THE AMATEUR PHOTOGRAPHER. Fig. 21. 
For heating, manure from the horse stable is prob¬ 
ably best as well as -most easily obtained. It may 
contain a large quantity of litter, and when not well 
supplied in this respect I have at times mixed in one- 
third to one-half the bulk of wet forest leaves with 
satisfactory results. Fresh manure is preferable, but 
if the supply is limited it may be collected for weeks 
in advance by taking care to prevent leaching and 
fermentation. In filling the bed, spread several inches 
of coarse material like cornstalks on the bottom of 
the pit, then fill in the manure and firmly tramp, 
especially around the sides, until a uniform bed of 
about 18 inches is secured. After sprinkling, four or 
five inches of good garden soil, sandy loam preferred, 
is evenly spread, well raked and then made perfectly 
even with a board sweep. The sash is now put in 
place, the exposed outside parts of the frame well 
banked with manure held in place with a little earth. 
The next day the seeds may be sown. Very rich soil 
is usually recommended, but I doubt the wisdom of 
this, as I think better plants can be grown by using 
soil of medium quality, and adding a liberal dressing 
of fertilizer rich in phosphoric acid and potash. The 
fermenting manure will supply more than enough of 
the ammonia. The proper time for sowing the seed 
depends on the location, kind of plants to be grown 
and manner in which plants are to be handled. While 
it is desirable to have vegetables as early as possible, 
sowing the seed too early is likely to cause a loss in 
this direction. Both location and season must be con¬ 
sidered ; I am in a favorable locality, but every year is 
not just alike, although taking one year with another, 
there is no great variation. 
To economize hotbed space and labor, I grow my 
early tomato plants, ready for the field, right where 
the seed is sown, 500 plants to the sash. The seed is 
usually sown about March 1, the plant set in the field 
from April 25 to May 5, and in three years the date 
for selling the first fruits has not varied more than 
a day or two from July 15, early enough to dispose 
of considerable quantities in the New York City 
market at from 10 to 15 cents per quart boxful at 
retail, and at from $2 to $2.25 per bushel crate at 
wholesale. In setting the plants in the field they are 
set or rather laid in shallow furrows, tops away from 
the prevailing winds; a little soil is drawn over the 
roots, a foot pressed on the spot, while the rest of the 
stem is covered all but three or four inches of the 
top, which is turned upward. The footprint is left 
open to receive a pint of water, which later is covered 
CHEAP CORN HUSKING. 
I have noticed several articles in The 
R. N.-Y. advising the eastern farmers to 
raise more corn, for the grain. This ad¬ 
vice I believe to be good unless corn is 
raised on shares, which makes a difference 
in the profit of course. I believe a cheap 
way of husking corn' would be of interest 
to corn growers. Last Fall I had 1,000 
bushels of com to husk, and the price of 
husking in the field being five cents per 
bushel. I concluded to find a cheaper way 
to husk. I purchased an eight horse power 
gasoline engine, and a two-roll husker, with 
cutter head and blower. Although I knew 
nothing of running them, the investment 
was a success from the first. The cut fod¬ 
der alone saved enough to pay for one- 
half the outfit. Following are the figures 
for cutting and husking four acres of 
extra good corn, estimated at about 500 
bushels of ears: For corn harvester and 
man to run, $4; for one man to assist set¬ 
ting up, $1.50; man to assist in drawing in 
barn, $1.50; husking 12]/ 2 hours, $1.25; 
seven gallons gasoline, 91 cents; total, $9.16. 
I have about 1,500 bushels of corn this 
Fall, and at that rate it will cost me about $35 to 
cut, set up, draw in and husk and cut the fodder 
on 12 acres. I believe it would have cost $75 to 
husk it by hand; then the fodder would not have 
been cut. I also husk for my neighbors for 
80 cents per hour, and they furnish the gaso¬ 
line. I have about 2,000 bushels still to husk, and 
could have had more if I had the time to spare. Last, 
but not least, I don’t have to hire a man and board 
him all the Fall to care for the corn the old way. I 
also have a feed grinder, and grind my own feed, and 
TIIREE-YEAR-OLD M’FIKE. Fig. 22. 
grind my extra grain and sell it at mill feed price, 
making a good profit: w. j. w. 
Geneva, N. Y. _ 
Max proposes—and then doesn’t do what he might in 
the work of disposing. 
A max in Massachusetts announces that he has origi¬ 
nated a hybrid between the orange and the cucumber, with 
a combination of both flavors. When we consider how 
many muskmelons with cucumber flavor we get in the 
course of the season, we are unable to feel enthusiastic 
over this effort at grading down instead of up—if it has 
occurred outside the columns of a newspaper. 
MOORE’S DIAMOND GRAPE. Fig. 20. 
be bought ready-made, but may easily be made at 
home at trifling cost. 
The selection of the best available location is im¬ 
portant. The ideal location, of course, would be a 
well-drained, convenient, sheltered spot, with a south¬ 
ern exposure; but the best at hand must do. My own 
hotbed is located on a western slope with a grade of 
nearly eight feet per hundred, and with no natural 
protection to the north; yet these adverse conditions 
cause no serious loss. The one condition that is abso¬ 
lutely necessary is perfect drainage; if this cannot 
THE RURAL NEW-YORKER 
43 
1909. 
HOTBED BUILDING IN NEW JERSEY. 
Profitable Results from Good Management. 
To arrange and manage a hotbed successfully is 
not a difficult matter; so simple, in fact, that in most 
cases one conveniently located would be much more 
satisfactory to raise even a few early plants for the 
garden than the usual pots and boxes in the kitchen 
window. While desirable as an adjunct to any garden, 
a hotbed is indispensable to best returns in 
the market garden, unless other facilities 
for growing early plants are at hand. There 
are probably thousands of small farmers 
who grow considerable quantities of vege¬ 
tables for market, who confine themselves 
entirely to the less profitable crops which 
may be started in the open ground, and 
thus miss the pleasure and extra good 
profits that may be secured by the intelli¬ 
gent use of a small area of cold frames 
and hotbeds. 
I have 12 sash, three by six feet, for 
hotbed, and the produce from the plants 
grown in this small space sells for from 
$300 to $400 annually, or at the rate of 
from $25 to $35 per sash, while the portion 
used for plants of extra early tomatoes 
averages much higher, in a favored season 
reaching $50 per sash. To those who trans¬ 
plant in the bed this may seem extreme, 
but more on this point later. My hotbed 
is used to grow tomatoes, peppers, egg¬ 
plant, sweet potato and cabbage plants. The 
first step in arranging for a hotbed is to 
secure the sash. These may be bought all 
ready for use; but if one has time to 
spare, it is cheaper by about half to buy 
the sash in flat and glass by the box, and 
put them .together, glaze and paint them at 
home. Sash are made to receive the glass 
in two ways; by grooving with a saw cut, 
into which the panes are simply slipped 
end to end, and by rabbeting, in which the 
panes are shingled over each other and 
secured with points and putty. Mine are 
of the latter kind, as I think them closer 
and more durable; though there are many 
of the other kind in use, and they have the 
advantage of being quickly put together 
and easily repaired. When putty is used it should 
be applied in liquid form, as it is easier to apply 
and far more durable. It is prepared by mixing 
putty with linseed oil until just thin enough to be 
forced from the nozzle of the putty-bulb. After 
applying, a little sand sprinkled on will help to dry 
and increase its efficiency. 
Glass is packed in several grades; the cheaper of 
which serve every purpose for hotbed use. Covers 
must be provided to be placed on the sash at night, 
especially when weather is severe. These may con¬ 
sist of board shutters, quilts made of burlap and 
straw, or, best of all, straw mats. These, too, may 
be had by using a pit the manure must be placed on 
the surface and banked; for if once flooded, the heat 
will be entirely destroyed. Next in importance is a 
position where it is least likely to be forgotten at 
some critical time- As to shelter, a tight board fence 
six feet high on the north and west is desirable; but 
if for any cause this would be in the way it is not 
essential. I use no shelter except a wide board staked 
so as to lean over the north side of the bed. 
to prevent evaporation. Thus treated they scarcely 
droop, and soon the whole stem underground is 
covered with rootlets, causing a vigorous growth. 
With peppers, egg-plant and sweet potatoes, nothing is 
gained here by bedding or sowing before the last of 
March. In caring for the plants it is well to have a 
thermometer in the shade of a bar near the middle of 
the bed. During the day the temperature may range 
from 65 to 90 degrees; at night it will often fall to 
40 and occasional extremes of 38 or 100 
will do no harm. Special care is neces¬ 
sary on those occasional cold windy days, 
when bright sunshine is interspersed by 
periods of cloudiness, to prevent either 
scorching or chilling the plants. In fact 
a fair degree of vigilance is at all times 
necessary, as a little neglect at a critical 
time may be disastrous, although I have 
never had a loss. c. a. u. 
Llammonton, N. J. 
