50 
House & Garden 
INTENSIVE METHODS AND THE VEGETABLE CROP 
Hotbeds, Cold- 
frames and Forcers 
T he well-equipped 
and seasoned 
h o m e gardener rec¬ 
ognizes four methods 
of under-glass g a r - 
dening. There are the 
greenhouse, the hot¬ 
bed, the cold-frame 
and those ingenious 
devices of later intro¬ 
duction which carry 
the frame idea right 
into the very garden 
—the ‘‘junior’’ 
frames, the vegetable 
forcers and the little 
miniature green¬ 
houses which in their 
various forms furnish 
protection to plants 
growing outdoors. 
In order to simplify 
matters, under-glass 
gardening in green¬ 
houses is not consid¬ 
ered here. That is 
largely work requiring considerable knowl¬ 
edge and experience to be carried on suc¬ 
cessfully. 1 would rather focus the reader’s 
attention upon the simpler, easier and less 
expensive methods to prove that under¬ 
glass gardening is highly desirable. 
Reasons and ^Methods 
Before going into details as to the inten¬ 
sive methods that may profitably be em¬ 
ployed, let us consider the reasons for all 
i.nder-glass gardening ami the parts played 
by the different equipments in the working 
out of a “iirogram.'’ We plant seeds in 
hotbeds, set out plants in cold-frames—in 
short, employ under-glass gardens for four 
distinct purposes: To get an early start; 
to grow crops out of season; to lengthen 
the growing season, and to hasten maturity. 
The first two require hotbeds and cold- 
frames, while the last two may be accom¬ 
plished with the help of simpler devices. 
yVnd, lest the newcomer in gardening be 
mystified by the term ‘diotbed,” let me 
state here that it is simply a wooden frame 
(or a number of them) which stands about 
10" high in front and 
18" high in back over 
a space 3' wide and 6' 
across, covered with 
layers of glass called 
“sash.” Underneath 
this frame is a so- 
called sub- f rame which 
extends about 18" in¬ 
to the soil and is filled 
with fresh manure 
over which is spread 
soil about 6" deep. The 
fermentation of the 
manure causes the 
heat from which the 
whole thing gets its 
name “hotbed.” A 
cold-frame is a hotbed 
without the heating 
manure, simply a bed 
boarded up with a 
frame and covered 
with sash. It is espe¬ 
cially good for trans¬ 
planted seedlings. 
In the hotbed, many of our popular vege¬ 
tables, such as beets, carrots, radishes, let¬ 
tuce, etc., may be grown to maturity. The 
cold-frame is an almost necessary com¬ 
panion to the hotbed since it may be util¬ 
ized to take care of plants between seasons, 
keep them in a semi-dormant condition, so 
to say, while the more valuable hotbed is 
kept busy calling more plant life into ex¬ 
istence. In this matter, hotbed and cold- 
frame siqqjlement each other. 
Early Lettuce and Other Crops 
To illustrate, let us say we want to get 
an early start with lettuce. Seeds may be 
sown by the middle of March and the young 
plants will be large enough for transplant¬ 
ing two weeks later. It is out of the ques¬ 
tion in most sections to transplant hotbed 
grown lettuce j^Unts into the garden by 
April first. What to do ? The answer is 
the cold-frame. In it, the plants will hard¬ 
en gradually, thrive slowly and may be trans¬ 
planted when properly hardened. 
To grow crops out of season, a hotbed is 
{Continued on page 78) 
The little glass houses are inexpensive and 
especially useful in keeping untimely frosts 
from injuring the uearing plants 
When it comes to hotheds and cold-frames the 
possiMlities are almost unlimited. Concrete 
is used here for greater endurance 
A sheltered, sunny position is best. The faucet so conveniently 
located means less exertion at watering time 
A typical hotbed, banked up on the outside to conserve the heat. 
Raising the sashes at midday provides necessary ventilation 
