What is the purpose of this? to get your plants started when it is too cold to plant straight in the ground or to keep them in it like a greenhouse? Will you be moving the plants once the weather warms up? What height can the plants safely grow in the cold frame?

Sorry for all the questions but it looks like a pretty interesting project and I just wanna know more. I might have to copy that idea next year. LOL

It seems that you are always busy!! I love your cold frame, I probably need to try one myself as I keep talking about doing that. Someone here did that with the compost working, can't remember who. I don't know that I'm that clever to do that. Great job!! Lori

It's very simple. It's just a little greenhouse dug into the earth, just a hole with a glass lid. I lined the hole with a 2" wood frame, but if you have clay, even that's not really necessary. The glass lid can just sit on the ground if you cut the hole just a bit smaller than the lid.

I used a patio door but you can make smaller ones with old windows. It's about 2' high at the back. If I need more height, I can dig down further.

I will be growing the seedlings in there until they can go into the garden. I might also bring tender stuff from the garden to grow in there through the fall. You can grow stuff in it all summer, but It's not really necessary. Some people put heating cables in it and use it all winter long, but I'm not going to do that. It just extends the growing season. My seedlings will get too big and numerous to stay on the windowsill and will do much better in the coldframe with more light. It also helps with the "hardening off" process.

I collected six free patio doors last summer for this purpose and four old windows but I want to use the windows in the chicken houses. If I use this one a lot and it makes a big difference, I will put in a second one.

I debated about where to put it. It's close to the deck so I've told the guys I live with (hubby and grown son) they are not allowed to toss stuff off the deck when they are eating or drinking out there. I don't want ketchup, mustard and beer all over the glass! lol! (Not that we're rednecks or anything...)

If you Google "cold frame" you'll get lots of pics and info from other sites.

Coldframes are great! I have two down in my garden for growing spinach early spring harvests and late plantings for winter spinach that are the most tender, succulent we've ever had. In that protected space, the stuff grows well. Late last summer I put in "Napoli" carrots (ala, Eliot Coleman's "candy carrots") and had the last one a couple of months ago. They grow slowly in the cool weather and the temps covert some of the starch into sugars and the taste will impress anyone.

You have to remember to raise the lid on warmer days so the temps won't cook(!) the veggies. I put a solar opener on my patio-door lids but found out that it didn't have enough power to open the heavy door. I made a angle iron frame to hang out over the hinge side and put old window sash weights on it to create a counter-balance. Now I can open it with one finger! It really takes the pressure off about remembering to open it on warm days! And when it cools down in the evening, it slowly lowers it until it shuts. It's much more responsible than me.

You can harden off transplants easily because you don't have to carry them in and out every day. I have enough to do!

okaaaaay I think I got the idea now. What a neat concept and no I never heard of this before or ever seen one, that I can remember.

I had more questions but I finally looked it up. hee hee I was being lazy.

I hope your plants come out good. This is something I am going to put in my "maybe" future plans.

Oh yeah and good idea for-warning the men.

Here is a link that might be useful: i got odd my lazy butt and looked it up

That's a great idea - the counterweights! I should do that just so its easier to open. That door is double paned and HEAVY!! Another project... This one will interest hubby. Maybe I can talk him into doing it for me ;-)

Putting seedlings into it today and maybe planting the peas and carrots in the garden (the dry one.)

Deathride, do you have tender things, like tomatoes, growing in your coldframe now? I would like to put the tomato and pepper seedlings in there now but don't know if it is too early or not. I put the brassicas and such in there today.

I'll have to be responsible and remember to open the door before work in the morning and close it when I get home, and water well. I like to talk a walk around and see things after work every day, anyway, and this is right off the deck, so I think I'll be ok remembering to close it at night. I don't have time to take everything in and out and in and out every day, either - did that last year.

I put a large watering can next to it too, which I hope to keep full at all times.

Can't plant in the drier garden yet. It is still too wet. I'll be putting the brassicas in the garden as soon as I can plant out there, probably next week.

Mine is about 18" tall.I mostly use it to harden things off that I start under the grow lights.It is a lot of responsibility to keep stuff watered and open and close it.The first one I had had an old heavy shower door for a lid until the wind caught it and broke it.Now it is plexiglass and I can tie it down.I have had mice get in(and the cat was not interested!)Also had bamboo (cane) grow into it.I have started seedlings in it.They come when it gets warm enough.A cold frame is very useful.Posy Pet

I am curious to know what the temp will be inside compared to outside. let us know when you take it (the temp).

I keep a light bulb in mine for cold nights and I throw a blanket on, too. I keep a thermometer in the frame.
Mine is unplanted right now. I built a new frame and it's going to have a self-venting arm on it. The glass and frame top weigh about 24 lbs. The arm is supposed to handle 30 lbs. I hope it does. Tomorrow I'm going to get all the seedlings in the house under lights out into the frame. That will be marigolds, lettuce, cabbage, salvia, I can't think what else. I'll hold off on the tomatoes and peppers for awhile.
One of my cold frames is made out of haybales, works great. It's 9 inches on the front and 20 on the back.

Where are you located, Annpat? Just wondering if you are in the same gardening zone as myself.

I light bulb is a good idea. I don't want to get too fancy or time consuming here.

runningtrails,

No, I haven't put anything in mine yet. I'm growing my toms and peppers in the MegaWatt 9000, a large, custom built, cabinet for growing seedlings. I made it from plywood and it has 18 four-foot flourescent bulbs with remote ballasts, thermostats, ventilation fans, warming cables buried in lava rock, timers, and adjustable shelves. It get plants up and going in no time! And it's warm in there and the toms and peppers like to be warm. My cold frames are empty because I'm overwhelmed with projects and not enough energy to do it all. I just got 12 chickens and expanded my orchard so I'm slammed.

Oh yeah, you had a question! I would monitor the SOIL TEMPS inside the frame and if they hover around 65, it would be ready for warm weather stuff like tomatoes/peppers. They like it warm, and getting chilly retards their growth. I like to start tomato seeds 5 weeks before my frost date and then put them in the coldframe on the frost date to harden them off, and after a week, put them in the ground IF the soil temps are 65 or above. I also prepare the soil by laying down black plastic about a week before I plant to get the soil nice and toasty. I'm even thinking about putting fabric row covers over the tom/pep's for a few weeks to really keep them happy. I'll keep a thermometer in there with them to make sure it doesn't get over 90 on a sunny day. If so, off with the covers! I really hope to get LOTS of peppers this way. Tomatoes do okay up here, but peppers REALLY like the warmth and mine start producing about the time it's starting to turn cool.

I also found that low things do well in a coldframe - spinach, butterhead lettuce, radishes, etc. I grew romaine but it got too big and touched the glass.

Herbert

I guess that has been the problem with my peppers. I just toss them in the ground at the end of May and they don't produce anything until frost time. Maybe this year I will grow them in the cold frame all summer. I don't really need it for anything else, after everything has been moved to the garden. Thanks for the info.