Lexington dispatch-news. [volume] (Lexington, S.C.) 1917-1919, 1918-03-13
THE COLD FRAME SHOULD A.
WAYS ACCOMPANY TIE
HOTBED.
HOW TO CONSTRUCT ONE
plants Should First Be Started IN
hetbed Then Transpsanted to the
Cold Frame.

For forcing early vegetables suen az
tomatoes, egg plants. peppers etc., the
hotbed is indispensable. To construct
q hotbed an eastern or southern ex'
nosurs should be selected. The
frame should be 6 feet wide and any
desired length. As rule for the fam
div garden, hotbed by S feet will
be sufficient for rearing all young
plants for the garden. It would be
much better, however, to have frame
6 by IL feet. This will afford ample
space for transplanting the plants and
give them more room in order that
they may properly develop. The soil
ss excavated to depth Of 1S inches
and the frame built feet wide and
the desired length and fitted over the
trench. The frame should slope to-
wards the east in order to admit sun
light. The bottom of the frame is
&Ned with fermenting stable manurs.
This should be mixed thoroughly be-
tore being placed in the frame and
packed frml! and watsred freely i'm.
mediataIy afterwards. In the south
% inches OF manure will furnish suf-
6cient heat Tor hotbeds; while in the
north, where the weather is more Sc
we're, two feet of manure is usually
used. On top of the manure is placed
six inches Of garden soil which has
been well sifted and is free\ from all
roots and trash This should be
slightly packed in order to make it
perfectly level. The sash OF the
frame are always three feet wide and
six feet long. The frame, therefore,
should either be constructed three,
six, nine, or IL feet wide. After the
garden soil has been placed in the
frame, it is well to cover this with one
inch of finely sifted woods earth.
Woods earth is used because it is
always free from grass and weed
seeds which are frequently very trou-
blesome when the garden soil is used.
After the bed has been completed the
sash are put in place and the frame
allowed to stand for or 4 days befors
planting the seed. This 10 done. in
order to allow the bed to become thor
oughly warm before planting. The
seeds may then be planted, watered
slightly, and the sash replaced. AS
soon as the plants como up the bed
should be ventilated if the weather
conditions are favorable. Even when
the temperature iss near freezing in
the early morning, it will be warm
enough before midday to ventilate
the bed for q few hours. II the
frames are not properly ventilated,
tthe plants will grow too tall and be-
rome tender and will not Withstand
the transplating without being injur-
ed. When a frame is properly con-
structed it will last for q number OF
years. Each year, however, fresh ma
nure will have to be placed in the
frame. The same hotbed may be used
tor various kinds Of vegetables. For
instance one may first grow cabbage
and caulihower. After these are re-
moved or transplanted in the cold
frame, tomatoes, egg plants and pep
per seed may be sown in the same
frame. These will be ample size for
transplanting by the time the wealth
or conditions are favorable. Great
care should be exercised in watering
the plants If they are watered too
freely during warm weather they will
grow too rapidly, and if watered too
freely during excessively cold wealth