Vermont watchman and State journal. [volume] (Montpelier, Vt.) 1836-1883, 1869-04-14
Hot Beds and Kitchen Gardens.



Hot beds are very necessary part Of tn,
kitchen garden arrangements and are mos
easily made. They should be possessed b.,
every one who desires a supply of carly vcgo.
tables and flowers A bed four feet wide b,
nine or twelve in length would supply carly
lettuce radishcs and cucumbers, tomato, pep.
per, cabbage and cauliflower plants, Ia great
abundance A sunny situation must be select
3D. and if high fence or wall protects the
bed from the north wind, twill bean adyan.
tagc. 4 southeast aspect is the best II
the ground is so frozen that one can not dig
down to insert the wooden box. which s
necdiul to contain the soil aud manure. place
it upon the soil ami fl in the manure. which
should be in an active state OF fermentation.
This may be obtained by turning over table
manure two or three times, waiting two days
or SO between the STRINGS II 10 Is not
damp enough to fermcnt and smoke. pour
water over il; hot water IL it IS very
cold will hasten the fermentation When t.
smokes well, aud seems warmed up. f.
the box one foot high Cover 70 with half d.
foot of light, rich soil, and put on the a.hc..
Bank up the hot bed round the side. with
manure to keep it warm. Now let 10 stand
two or three sunny days. so as TO heat up
well, taking care to cover either with old
carpets, mattings, or boards, az night Iryit
'no second day 10y putting the bulb Of Their
noln''er 'hto 'ne SOIL ana u little oe'o"
one hunureu degrees 'ne seed may be soWn'
Lettuce can pc sprlnA'el over d small sur
iace broadcast ana MS fresh leaves wall do
lof an carry shao. 10 mead well 1t must be-
'ransplan'eu' ltaGishes must be planted M
S'''"H hoies, niue by running d suck an men
or SO mo Tue GROUND, at intervals OF two
incnvS, ana oniy one see1 dropped into hole
III this way 'hSy VIII form dellclousIy crisp
scarlet Oulps' tomatoes egg plants peppers
clullloWers' carry eapoages' etc" may be soWn
III rows iour inches apart taking care not to
sow 100 closely Nhlle you are sowing the
seeds nave a pan OF good clean sand at hand,
ana scatter u wen over them, but not too
much a niue over quarter OF an inch OF
covering IS enough Tor an common'sled seeds.
Ircss II down hrmly with the hands. Now
sprinkle ihe whole with water warm to the
haiid' ana cover ughtiy with bits OF old Ham
nell wen wet IN warm water, or with newspa-
pers' winch Keep the seeds from being dried
up by the heat OF the sun, and, retaining the
moisture, make them sprout very quickly.
We have had lettuce and cabbage seeds cup
III less than three days treated IN this way.
For melons, cucumbers, squoshes, corn aud
early potatoes planting IN sods IS much better
than IN the soil oil the hot bed. Take rich
pasture sods, cut them into pieces four inches
square, lay the grass side down into the hot
bed, and plant two or three seeds in each bit
OF sod. For pOtutUpg iuegrf mr. W. .asr,u
deep INTO 1t. The earth being fresh and pure,
the plants grow rapidly; ard as soon as the
season permits, the sods can be transplanted
without any injury TO the roots All amateur
gardeners know how discouraging it is 10
transplant cucumbers or melons; usually they
wither and die and all their care is LOST but
IN tins way they are fully repaid for all the
labor,
~ Is but llttlc labor to make and plant a
hot bed. The care comes after the plants are
up Morning and evening they must be visit
ed, watered, watched, and tended. A days
neglect may destroy the whole. The icrmcnt-
ing manure gives high temperature to the
atmosphere, and II there is added to this the
heat Of an April sun, the suocuient, tender
seedlings Will wlther away like Jonahs gourd.
- 8" = N'NN'J VIZ o'AfhNo NAii hN N4Llk-
~ closed, only opening them to water well,
but it the sun shines bright aud clear the
upper edge OF the sash must be lifted, and
wedge OF some kind inserted, or the plants
would perish from the sitting atmosphere en-
gendered by the suns rays. As long as the
sun strikes clear upon the sash, air may be
freely given, though it is little chilly; but
as soon as 1t begins to leave the bed, close
the sashes, and If quite cold cover with mats.
As the days grow warmer, and the plants
larger, the sashes can be lifted much higher,
or entirely opened but at first a thrce-inch
wedge will let in plentiful supply Of air
Weeds must be kept down. As soon as the
vegetables or flowers are high enough to be
fully discernible' all the weeds just starting
must be uprooted. If allowed to make much
Roadway, they will retard the rapid growth of
the plants. Watering must be done with a
hue rose-sprinkler, as larger streams of water
would prove too drenching for the small plants
so we must initiate spring shower and