Re: [gardeners] Seed Starting Box

drusus@golden.net (gardeners@globalgarden.com)
Thu, 07 Jan 1999 17:07:49 -0500

At 08:43 AM 04-01-99 -0700, you wrote:
>At 10:36 AM 1/4/99 -0500, you wrote:
>>Around here the Mennonite farmers use bottom heat -- a layer of manure.  It
>>need not touch the planting soil.  It heats up pretty effectively and
>>accomplishes early sprouting from a different angle.  Lucinda, Canada 
>>
>Lucinda, I think this is called a hotframe or something opposite of
>coldframe.  Do you have any idea how deep the manure layer is and how long
>it stays hot?  I'm hoping you know someone to ask, not measure the depth
>yourself.  Margaret

This make take awhile to find out, Margaret.  I haven't the foggiest idea
if there is any specific ratio between poop and dirt.  All I can say now is
most of the boxes I've seen are for cabbage and are slapped together from
old lumber, average size about 8 inches deep, 2-4 feet long and one or 2
rows wide.  Sometimes they are set on a pile of manure which looks to be
about 6 inches thick but it's underneath the box, not on the bottom inside.
 All this is on a plaform of some sort or at least raised up (warms up
faster) off the ground.  

Kay must know a lot about poop.  How much does it take for a hotframe?

Lucinda   
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