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“Creating a Hot Bed”

A well-constructed hot-bed, well cared for, will enable the gardener to have vegetables of certain kinds nearly a month earlier than he can hope to have if he depends on the garden for them.

The location of the hot-bed is a matter of considerable importance. It should be on a soil that has good drainage, in a place well sheltered from wind, and fully exposed to the sun. It should also be near the house, for convenience in giving it frequent attention.

Let me say, right here, that the idea that almost anything in the shape of a pile of manure with a few boards about it and a covering of sash will answer all the purposes of a hotbed, as well as a more carefully constructed arrangement would be considered wrong.

To accomplish successful work you want to avoid cutting corners. Otherwise you will be creating a recipe for failure before you even get started.

A make-shift hotbed or cold frame is not one in which you will be likely to grow good plants,but will be a constant source of annoyance to you, and will very likely be the cause of entire failure in the growing of seedlings for early planting out. Therefore build with a view to successful results.

Fresh horse manure or cow manure, mixed with litter from bedding, is the material most generally made use of to furnish the heat required in the hot-bed. A quantity of this material is spread on the site selected for the hot-bed, covering a space somewhat larger than the bed itself is expected to be. Spread it in layers a few inches in depth, and tramp down each layer before another is added.

When the pile is eighteen inches or two feet in depth, finish off by rounding it over in such a manner that it will shed rain, or cover it with a waterproof cloth. Leave it in this condition for a few days till fermentation sets in. This can be told by a warm moisture which will be seen rising from it. The mass should then be well forked over,
shaking out the long straw, as this is done, and made into another compact heap, as at first. In two or three days it will give evidence of further heating.

After this it is likely to be in a condition for final disposition in the bed. As the manure is now thrown into shape, pack it down well, making it as uniformly compact as possible. It is quite important that the foundation should have considerable solidity, as you will soon discover that a heap of loose litter amounts to next to nothing for hot-bed purposes.

There should be not less than two feet of this material. The frame, which the wise gardener will have constructed in advance of the season, should now be put in place, and fitted with sash. Bank up well outside the frame with coarse manure, firmly packed down. Allow the sash to remain in place until strong heat is generated.

When this begins to decrease and the thermometer does not register more than 85 or 90, cover the manure inside the frame with about six inches of the finest soil you can obtain. When this is done, the bed is ready for use.

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Tags: cold frame, gardening, hot bed, manure, plantings, plants, soil, vegetable, vegetables

This entry was posted on Monday, February 23rd, 2009 at 3:05 pm and is filed under Creating a Hot Bed. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.