JOURNAL OF HORTICULTURE AND COTTAGE GARDENER. 
February 23, 1882. ] 
147 
23rd 
Tn 
Royal Society at 4.30 p.m. 
24th 
F 
Quekett Club at 8 P.M. 
25th 
s 
Royal Botanic Societv at 3.45 p.m. 
26th 
SUN 
1st Sunday in Lent. 
27th 
M 
Royal Geographical Society at 8.30 P.M. 
28th 
TU 
1st 
W 
Society of Arts at 8 p.m. 
ABOUT HOTBEDS. 
UST when 1 was thinking for the twentieth time 
of writing something for the Journal to which 
v/tUtm I owe 80 much, and when about concluding 
for the twentieth time also that every con¬ 
ceivable subject that could be of service to its 
readers had been amply and ably treated, I 
was surprised by a note from headquarters. This 
is the editorial mandate, for such I take it to be, 
(v® and, as usual, is characteristically brief, pointed, and 
suggestive —“ Are we never to hear from you again ? 
Are you written out, frozen out, lost in a fog, or wanting a 
subject? It is not admitted you are exhausted, it is not con¬ 
templated you are ice-bound, it is not supposed there are fogs 
among your beautiful hills, and if you are at a loss for a sub¬ 
ject read the enclosed.” 
Editors, I soliloquised, are perfect enigmas. The only paper 
I ever sent to the Journal that was not printed was on the very 
subject that I am now expected to treat ; and not only so, but 
he who has so adroitly drawn me out knows as much about the 
subject as I do, and, if I mistake not, has written on it with 
marked ability. But to the enclosure. Here it is. “ I wish 
someone would write plainly and clearly about hotbeds, the 
different materials that may be used, how they should be pre¬ 
pared, how the beds should be built, and all about the matter. 
Hundreds of people require hotbeds now, and if your skilled 
writers think all readers know as much about this matter as 
they do they are very much mistaken." 
No doubt the last line of the correspondent's letter is true. 
It is not unnatural for those who have been engaged in a simple 
work for years to overlook the wants of others less experienced ; 
and when we think of the matter we must conclude there are 
thousands of readers of garden literature who are unacquainted 
with the routine of many simplicities in the garden. Hotbed¬ 
making appears to be one of them, and simple indeed it is to 
many and important to all, except those unfortunates who have 
no means for indulging in such a valuable garden adjunct, and 
who thereby work to a great disadvantage. 
Now to the next step. It is a bold one, but well considered. 
For once I intend trying to be on a level with an editor. An 
opportunity is afforded me for giving a Roland for an Oliver, 
and if I miss this chance I feel certain I shall never have 
another. I have said my notes on hotbeds were not printed. 
As I do not suppose for a moment they were equal in value to 
those that were written some years ago, if I am not mistaken, 
by the very hand that penned the above “ editorial," I now 
transmit the article with a request that it be reprinted. Nothing 
can better answer the requirements of amateurs, and I shall 
have the satisfaction of feeling that it is not necessary to write 
two articles on the same subject and only one of them be 
printed. 
Here is what I take to be my friend’s article. He has no 
occasion to be ashamed of it, and this, I may venture to say, 
if it does not satisfy I will help him to supply the deficiencie s 
if they are pointed out. 
“ The position for a hotbed should be in an open and sheltered 
situation, where it can have full exposure to the morning sun, 
and possess its influence till as late as possible in the evening. If 
the place is not naturally protected either by a thicket or a hedge, 
a screen may he formed with hurdles of reeds or straw, for it is 
essentially necessary that it should have some shelter to preserve 
a steady and continuous heat in the bed. 
“ About a fortnight before the bed is required for use procure a 
quantity of good, long, fresh stable dung, and throw it together in 
a heap of a conical form. The quantity will, of course, be regu¬ 
lated according to the size of the frame. When it has lain four or 
five days, and has exhibited symptoms of heating, it is to be turned 
over with a fork, and shaken up into another heap similar to the 
former ; but in doiDg so care must be taken that what formed the 
exterior of the former heap should now be thrown in the middle, 
and what was before in the inside should be brought to the outside. 
It is to remain in this state three or four days more, and again 
turned over. Every time it is turned it should, if at all dry, 
receive a liberal sprinkling of water during the process, through 
a watering-pot furnished with a rose, as this contributes greatly 
towards sweetening and purifying the mass, and causes it to 
retain the heat much longer than it would otherwise do. During 
this second turning the heat will have become more steady, and 
the mass will have been divested of much of the rank and noxious 
vapours with which it is charged. But to have it thoroughly 
‘sweetened,’ it is to be turned a third, or even a fourth time, and 
to be thoroughly sprinkled during each turning, as the more it is 
worked the longer will it retain a steady heat when the bed is 
made up. 
“ There are other substances of which hotbeds are made, the 
more common being bark from the tanyard, refuse hops from 
breweries, and dry leaves collected from woods and plantations. 
When tan is to be used for this purpose it will require to be 
spread out in an open shed, and partially dried, as it is generally 
charged with a superabundance of moisture when first received 
from the tanyard. Refuse hops require to be thrown in a heap, 
and sweetened in the same way as directed for dung, but one 
turning will be sufficient. Dry leaves should consist of those 
from hardwooded trees, such as the Oak, Beech, Hazel, or Chest¬ 
nut. They are to be collected in the autumn, laid in a heap 
duriag winter, and when required for use sprinkled with water, 
and trodden firmly into the bed. All of these materials will 
require to be boxed in with boards to form a hotbed, as from their 
loose substance they would not otherwise keep together in a mass. 
“When the material has been prepared as directed above, mark 
out the space on which the bed is to be formed, 15 or 18 inches 
longer and wider than the frame which is to be placed upon it. 
At each corner of the space so marked out drive down a strong 
wooden stake of the same height as the bed is intended to be, and 
then within the boundaries indicated by the stakes proceed to 
make the bed. The foundation is to be formed of faggots, bean 
haulm, or some such materials, and on this place the longest and 
rankest of the dung. Then continue to build the mass by throwing 
up the prepared dung with a fork, with which merely beat it 
down, as the bed must on no account be trodden, distributing 
the long and the short equally over the bed, and separating all 
lumps that may have been formed ; care must also be taken that 
the sides are kept perpendicular. If the dung appears to have 
taken too much heat in the last heap, the bed should be occasion¬ 
ally sprinkled with tepid water during the process of formation. 
After the requisite height has been attained, the sides are to 
be combed down all round with the fork, and all loose straws 
removed. 
“ When the bed is made up the frame is to be placed on the 
top, and thus it is to remain closed for a day or two till the heat 
rises, after which occasionally fork up and stir the centre of the 
bed, and tilt up the lights, to allow the rank steam to escape. 
Three or four days afterwards the frame is again to be removed, 
and the sides of the bed raised about 6 inches higher thau the 
centre, to allow for any settlement that may take place from its 
weight, and to preserve a level position ; at the same time stir up 
the surface about a foot deep, and beat it down again with the 
No. 87 .—Yol. IV., Third series. 
No. 1743 .—Yol. l.XVII., Old Series. 
