*Cold Frame*
I don't know what you have to do in other places to get your seedlings ready to be planted out in the garden but here in Maine a Cold Frame is a good thing to have. You can just take your plants in and out each day or you can leave them right in the Cold Frame day and night. The idea of the Cold Frame is to let the seedlings adjust to the outdoor temperatures gradually. If a frost should sneak up on you the Cold Frame will protect the seedlings. Following are some pics of a makeshift Cold Frame that I threw together out of a tote bin (underneath the table), an old table that we have been hanging on to that isn't much good for anything else, some scrap wood, scrap countertop, old window frame with no glass in it and plastic I scoffed up at the 8th grade graduation last year (one of the big plastice bags they drop balloons from). Used a staple gun and some duck tape to put it all together.
Pictures in order are:
1. The finished Cold Frame.
2. Showing where I duct taped wood to the table legs so that I could staple the plastic around the table.
3. Cover made from window frame, just added a section of wood to make it big enough for the opening and added the plastic.
4. Rigged a hook and eye so that I could have easy access to the seedlings instead of having to reach down in.
5. Finished Cold Frame with tomatoes, broccoli, peppers, cabbage, sage and rosemary in it.
That's all there is to it! I hope to have a green house someday! I have my plans all drawn up. Maybe I will build it this summer and try to grow a few things in it this fall! I guess this article could classify as being somewhat thrifty too....didn't spend a cent on it and works just fine!
Stallion
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