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How to Build a Cold Frame |
31 Comments |
| By Aaron Newton in Green Living, How To | January 15, 2007 | ||
Are you looking to get a jump on your spring lettuce crop? Having trouble getting your eggplants seeds to sprout on the window sill? Perhaps your spouse doesn’t appreciate soil, seeds and peat containers all over the house for 2 months during late winter? Sounds as if you need a mini greenhouse or cold frame to solve your problems. Here are easy directions for how to build your own.
Step One: Stop and pick up old windows from the curb- the bigger the better. Plenty of people throw away old windows when they get new ones. If you’re shy about other people’s trash, try calling a window contractor and asking what he does with the old windows he replaces. Offer to trade him vegetables for them.
Step Two: Measure the glass from frame to frame
Step Three: Cut scrap wood at least 6″ wide to match your measurements. Leave an inch or so for wiggle room.
Step Four: Hammer together your frame and set the window over it.Step Five: Set it in a sunny location and you’re ready to go. In no time you’ve created a warm spot to start your veggies.
Additional Hints: Remember to leave your cold frame open slightly on warm, spring days so as not to cook your seedlings. You can add a hinge to make it easier to get into your cold frame. You can also build or site your cold frame in such a way as to angle it to receive sunlight more directly. Happy farming!
[UPDATE] Here is a drawing that might aid some of your attempting this at home. Please click on the image to blow it up, or you can directly download the PDF file here.
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Bat-Tzion Benjaminson said,
Aaron,
I am aghast that you would publish something so anti-female, especially as I know you are working on a book with Sharon. Forget about cutting wood to make cold frames. You really ought to suggest things that women can do also.
The scrap windows idea is good but you don’t need that either. Plastic will do, there is a very lot more wasted clear plastic lying around trash heaps than there are old windows.
I am 50 years old and also rather fat. And I just made cold frames for thousands of seedlings. (granted I live in a warm climate but I am growing heat loving desert plants so I need to get the temp in the cold frame up to 100 plus degrees on a sunny day, and I do.)
How did I do it? I collected plastic sheets from the trash. Farmers who make tunnels or greenhouses often have scraps of plastic left over and some of what I have was collected that way. I got a half ton of hay. I found some old woven fencing. I found some old bent pieces of heavy wire.
I lay some plastic on the ground. Put wire or a piece of fencing in a half moon shape above it, making a very low tunnel, and lay the plastic on top. Presto. Takes about ten minutes.
I use two pieces of plastic. One with small holes in it for ventilation. This I leave on all day except on the sunniest days. The second piece I lay on top at night.
I put old straw and other insulating materials on the north sides of these low tunnels. The straw can be watered whenever I water the seedlings and it is warm enough from decomposition that it helps keep the seedlings a little warm at night. The heavier plastic can be layed over the straw during the day to help heat it up.
Stones and bricks are laid on top of the edges of the plastic to keep it in place on windy days.
How’s that?
ChristineL said,
Why is it anti-female to suggest cutting/sawing wood? Most women should be able to saw wood. You are being sexist. Of course, if you are overweight, you may not be able to do it, but don’t confuse that with being female.
aaron said,
Bat-Tzion,
Thank you for your comment. Your thoughts on using scrap plastic to provide light for seedlings while trapping solar energy as heat are relevant and useful concerning ways to extend the growing season. True there is plenty of plastic headed to landfills that could be salvaged and used in the manner you describe. And I too use decomposing material to provide heat at night for plants in some of my cold frames.
I do object to your description of my ideas as anti-female. On the contrary, I consider women perfectly capable of cutting wood and hammering nails. Hand saws and hammers are tools I plan to teach my daughter to use well. (She’s pictured in the post ironically driving a plastic car) I’ll let you in on a little secret. One of the windows I recently acquired was too heavy for me to lift, so I got help in doing so. Many hands (male and female) make light work.
I would enjoy some pictures of your season extending structures.
Mudanças climáticas são uma ameaça tão grande como a aniquilação nuclear + at Quinta do Sargaçal said,
[...] Como fazer um estufim para sementeiras No Groovy Green. [...]
bob litwak said,
white 50 gallon drums cut in half grow plants well and do not blow away in the wind.
Clay and Wattles said,
[...] Aaron of Groovy Green instructs how to make a garden cold frame from old windows. (I can’t wait for gardening season – only five more months away!) [...]
Nick said,
My parents used to have a couple of these in their garden before they had a green house and they worked wonders. As your tip suggests they had ones which had the lids at an angle to attract more sunlight.
Josiah Adkins said,
This is a mighty fine article and some good posts on here as well. As for a cold frame we just always done pretty good using bales of straw, place in squares, retangles, whatever, then put some plexi glass on top of it couple of bricks layin around to hold it down on a windy day. Its simple and it works for us. We’ve grown lettuce , cabbage , and many other veggies all winter long. Right in the middle of freezin cold weather in Feb. We reside in West Virginia in the appalachians the south western part of the state.
Diana said,
Thought the used windows was a great idea – wish I’d thought of it myself. I have 2 good-sized “cutting beds” where I set cuttings out to root & grow until large enough to transplant into pots, but am planning to put in a cold frame for winter greens & seeds. Does anyone have ideas for an inexpensive lean-to greenhouse or growing shed? Our winters are usually mild but variable between warm periods with intermittent, short freezes. By the way, we dug a deep plunge pond fed by a shallow ‘biological’ pond. When my male volunteers failed to show up due to excessive partying the night before, my daughter took over operating the mini-hoe while I drove the dump truck. Where there’s a will, there’s a way!
Karrie said,
Thanks for the great ideas. I am thinking of building one and trying to get some winter greens and a start on some seeds this season. Wasn’t sure where to start. Lots of great ideas here…
George Beckett said,
How do you water the seedling? Do you have to take the frame up each time?
Aaron Newton said,
I slide the window off and water and then slide the window back on again.
Jen said,
Thanks for the info…I have an old sliding glass door I could use. My concern is that I live in Northern New England (cold,snowy winters), how well would this work? My parents had cold frames when I was a kid, but I think it was only for wintering plants, not growing them. I would love more ideas and suggestions. Thanks!
Jamie said,
Great FAQ / Tutorial, this is alot simpler than most I have seen online TY Aaron, Also the idea of using scrap plastic is a great way to reduce landfil build up TY Bat. Keep up the good work guys
Just couple little tips I picked up while researching cold frames,
If you can get them to face in a south or south-easterly direction to catch even more sunlight.
Insulate the North and West facing walls to cut down on winters chill. Use extra wood if you have it, brick, hay or even soil.
sally said,
i live in the midwest. when can i start my seedlings? do i need a fan or small heat source?
Dad said,
My daughter, now 18, is quite a feminine lady and fits the stereotype of the pretty young woman perfectly. She also can any number of household chores that require common tools. In addition, she checks her own oil, water, power steering fluid – that sort of thing – and changes her own tires. I started from when she was very young to teach her that sex has nothing to do with the ability to perform various jobs. Not only is this extremely useful for her, it also helped develop a sense of pride. I was astonished to read that the suggestion of cutting wood and so on was anti-female. If the writer of this article had suggested the use of other products because he believed that women couldn’t cut wood, then THAT would have been anti-female. As it stands, there is nothing wrong with this article at all. Women/girls that learn to use tools starting from a young age are much further ahead. I’m sorry to hear you were raised differently.
Building a cold frame « Fat Guy on a Little Bike said,
[...] you want more info about building cold frames click here, or hit the Google and do a search. There are a few places out there to read through. The [...]
liza said,
i am aghast that one would suggest that using power tools is anti-woman! welcome to 2008, where we can do it too. empower yourself and stop taking us back to the bad old days where we tended our little rows and chased the children. it is comments like this that are anti-women, not suggesting we are equals and able to do what a man can.
how to build a back hoe said,
[...] [...]
NIGEL said,
WHAT A GREAT WEB-SITE WITH EXCELLENT CONTRIBUTIONS AND COMMENTS. GLAD TO SEE THAT IT’S FROM NY TOO.
GOOD JOB!
Tracy said,
I have a business building coldframes out of old wood windows. I am a female and I love to cut wood with power tools even. I make mini conservatories out of old wood windows, chalkboards and mirrors. But the coldframes are my favorite. They are very useful in the fall, all winter and spring to get the seeds going and to protect them from the elements. Please visit my websight and see some decorative and useful coldframes.
Independent woman said,
If using power tools is anti-woman then I must be a guy. I OWN many power tools because I’m renovating an old house. If I waited for a man to do what I wanted to do, it’d never get done. I’m very feminine, have modeled for high end clothing stores, own my own table saw, recripcating saw and compressor with THREE nail guns. People are amazed when they visit my home to see all the POWER. So, thank goodness my father taught me at a very young age that there was nothing I couldn’t do. If fact, he had me rebuild the engine in my VW when I was 17.
As far as the cold frame is concerned.,.thanks….I’ve got lots of old windows and plan to put them to good use.
Just a Minute!! said,
Ladies! Ladies! Take it easy on this lady! She is from a generation that didn’t have women doing heavy labor. Girls weren’t even allowed to do the same exercises in gym class and weren’t allowed to exercise at all if they had their period, or so my Mom says. Also, it was and still is considered “labor”, in the upper classes, “that women simply don’t do”. It’s a big world out here. If she doesn’t want to lift heavy things and saw or nail, leave her alone! I don’t think it was her intention to hurt anyone’s feelings..can you say the same of your comments? Everyone is entitled to their own opinion as to what is manly, etc. I enjoy sawing, hammering, nailing just as much as my husband and will teach my daughter basic skills so we don’t have to rely on others to do work that is necessary. In fact, I think it’s fun to do all that physical labor!
To the author, Thank you for your helpful information.
Rebecca said,
I am female and pregnant and have every intention of going out and sawing wood. Granted, my husband who is a professional woodworker could knock one together a lot faster than I can…but he will also approach it as though he were designing a beautiful perfect bookshelf or something. I just want to keep my baby cabbages warm!
I’ve enjoyed reading all the hints from other growers; I’m in chilly Ohio and am hoping to get a jump on our season as we are building a small market-garden business and I sure would like to make it my full-time job. My one concern is in regards to the wind: we get some pretty wild gusts and I am hoping not to find old window fragments tossed across the fields. Any ideas on how to make sure the windows stay put, without anything too labor-intensive (I’m low on time).
Grace said,
I had to laugh at the comment that asking people to saw wood was “anti-female.” The person who said that is the one with a limited view of women and what they can do.
I’m female and just finished building an entire HOUSE with the help of one other woman, so obviously women are able pick up a saw and cut a piece of wood.
I just found some windows yesterday and am psyched to go make my cold frame and get the garden going! Thank you!
Janice said,
Hi there fellow gardeners – we just built a cold frame past weekend out of 1″ thick pine boards. Couldn’t find any available windows for top so we’re going to make a frame for a cheap clear shower curtain, sounds like it may work, huh? Does anyone know what I could treat the wood with to make it rot resistant? Looking for something non-toxic so it won’t get into soil and into the plants we’ll eat. Thanks!
raisedbyfeminists said,
Uh, being recently unemployed, I (a male) watch the kids, bake bread and just built a new “cold frame” (using my recently new wife’s power drill) … all NEW activities for me!. Having built the unit, I’m now exploring gardening even though I’ve somehow killed every houseplant I’ve ever owned, including cactus! Being raised by feminists, and in my 40’s – Isn’t it time we quit hollering about who wields the drill, hose, and paycheck and started helping out by contributing tips? (Thanx to those who are helping….I’m learning fast.. and planting in my new “mini-greenhouse” soon!!!)
trying on my own said,
Hi… I love the ideas here for cold frames and I’ll take in all the great information. There are great comments here. It’s end of June right now and I live in Upper Penninsula of Michigan (zone 4). I’d like to prepare ahead for next year’s garden or perhaps to extend this year’s garden into the fall. I acquired a sliding patio door (two panels) that are quite heavy. They are wide also. I think they are too heavy to use as tops to the cold frames because I can’t lift one by myself (I live alone) to water plants inside. Does anyone out there have a suggestion on a cold frame variation?? I’m new to gardening and love all your pointers and tips. I love websites like this.
grace2 said,
Great site and info – from all. Certainly generated a lot of talk! Tracy – what is your website? My daughter just gave me a book you all may like: Home Made/101 easy to make things for your garden, home, or farm. there are plans for compost bins, cold frames, root cellar, ETC!
girls and tools: one of my middle school art students loves pink and tools that cut!
JimInNC said,
Wow…I never expected a debate on what’s feminine when I found this site! It adds an interesting twist, I must admit, that healthy discourse can be a part of the nuts and bolts of building a cold frame. I’m 51, and in my day the gals cooked, wore dresses, took care of the house, and that was their role. The men took care of the heavy lifting and power tools. Just because someone has another perspective doesn’t mean it’s wrong–it’s just different. It really gets bad when a woman is offended if you hold open a door for her, or get up and let her have your seat! We still do stuff like that in the South, and the women seem to like it just fine.
susanna said,
Hey, cold frames are awesome! And it’s great that you have the building direction on this website, however, in cooler climates it is necessary to have the cold frame at a 45 degree angle facing the sun. If you use the 45 degree angle you’ll get more warmth for the winter crops and you will be to grow taller vegetables towards the back of the cold frame. Just a suggestion.