Comparing the pros and cons of: cold-frames; low and high polytunnels; greenhouses and mesh tunnels
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- Опубликовано: 10 ноя 2018
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Your garden looks like paradise. I love how organize it is and using the space under your seeding tables to plant green fantastic
It's a lovely place to spend a couple of hours : All the best - Steve
Hi Steve, Thank's for a great update & loads of info to think over. Your plot is always tidy & organised. Well done to you. Thanks for sharing.
Thanks Rod, I find keeping things tidy and organised cuts down my workload no end, leaving just the fun stuff : All the best - Steve
I just found this video today and subscribed. Great ideas and helped to refine a few of my own ideas. I have been gardening all my adult life (am 86 now) but since I moved to a retirement community and don't have my handy husband around anymore to do construction projects I have been doing without carpentry (or I would follow your example). But I make hoop tunnels in raised beds using water pipe slipped over rebar, covered with row covers or 4 mil plastic and pinned down with ground staples I cut from the corners of wire clothes hangers. Simple but it works. (I only have 108 sq feet of space (three 3x12 foot patches) but it has been providing almost all of my vegetables since spring, and this year I am going to try to extend it through the winter. Wish me luck. I'm in zone 8b Pacific Northwest near Seattle, so Kale and chard survive here all winter in spite of frost, but I want more! Thanks for your inspiration..
I have low tunnels too, without frames, but I like an easy life and all that bending down to pull out staples and replace them every time I want to water, weed, harvest or vent is too much for me at my scale! It obviously works for you though, your knees must be better than mine!! : All the best - Steve
Thanks Steve, this is brilliant. I've never used any of these, and have lately been getting curious about them. I'd like to add something to my gardening this year, but did not know the pros and cons of each, and I hadn't gotten around to doing any research. I also appreciate the little construction and management details that are proven by use. I'm very glad I bumped into your video this evening. Cheers from British Columbia!
lots more on the channel Leah, maybe you should subscribe! : All the best - Steve
Thanks, Steve just really started with growing veg and this year moved up to allotment so I have found your pieces about cold frames and minny polytunnels very interesting and inspiring.
Thanks Den, that's lovey feedback, they really do make a huge difference : All the best - Steve
This is just the kind of video i was hoping existed! Thank you, im seriously debating what to set up next, and you showing your different set ups helped. More than anything i love that you explain the whys and all the benefits! Cheers
Thanks, so much more in this chapter of my ebook steverichards.notion.site/Cold-frame-and-Low-Tunnel-Growing-Guide-5ed24359f3af42d4a98ecdec7112698f?pvs=4 : All the best - Steve
I’m a beginner and this was very helpful. Thank you.
Hi Steve thanks for the info. Very well thought out and explained. I have used cold frames and hoop tunnels for years but never with the variations and venting technique that you use. Great ideas thanks for sharing.
Thanks for the feedback Ron, did you pickup any tips you could pass on in all those years? : All the best - Steve
good designs of your frames 👍. Keeping things standard size makes them more versatile......looking at converting a small bed into a cold frame....Nice one Steve 👍
Thanks Nigel, a bit of feedback from you is always a treat : All the best - Steve
Thank you so much Steve. What a fantastic and well explained video. My set up is a lot smaller than yours but you have given me confidence to change and add on various items; the hinged raised bed covers is an essential for me and also the small coldframes are going to be another idea I'm implimenting.
Thanks Derek, thanks for taking the time to provide such lovely feedback : all the best - Steve
Very informative! Thanks...! This winter was a mess for me and I am planning to put some protection to my beds for next winter. Your video is spot on. I have a good spot for a greenhouse and for the rest of the garden I will go with hoop tunnels.
Excellent it will make a huge difference, provided you have enough water and time to enjoy it! : All the best - Steve
So glad this popped onto my YT. Exactly what I've been wanting to know! Lovely set-up you have there Steve. Just subscribed with hopes of learning lots more Thank You!
Thanks, I like things low maintenance! You might also like this video ruclips.net/video/88pnQCvEvCI/видео.html
Great relaxed narrative and tons of information. You have provided a real education for your family too. Thanks for sharing 👍
Thanks for the feedback! : All the best - Steve
Really enjoyed this overview Steve 👍🏼
I have a vegtrug (6 foot long deck planter raised about 32" high) as a starter planter, and from watching this very helpful video, I decided to make a hoop cover from mesh, with an over cover of plastic for the cold-frame idea. I also decided to wrap plastic around the legs to keep wind from chilling the soil, so thanks for mentioning the effect of wind too. I am considering a way to insulate the bottom of the planter as well. Thanks for a great video!
Thanks for the feedback Jenny : All the best - Steve
Great info. Thank you for explaining how things work for you . The garden beds look awesome.. just beautiful..!! Have a fantastic day..!!
Thanks for the feedback! : All the best - Steve
Very helpful!! I just got a cold frame and am very excited to use it. Good to know about leaving it slightly vented. Although in the dead of winter in South Central Idaho USA it can stay below freezing for a bit so will have to play with it a bit to see what works the best.
Yes, if it's frozen inside I don't think you get any benefit from venting it, but if the sun comes out, then that's a different matter : All the best - Steve
Well done! With your video and garden! Much appreciated. Thank you.
What a well explained video, thanks. Some well thought out ideas there put into practice. Thanks.
Thanks, it's always great to get feedback : All the best - Steve
= @@SteveRichards = I loved the video. . .Great ideas... I believe you are further north (google says 500miles/800kms), less sun then me in Nova Scotia Canada, but gives me a good ideas of what can be grown, further north.
Climate wise, we had about 3-4 feet of snow this last winter, and now April 13, we still have too much snow on the ground to do anything... Almost everything in lockdown.
I will have to have certain modification to suit my climate..
-
-
One recommendation that I never see people doing, for those who need insect protections.
I recommend to staple bare wires about 1/4 inch apart,
around the outside of the top board of the raised bed, and attach to a battery or step down transformer from ac voltage.
This will keep slugs and other night crawlers out of any raised beds..
Because the wires do not touch, they will not use any electricity..
Put in a fuse in case the wires are ever crossed for any reason, like carrying a board and the board rubs against a wire, shorting it.
Hi,great video, very informative. I am just deciding how to cover my only raised bed and watched your vid twice! Looking forward to seeing some more in the future. Thanks. Eamonn.
Hi Eamonn, glad you liked it! All of the construction details are in this video ruclips.net/video/cskeYL3eD6Y/видео.html
I'm building a mini greenhouse and am considering a follow up project of a cold frame or a mesh tunnel. Thanks a lot for your video, it really helped clear some things up for me from reading about things to how it can actually be done!
Good luck with the projects Stevie, they will make a big difference if you want to extend the season : All the best - Steve
Thank you for a great video. I love your examples of protecting from winter and frosts.
Thanks Jane, strangely enough over the years I've come to realise that the benefits in spring are even greater than over winter : All the best - Steve
Lovely video, so enjoyed watching this. Thanks for uploading
Such a wonderful and informative comparison. Love your building inputs.
Thanks for the lovely feedback Jessica, if you want more take a look at the Basics section of my ebook, there's chapters on growing under cover and build instructions for everything steverichards.notion.site/The-basics-fabeb9d9ba5d4227a63226824a29ac82 : All the best - Steve
Hi Steve love your coldframe accessories they are just what i need . your allotment is well organized great video .
Thanks Tracey : All the best - Steve
Steve,
Awesome video, very informative in the way you compared different growing structures. Thanks!
Glad it was helpful Todd : All the best - Steve
Thank you very much, Steve - I really appreciate the clear explanations and video.
Thanks Sam : All the best - Steve
great video and information. I'm rethinking my hoop tunnels and planning a polytunnel. Gave me some ideas for mine. Thanks.
pleased it helped, I got lots of ideas off youtube before I got started too : All the best - Steve
Hi Steve great video, i love the ventilation settings.
Thanks, ventilation is so important : All the best - Steve
Thank you Steve, I live by the NE coast and I have gotten an allotment, i ’m a new grower so all your advice is relevant to me. Great work you are doing and I appreciate you spreading the good growing news and allotting your experiences to it. Excuse the pun lol
Thanks Leigh, have you found my free ebook yet?
Very good, I am just starting. I have indoor grow room and greenhouse almost finished. Will be trying hoops soon
Great stuff Debbie it will make such a difference! : All the best - Steve
Hi Steve 🙋🏼 nice one doll, I have cold frames (just put new perp spec on lid frames and I love mine... similar you what you have 👍 hugs x
Hi Clarice, they are great aren't they! : All the best - Steve
Very interesting video Steve, I have a Polytunnel, plastic greenhouse and a Glass Greenhouse, but I have recently got hold of some free 6ft by 2ft timber and old decking. I was thinking of making a coldframe and or a hoop tunnel. I like the idea of the coldframe and then taking the top off and basically ending up with a raised bed. You have some great ideas Steve and I'm taking some of it in for sure. I have a set up a bit like yours. P.S. one thing I love about a Glass Greenhouse though, is that you can see cleary outside when its cold and wet and your inside it warm and dry.
I resisted a polytunnel because I didn't like the idea of not being able to see outside. Now I have one I absolutely love not being able to see outside, it's like a little oasis from the world and the diffusion of the light is something special too. Thanks for the feedsback, I love the coldframes! no hardening off of early season veg, super early veg in spring etc : All the best - Steve
Thank you for this comparison video... My greenhouse just flu away during the last storm so I am looking at making cold frames and hoops.. So I appreciate this instructive video
Lots of additional videos as well as detailed instructions on making coldframes and low tunnels in this section of my ebook, you can read for free here: steverichards.notion.site/The-basic-growing-skills-and-techniques-fabeb9d9ba5d4227a63226824a29ac82?pvs=4
Thank you so much for the link. This has valuable information. Thank you so mcuh@@SteveRichards
This was fantastic, thanks so much for sharing. N Idaho USA
Thanks for the feedback Debra! : All the best - Steve
So helpful, I'll have to watch it several times to absorb it all. Thanks!
Hi Anne, you might find the basics section of my book a good place to start, particularly the chapter on 'growing under cover', it's free to read here steverichards.notion.site/The-basics-fabeb9d9ba5d4227a63226824a29ac82 : All the best - Steve
Thanks Steve really appreciated this video and information given I know I will find it invaluable as I start out my growing plot as a beginner gardener 👍
Glad it was helpful Janet : All the best - Steve
Thanks for the cold frame info
excellent video Steve, full of very useful information i can use
that's what I like to hear! : All the best - Steve
Excellent comparison
Thank you for this info and your time you put into your video
My pleasure!, if you're interested in growing under cover, be sure to check out by ebook, for loads more videos and other content steverichards.notion.site/Gardening-eBook-info-6f57489ae10a4721b48b421826203814
Very helpful Steve down here in Hobart, Tasmania. Alan
Hi, I too love cold frames. Couple of differences I've made are that I used "lift-off barn door hinges" so that there's no unscrewing needed. I also used greenhouse automatic window openers because I'm not always around to manually vent.
oh the lift off hinges are a great idea John, do you have any concerns that the lids will 'lift off' in the wind?. The automatic opener's don't work for me because of the wind : All the best - Steve
Thanks Steve
Not so far from you but a bit further North and 230m above sea level! Lots of really good ideas for me to follow up on, as we have a polytunnel to work inside, and a lot of youtube material to extract ideas from. All the best my friend
Thanks for the feedback Angela, sounds like a polytunnel is a big help at 230m! : All the best - Steve
amazing.. you are an inspiration friend
Hi Steve, good info, thanks. I'm trying to get a passive solar greenhouse operational for season extension, still a lot to improve and test. Some ideas I'm incorporating are: automatic venting windows (wax based cylinders), inside non-window all painted white for maximum light reflection, soil level knee high so cold air goes to floor, isolated northern wall and roofing and inside water storage to dampen temperature fluctuations. Unfortunately I will have to drain my outside rainwater harvesting system (no seaside protection from frost). Best wishes, greetings from Holland.
There are some wonderful designs out there, sounds like a great project!! : All the best - Steve
Hi Steve! I didn't understand what you said, but I saw great greenhouses. I'll watch your video. I am writing to you through an online translator, maybe something is wrong, but the essence is clear. Good luck, like.
The translator works great! : All the best - Steve
Sir - This is a great informative video!
Thank for the tips, ideas and info and thank you for sharing.
Thanks for the feedback Christopher : All the best - Steve
@ Steve's Seaside Allotment : welcome Sir. Thank you again and keep on growing.
Excellent information. As new gardeners things can be a little overwhelming to say the least. I'll look a doing a cold frame as they seem the cheapest and easiest to build. My wife is very interested in square foot and successional planting so this is very helpful
Cheers from Victoria Canada
You might benefit from my ebook, it's full of extra videos and loads of information on extending the season, successional sowing, interplanting, relay planting etc steverichards.notion.site/Gardening-eBook-info-6f57489ae10a4721b48b421826203814. I don't do square foot gardening myself, because I find it all gets too messy, but for small spaces it's great. I have instructions for making all of the frames and tunnels in the basics section of the book steverichards.notion.site/The-basics-fabeb9d9ba5d4227a63226824a29ac82 all free to read : All the best - Steve
@@SteveRichards thank you !! We'll check it out. Love the way your garden is laid out and looks!! This will be our second real season of gardening so you and others are inspiring!!
Cheers
Thank you very good information
Amazing video. I'm planning to do some cold frames from CPVC Pipe some screws and stiched green house plastic with some mesh for ventilation, because winter is not really cold but it is really dry and shaded. I'm in the plant hardiness zone 10.
Thanks, so pleased you enjoyed it, it's interesting how many different growing conditions there are! In my case the cold-frame is mostly about protecting from wind and rain, they don't do much to protect from the cold, although they do turn winter into spring during the day : All the best - Steve
you can try putting polycarbonate from the ground up on the sides and front for more light
vents are also a good idea depending where you live ..great video Steve
I've considered that, but I have no issues with light levels, everything grows on really well. I'm a big believer in Pareto principle, 20% of the effort delivers 80% of the results. So my cold-frames are 20% solutions, as quick and simple as I could figure out, and deliver me 80% of the light, which is good enough. : All the best - Steve
So helpful! Thanks Steve. From Nova Scotia, Canada
That's Heidi, you might also like this video ruclips.net/video/88pnQCvEvCI/видео.html
Thanks for showing 👍. I also want to grow veg in winter, but here in Norway we have a mutch colder climate than in UK. I have 8 coldframes similar to yours and a greenhouse with polycarbonate. I don’t have heat or extra light in my greenhouse. I try to find hardy plants and I cover with fleez during winter. One thing is frost, but the lack of light is also an issue when wintergrowing. I do wintersowing in january in the greenhous and get hardy plants early in the season. (sorry for my bad english).
I only wish my Norwegian was a tenth as good! Yes light is a huge issue, that's why I love the fact that I can vent my polytunnels, giving the plants full light but still plenty of shelter from the north wind. I've never come across anyone with as many cold frames as me, well done!! : All the best - Steve
Lack of light is a problem December, January, and February. Your English is never a problem.
Thanks. Did learn. ✌ from Denver CO. USA.
Very well done sir ☝️💪💪
Hi Steve, What an excellent video well done that man, Thank for sharing and Take care.
Pleased you enjoyed it Ronald : All the best - Steve
Thank you so much! So informative!
Glad it was helpful Vicki : All the best - Steve
Love to know wat star sign u are Steve cuz Ur a very efficient person.
Ur mastering the gardening game.
Capricorn John
Just love your video very informative thank you
Thanks for the feedback Eric : All the best - Steve
Lovely set upx
Just found your channel and have subscribed. From Preston and have just started container gardening as no land. Waiting for my first allotment but Preston doesn't have a lot free at moment.
Allotments every where are in short supply Angela, I know a few people with plots in Preston. Welcome to the channel : All the best - Steve
Supeeer. Thank you. Warsaw, Polad.
Danuta Banachowicz-Kosyra
Hi Steve, thank you so much for a very useful video - quite a bit of knowledge packed in here! I read your description and loved that you gave your new people an explanation of your gardens and motivation. Wonderful idea! The only thing I'm missing is knowing where your garden is located. You say the hoops will keep snow off, but how much snow does your area get? How cold does it get in your area? This info could be added to the description area and just posted automatically with each video. I'm a first-time viewer and subscribed today. Again, this was a very helpful video!
That's strange Barbara, the default text that should be inserted into all of my videos starts with "If you are new to my allotment videos you might find a bit of context useful. We live in the north west of England, in Lytham St Annes, which I believe is the equivalent of USA Zone 8." Unfortunately youtube seems to not have used it for some reason. Anyway, we don't get much snow here, only a few inches at a time, worst case 6-12 inches, temperature is often above freezing, even in winter, but we get frequent night frosts of up to -4 with the odd one down to -8c : All the best - Steve
@@SteveRichards Awesome! Thanks for the quick reply. I'm in zone 8 in Oregon, USA, so this is very helpful indeed. I've been watching quite a few videos from the UK's Charles Dowding as I've found his climate is a near match for mine as well...and his information is just spot on. Glad to have found your channel, looking foward to seeing more of your videos.
Uve defo gotta be in the top ten of best British gardeners
Thank you so very much for all the wonderful ideas and personal experience that you have shared. It was very helpful. Our city won't let us build high tunnels in our yard but you have helped my compile a few ideas to get around the ordinances. Also, I've been waffling on which to use, cold frames v. low tunnels. Your ideas have helped me make up my mind. Thank you. Thank you also for using very respectful language in your communications. It makes it a lot easier to listen to. I do have a few questions though. 1) What is that dark gray striped layer on the ground in your poly tunnel at 15:27 in your video? 2) Is that pressure treated wood for you bed at 15:42 in your video? 3) What are those metal supports that hold up your seed starting table at 17:26 in your video?
Thanks for the great feedback! The ground cover in the polytunnel is landscape fabric, stops the weeds, but lets water through and keeps my trousers clean when I kneel down! The beds are pressure treated wood. The supports for the bench are supplied by the company I bought by tunnel from, they work really well www.firsttunnels.co.uk/spare-accessoriesDetail/staging-supports-for-polytunnels. What did you decide on?
Very skilled man
I love the garden theme, though I do not understand, but I am happy to watch, subscribed to your channel, I hope we will make friends )) plus one subscriber from Russia
Super review.
Thank you 🙂
Masterful!
very nice explanation, thank you so much :)
You are welcome! : All the best - Steve
You could have 2" by 2" piece of timber well supported by angle steel to divide your cold frame and lean on without blocking the light.
good idea Ian, I did it this way because I had 2*6" planks mid way along my raised beds to stand on and stop them splaying outwards and since my cold frames are just raised beds stacked on top of each other it made sense at the time. In terms of the shading it only causes a little shade from 3pm - 4pm in winter, the rest of the time they get good light levels. : All the best - Steve
Hi, great video. Just a quick question. What is the plastic sheeting called that you use for the cold frame? And could you recommend where I can get some? Many thanks gavin
Hi Gavin, this is the stuff I use Elixir Gardens ® 10m x 2m Clear Polythene Sheeting | UV Treated | 500g / 12... www.amazon.co.uk/dp/B00CBUEI9G/ref=cm_sw_r_tw_dp_U_x_q0NDEbMPQBMCE : All the best - Steve
People's still talking up a food crisis
High inflation and alsorts.
Hey if there's gonna be a food crisis u wudnt want anyone else by Ur side but Steve.
I can't believe wat a fantastic job he does.
Top knowledge in every show.
Loves Steve
It’s a nice feeling John, knowing we have all that food stocked up. Especially in autumn when the store is full and every bit of ground planted : all the best - Steve
So you don't have to take them apart to store them is a small space; you can just stack them. Enjoy your videos and wish you continued success.
Ah, I see, I don’t store them, they are permanent structures, just as useful in summer as winter : all the best - Steve
Great instructional video Steve. I'm thinking this will keep the chem trails from contaminating food too. Now we can eat those early garden cold frame foods while the traditional open garden is just getting started.
Absolutely Merja, we are feeding 8 families at the moment with all of their leafy greens and we have much more than leafy greens ourselves. Last week we picked calabrese, romanesco cauliflower, broccolini, purple sprouting broccoli, sprouts, sprout tops, romanesco leaves, calabrese leaves, red cabbage leaves, radish, radish leaves, lots of types of kale, cabbage, true spinach, perpetual spinach, mizuna, giant red mustard, chard, kalettes, spring onions, celery, salad rocket, sorrel, claytonia, leeks, lots of bean tops and loads of lettuce. We also raided the store for: carrots, potatoes, onions, shallots, garlic, red beetroot, golden beetroot and dried pears/apples.
@@SteveRichards Wow ! Just wow!
Well done! I would love to know where you get the scaffold mesh. I can't seem to find anything like in on amazon. Perhaps there is a different name for it? Any information would be appreciated. Thank you
Hi Anne, this is it on UK amazon, it's also called Debris Netting www.amazon.co.uk/s?k=scaffold+netting&ref=nb_sb_noss_1
Hello, just found your channel. Great intro to these different season extending systems. I've just started gardening 2019/2020 and am looking to extend this fall season. I'm in USA Maine Zone 5a(-20F) what is you typical coldest temperatures? Thanks
Hi Edward, about -8c : All the best - Steve
What a great video! Thanks for all the useful information. Your venting system is brilliant. I love cold frames too but have a lot of voles in my garden (or one very busy vole). Do you have problems with voles or mice tunneling into your covered beds?
fortunately not, we have a lot of cats on our allotment site, so maybe they help with that. We do however have a moderate rat problem, but we keep it in check. Thanks for the feedback btw, much appreciated : All the best - Steve
You can add 1/4” hardware cloth (metal mesh) to the bottom of your raised beds to prevent underground burrowing pests like voles and moles 👍. We just staple gunned the mesh to the bottom when we first started the new beds.
@@dawnbusch3182 I have done this before but eventually the wood separates from the hardware cloth or rots and the voles will find a way in.
Fantastic video, so many good ideas. How big is your poly tunnel?
It’s 10’ by 20’. Get the biggest one - within reason - that you can afford, get double doors at each end and never look back!
Hi Steve loved your video. How does the poly tunnel fare in storms? My poly tunnel/green house blew away twice it’s now got cork screw type pegs and straps holding it down. Cheers jennifree
It's fine in storms so far and we do have strong winds here. Mine is also secured with screw anchors and these go deep into undisturbed ground www.firsttunnels.co.uk/spare-accessoriesDetail/screw-anchor the tunnel also benefits from wind breaks to the north and west : All the best - Steve
What is the fleece that you are talking about . Trying to figure out what it might be sold as in my area . Thanks for the great information you shared with us ..
Often also called row cover, here's a link www.amazon.com/Agribon-AG-19-Floating-Blanket-Garden/dp/B00LB3SBZG/ref=sr_1_2?dchild=1&keywords=row+cover+fleece&qid=1589549632&sr=8-2
Brill video, thanks. Im a total newbie. Made some raises beds, added hoops and couldn't decide to cover with poly or frost cloth.
Would frost cloth not let enough light in?
Would love to know more about winter watering too. So much conflicting info out there but i like your style and we are pretty much the same conditions as you in N.Ireland.
Hi Jane, poly is very hard wearing, much warmer and lets more light in, but it needs watering. Waterings isn't much of an issue from mid-October though once the ground gets cold at night. frost cloth/fleece is very fragile by comparison and even though it lets water in, the water will tend to run off and/or pool at the centre, so it's not perfect. As you say it will let less light in, but plants should be ok. By far the biggest issue though is what you are trying to achieve, with poly you will raise daytime temperatures a lot and plants growth rate doubles for every 10c rise in temperature, which makes a huge difference in winter if you want continuous harvests : All the best - Steve
Hi Steve, great video. Just wondering where you are located, just so I can compare weather. Great video, I’m from Alaska USA
I’m in the north west of England, zone 8 I think, cold matters less than wind, rain, hail and snow : all the best - Steve
= I loved the video. . .Great ideas... I believe you are further north (google says 500miles/800kms), less sun then me in Nova Scotia Canada, but gives me a good ideas of what can be grown, further north.
Climate wise, we had about 3-4 feet of snow this last winter, and now April 13, we still have too much snow on the ground to do anything... Almost everything in lockdown.
I will have to have certain modification to suit my climate..
-
-
One recommendation that I never see people doing, for those who need insect protections.
I recommend to staple bare wires about 1/4 inch apart,
around the outside of the top board of the raised bed, and attach to a battery or step down transformer from ac voltage.
This will keep slugs and other night crawlers out of any raised beds..
Because the wires do not touch, they will not use any electricity..
Put in a fuse in case the wires are ever crossed for any reason, like carrying a board and the board rubs against a wire, shorting it.
If you think you may have people crawlers attacking the beds, maybe step up the voltage to 10,000 volts should be good deterrent, except when you forget to turn it off to harvest something.
Yes, I'm sure you will have to make a few changes! The barbed wire idea is interesting, no power on the allotments unfortunately : All the best - Steve
= @@SteveRichards = Not barbed wire... BARE wire, with no insulation on it, as in cheap galvanized wire . . put a couple small 9-volt batteries on that , as they do not draw current as long as the wires do not get crosses... keeps slugs or anything else from climbing into the beds.... I am in Canada and do not know that you mean by "Allotments"...
@@DocScience2 allotments are just a patch of ground (250m2) that we can rent for a pittance from the local council : All the best - Steve
Great video very informative, thanks. I only use mesh and polythene cloches and was interested to hear your opinion on polytunnel and cold frames,I have plenty of safety glass I've never used, you say it paid for itself in 3 months, do you mean by this the money you saved on groceries or are you selling the produce? Also what size is the tunnel, cheers, Ian.
Hi Ian, I mean the money saved, we don't sell our produce, we gift our surplus to friends and family. The polytunnel is 10*20' : All the best - Steve
Very nicely done video. Guess I missed it, but for context, which hemisphere do you live and which temperatures do you experience?
I put that info in the description so I don't repeat it in every video. We live in Lytham St Annes, in England, close to the sea and the weather is something like US zone 8.
May I ask where your garden is located and what are your average high and low temperatures, especially in Autumn and Winter. I live in Southern Indiana, USA. I appreciate how thoroughly you film and explain your setup.
Hi Mary, the details are in the video description, I'm in the the north west of England in the UK. We are by the coast, so it's relatively warm but windy, I think we are roughly Zone 8 in the US : All the best - Steve
Hi Steve! Great video!! Do u get any issues with aphids or mice and how do u handle that? From Nova Scotia
Soapy water for aphids and I make sure to provide plenty of access to natural predators by keeping doors/frames open when I can. In spring I use a home made garlic spray too. Mice are not too much of a problem - except for peas/beans - because we have plenty of cats : All the best - Steve
Steve, how wide are your hoop tunnel beds? And which direction is the long side on? I am researching how to garden before I begin. Thank you!
They are 3' 6" wide and 8' long. The long side runs roughly east/west. Don't research for too long, 90% of what you will learn will be by doing : All the best - Steve
Absolutely brilliant video thank you for sharing your knowledge. I am going to use your ideas for the cold frames and small tunnel. I was wondering if you sunk the actual base of the frames into the earth? Or do they sit on top.. I thought the wind may blow them away if they are not anchored to the ground in some way. Apologies if you have covered that in another video.. thank you..
Hi Sharon, thanks for the lovely feedback. The cold frames sit on top of a raised bed full of earth, this makes them extremely stable, I use a few bits of spare wood to screw the cold frame top to the raised bed base at each end, that’s all it needs. The description has a link to detailed videos.
@@SteveRichards Many thanks I will have a look, Sharon..
Hi Steve Good I found you. Great information. I am Homestead junkie but just a beginner. I am looking to grow microgreen. I have some wood from patio and might build mini green house.
One question, if I use double glazing glass, got few doors and windows, what about heatin. Thinking of putting polythene on but it will defeat having glass. what do you think?
I've no experience of micro-greens I'm afraid, but as a greenhouse double glazing would be great, don't use extra plastic as that will reduce the light. I'm not sure how cold it gets where you are, but my double glazed conservatory almost never freezes, so a bit of fleece on the worst nights might be all you need
I’m in NW Florida and want to use a traditional cold frame but can’t due to fire ants moving in right away and continuously taking over the bed so I’ve made one on a table top to start my seeds in and it’s working well.
No fire ants here fortunately Donna, seems like you have a workaround though : all the best - Steve
Hi Steve, why would you need to use a fleece in the polytunnel? Doesn't that provide enough protection on it's own?
The polytunnel provides good protection against wind and rain, an increase in heat during the day, but no real protection from the cold at night. In fact it can be colder at night in a polytunnel than it is outside, that's the same with a greenhouse. The fleece traps the heat that's been captured in the soil during the day and makes a big difference. I only use it when there's a hard frost though. : All the best - Steve
How do you make the blue cover on your beds? Thank you
Hi, take a look at the oldest videos in this playlist, they cover the construction details : All the best - Steve
Lovely video! Are your cold frames made with cedar?
I wish Lisa, unfortunately they are just normal treated builders timber, which is much better these days now the toxic treatments have been replaced : All the best - Steve
Nice video. I’m new to your channel and am glad I found it. QUESTION: where do you buy your mesh from and does it have any kind if gauging or sizing of the wholes? If so, I would appreciate knowing that too. I look forward to receiving your reply and watching more of your videos.
Hi Linda, I tend to get all of my gardening products off Amazon, but the brand I usually buy is Environmesh, or equivalent. In the past I've used a lot of scaffold netting, which blocks a bit too much light except in summer, when it's a useful shade. I also use a 5mm mesh if I just want to protect from birds and butterflys : All the best - Steve
Steve's Seaside Allotment
Thank you. I had a problem last year with the white butterfly laying its eggs in my brassicas and the larvae that followed. No matter how hard I tried to look for their eggs before hatching or hand picking the larva caterpillars (morning and night) I couldn’t get on top or ahead of them. I’m hoping this will help.
it helps, but unless you are very careful they will get under the nets when you harvest
I live in pa. how early can i plant my seedling in a cold bed for spring planting?
I'm not sure where PA is, but I often sow a couple of months before I plant out in early spring as everything grows slow at that time of year : All the best - Steve