12 
D. M. FERRY & CO’S DESCRIPTIVE CATALOGUE. 
THIRD—Covering the seed to such a depth that while a uniform degree of heat and moisture is preserved the necessar 
air can readily reach the germinating seed and the tiny stem push the forming leaves into the light and air. This depth v 
vary with different seeds and conditions of the soil and can be learned only from practical experience. In general, seeds 0 
the size of the turnip should not be covered with more than half an inch of earth pressed down, while corn may be an inci 
beans an inch to two inches and peas one to three inches deep. 
FOURTH—Such a condition of soil that the ascending stem can easily penetrate it and the young roots speedily fin 
suitable food. We can usually secure this by thorough preparation of the ground and taking care never to sow fine seed 
when the ground is wet. Occasionally a heavy or long continued rain followed by a bright sun will so bake and crust th 
surface that it is impossible for the young plant to find its way through it, or a few; days of strong wind will so dry th 
surface that the young plants will be killed. In such cases the only remedy is to plant again. 
. j. . ^ . . Not only should every weed be removed as soon as it appears, but the crust which form 
Judicious Cultivation after a rain should be broken up and the ground stirred as soon as it is dry enough t 
permit it. The more frequently and deeply the soil is stirred while the plants are young, the better, but as the 
develop and the roots occupy the ground, cultivation should be shallower until it becomes a mere stirring of the surface 
The yield and quality of vegetables have often been decidedly lowered by injudiciously deep and close cultivation aft* 
the roots of the plants had fully occupied the ground. A very small garden, well cultivated and cared for, will give large 
returns and be in every w*ay more satisfactory than a much larger one poorly prepared and neglected. 
How to Build and Manage Hotbeds 
For early vegetables, some provision for starting certain 
plants earlier than can be done in the open air is desirable; 
for this purpose nothing is better than a good hotbed and 
its construction is so simple and the expense so slight that every 
garden should have one. A hotbed proper not only protects the 
plants from the cold, but supplies bottom heat. By this term 
the gardener means that the soil is constantly kept several 
degrees warmer than the air above, that being the condition, so 
far as heat is concerned, which is most favorable for rapid and 
vigorous growth, and gardeners usually secure it by making a 
compact pile of some fermenting material and covering it 
with the earth in which the plants are to grow. 
IJ >.• m« . • | The best heating material that is 
Heating IVlaterial easily available is fresh horse ma¬ 
nure, containing a liberal quantity of straw bedding. Such 
manure, if thrown into a loose pile, will heat violently and 
unevenly and will soon become cold. What is wanted in the hot¬ 
bed is a steady and moderate but lasting heat. To secure this, 
the manure should be forked over, shaken apart and if dry, 
watered and allowed to stand a few days and then be forked oyer 
again, piled and allowed to heat a second time, the object being 
to get the whole mass into a uniform degree of fermentation 
anu as soon as this is accomplished it is fit for use. 
Q V* Some gardeners use sash made especially for hotbeds 
and glazed with small lights cut from odds and ends and 
so furnished at very low rates. Such sash can usually be pro¬ 
cured in any of our large cities and costs much less than if made 
to order. For garden use, however, we much prefer a smaller 
sash that can be easily handled and the use of larger and better 
glass. We recommend that for home gardens the sash be about 
two and one-half by four or five feet and that the glass be not 
less than 10x14, laid with not more than one-quarter inch lap. 
In giving the order to one unaccustomed to the work, it would 
be well to state what they are to be used for, and that they 
need to be made like skylight sash. 
nni p This may be made of sound one-inch lumber, 
1 ne rrame the back twelve to fourteen inches high, the 
front ten to twelve. It should be well fitted to the sash so as to 
leave as little opening as possible and yet allow the sash to be 
easily moved up and down, even when the frame is quite wet. 
friable. Any con- 
of clay in it is very objec 
tionable. If possible, it should be unfrozen when put into 
the bed; for this reason it is much better to prepare it the 
fall before and cover the pile with enough coarse manure 
or straw to keep out the frost. 
-pi C *1 T* 1 * 8 should be light, rich, 
1 ne DOll siderable amount 
Molrinrr 1Ws requires careful attention as 
lVldtvlilg me oea future success depends largely upon 
the manner in which this work is done. Having cleared away 
snow and ice, build a rectangular bed one foot larger each 
way than the frame to be used, carefully shaking out and 
spreading each forkful and repeatedly treading down the 
manure so as to make the bed as uniform as possible in solid¬ 
ity, composition and moisture. It, is of the utmost impor¬ 
tance that this shaking apart and evenly pressing down of the 
manure should be carefully and thoroughly done; unless it is 
one portion will heat quicker than the other and the soil wilj 
settle unevenly, making it impossible to raise good plants 
The proper depth of the bed will vary with the climate, 
season and the kind of plants to be raised. A shallow 
bed will quickly give a high temperature which will soon 
subside; a deeper one, if well made, will heat more moder¬ 
ately, but continue much longer. For general purposes, a 
bed about two feet deep will be best. 
The bed completed, the frame and sash may be put on 
and fresh manure carefully packed around the outside to 
the very top (if the weather is at all severe, this outside 
banking should be replenished as it settles). The bed should 
then be allowed to stand with the sash partially open for a 
day or two to allo>v the steam and rank heat to pass off. 
The earth should then be evenly distributed over the surface 
of the bed and carefully leveled. The earth should not be 
shoveled or dumped in one or more places in the bed and 
then leveled; if this is done uneven settling of the bed in¬ 
variably results. Care should be taken that the soil is dry 
and friable. If wet or frozen soil must be used, it should be 
placed in small piles until well dried out before spreading. 
The heat at first will be quite violent, frequently rising to 
120 degrees, but it soon subsides and when it recedes to 5 
degrees the seed may be planted. The importance of usii* 
dry soil aud allowing the first rank heat to pass off is ver 
great. Every season thousands of hotbeds fail of goo 
results from these causes and seedsmen are blamed for fai 
ure resulting from overheat, or wet, soggy soil. 
Management of the Bed su«e S ™ U a^t^ 
uniform degree of heat and moisture; keeping the soil at a 
times a few degrees warmer than the air and the careft 
“hardening off” (by exposure to the air and diminishing th 
supply of water) of the plants before transplanting into th 
open air. Simple as these may seem to be, there are man 
difficulties in the way of securing them, prominent anion- 
which is overheating the air under a bright sun. 
Without experience one would scarcely believe how quick! 
the temperature inside of a well built hotbed will rise to 90 or 10 
degrees upon a still, sunny day, even when the temperatur 
outside is far below' freezing, or how quickly the tempers 
ture will fall to that outside, if upon a windy, cloudy da 
the sash is left open ever so little. A rush of cold air drive: 
over the plants is far more injurious than the same tempera 
ture when the air is still. Again, in cloudy weather, a be 
will go several days without watering, but will dry up in a: 
hour when open on a sunny day. 
The details of management, how-ever, must be learned b; 
experience, but may be easily acquired by one who gives th’ 
matter careful attention, keeping constantly in mind the essen 
tials given above. 
A Cnlrl Pt-a is a s,rn Pl e construction of board 
v^Oia-r rame for wintering over young plants 
Cabbage, Lettuce, Cauliflower, etc., and is also useful t< 
protect and harden off plants from the greenhouse or hot 
bed before fully exposing them in the open air. 
Select a dry, southern exposure, form a frame from four t( 
six feet wide and as long as required. The back should b 
fourteen to eighteen inches high and the front eight to twelve 
with a cross-tie every three ieet. The frame may be coveret 
with sash or cloth. Seeds of the vegetables to be wintered, sowi 
in open border early in September, will be ready to plant ii 
cold frames about the last of October. The soil should be wel 
prepared and smoothly raked before planting. Admit air freelj 
on pleasant days, but Keep close in severe weather. 
These frames are particularly useful in the south and maj 
bo covered more cheaply with cloth shades than by sash. Th< 
shades are made as follows: Make light but strong woodei 
frames to fit over the bed and of a width to receive some com 
imon brand of cotton cloth. The cloth may be unbleached anc 
should be stretched over and securely tacked to the frames 
We have found that Plant Bed Cloth, which we have for sale 
Is superior to any ordinary cloth for this purpose. 
TvatienlanfiivT In transplanting, the main points to b< 
* rail»pi&lli.iiijg regarded are: care in taking up tht 
plants so as to avoid injury to the roots, setting out as soon ai 
possible to prevent the air coming in contact with the roots, set 
ting firmly so as to enable the plant to take a secure hold of the 
soil and shading to prevent the hot sun from withering and 
blighting the leaves. Where a rank or soft growth of tops hat 
been made in hotbed it is frequently desirable to trim off some 
of the larger leaves before taking up to transplant so that eva 
poration later may be retarded. 
In transplanting from a hotbed, harden the plants by letting 
them get quite dry a day or two before, but give an abundance of 
water a few hours before they are taken out. It is most apt to be 
successful if done just at evening,or immediately before or during 
the first part of a rain, about the worst time being just after a 
rain, when the ground being wet it is impossible to sufficiently 
press it about the plant without its baking hard. If water is 
used at all it should be used freely and the wet surface 
immediately covered with dry soil. 
W»#-*kfir»rr Tlie V est to water plants is early in the 
▼v aiciing morning or in the evening. Water may be given 
to the roots at any time, but should never be sprinkled over the 
leaves while they are exposed to bright sunshine. If watering 
a plant lias been commenced, continue to supply it as it is needed, 
or more injury than good will result from what has been given. 
One copious watering is better than many scanty sprinklings. 
The ground should alw-ays be stirred with a hoe or rake 
before it becomes so very dry as to cake or crack. 
