[Kanute]

When the Bank Manager turned down my loan to buy Pariffin this winter, I thought I'd try a hotbox in the Greenhouse.

Has anyone tried it?  Recipes?  What mean temperature throughout the winter?
thanx
kanute

[Yorkie]

What do you mean by hotbox?

And recipes for what?

[Faz]

A hotbox is a raised bed type of compost heap that warms the bed as it decomposes. I think the Victorians used to use them. As for how to do it - I have no idea, sorry!

[savbo]

i knew someone who used one on the window box of his flat - 100% horse manure in polystyrene fish boxes . Then pots of multipurpose half buried in the manure, through lid of box. think he did ok but wasn't popular...

[gillie]

I think you mean a hot bed.  I have seen descriptions of how it was done, it needs a lot of skill and experience to make it work, was very labour intensive and required large amounts of very fresh manure.

The nearest we came to this was in one of those bitterly cold winters in the eighties when, despite a heater going flat out, the temperature in our greenhouse was sinking to zero.  We had a lot of rare plants in there!  Fortunately we also kept horses.  We spent the whole of a bitterly cold day (max. temperature -5 deg C.) Carting fresh manure and piling it up against the sides of the greenhouse.  It saved the day.

Cheers,

Gillie

[Salmo]

See http://www.victorianflowergarden.com/garden/hotbeds.html

[Kanute]

Thanx to all.  I will try one in my greenhouse as it sits in a frost pocket as an experiment.  Between the Victorian Hot beds and info on Hot composting, it should be interesting what temps I will be able to hold.  Will post back on the progress, in building and results

[chriscross1966]

I'm trying one this year as an experiment for Christmas spuds... dug down about a foot and put one of those square garden bags in there, then a decent layer of fresh horse manure mixed with a lot of bonemeal, a bag of sawdust and some chicken pellets, thin layer of soil, planted the donated potatos on  it (2x Carlingford and 2x Cherie), covered the spuds themselves in soil then topped off with more horse manure mixed with a bit of soil. The rest of the soil has been piled around the exposed bit of the bag and I will put a frame of fleece over it probably wednesdat... might even get som e slightly more formal sides for it made and get a load more manure around it..... manure costs me nothing, the rest of the stuff iss lying around and TBF I need to get some protective frames etc made anyway....

chrisc