising the upper ends of the glasses from 
about half an inch to an inch or two, of in proportion to the sharp- 
ness or mildness of the outward air and internal heat and steam of 
the bed. 
In giving the plants air, it is a good method, at this season, 
especially in severe cutting weather, to fasten a mat across the ends 
of the lights, where tilted, to hang down detachedly over the place 
where the air enters the frame; the mat will break the wind and 
sharp air before it reaches the plants, and yet there will be a due 
proportion admitted, without exposing them directly to it; and 
there will also be full liberty to let the steam pass off. 
Likewise, in covering the glasses on nights with mats, if 
there be a strong heat and great steam in the bed, let the lights be 
raised a little behind when you cover up; let them remain so all night, 
and use the mats as above mentioned, to hang down low before the 
place where the glasses are raised, but this must be done with cau- 
tion in very severe frost. 
One great article to be attended to now, is to support a constant 
temperate heat in the hot-bed, so as to keep the plants in a regular 
growing state. The first thing to be observed towards this is, that 
in six or eight days after ridging out the plants, provided the heat 
of the bed is become moderate, it will be very proper to give some 
outward protection of dry, long litter, waste hay, fern, straw, leaves 
of trees, &c laying it close round the sides a foot thick, and as 
high as five or six inches up the sides of the frame; but this will 
be particularly serviceable in very wet weather, but more especially, 
in driving cold rains, or snow, and also, if there be cold piercing 
winds, all of which would chill the bed, and, without the above pre- 
caution, would sometimes occasion such a sudden and great decay of 
the heat, as to prove the manifest destruction of the plants; whereas 
the above lining will defend the bed, and preserve a fine heat till 
the dung begins naturally to decline or decay of itself, which is 
generally in about three weeks or a month after the bed is made, 
when the warmth of it must be renewed by adding a lining of fresh 
hot dung close to its sides and ends. 
But for the first week or ten days after the plants are ridged out 
into this hot-bed, mind that their roots have not too much heat; for 
it sometimes happens that a bed, after the mould and plants are in, 
(the earth confining the heat and steam below in the dung,) 
will begin afresh to heat so violently, as to be in danger of burning 
the earth at the bottom of the hills: and without some precaution 
