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Gardening

Find tips and tricks to make your garden or allotment flourish on our Gardening forum.

Do I need a cold frame?

13 replies

HippyKayYay · 04/06/2025 17:58

I mean I know I don’t need one but I have a hankering (I blame the Charleston Garden) and the space. I already have a greenhouse. What would I use it for that the greenhouse can’t already do??

OP posts:
AlwaysGardening · 04/06/2025 20:25

Really useful for hardening off plants before planting out.

HippyKayYay · 05/06/2025 17:12

Thanks @AlwaysGardening - so do you mean things you've grown from seed (e.g. veg)?

OP posts:
BunnyRuddington · 05/06/2025 17:23

I feel that I need one too. My DGF had a lovely little one that he’d made from window panes.

DH is handy but also lazy and isn’t listening to my requests. But then they a different kind of pain.

Colechester · 05/06/2025 17:27

You do need one. Also you need a hot bed to start seeds off in 😀

HippyKayYay · 05/06/2025 17:27

Colechester · 05/06/2025 17:27

You do need one. Also you need a hot bed to start seeds off in 😀

What is a hot bed??? I’m about to get a plug put in my greenhouse so I can plug in a propagator…

OP posts:
JKRismyPatronus · 05/06/2025 17:37

I have a two greenhouses but also got my DH to make me a cold frame. It is great for hardening off plants.

HippyKayYay · 05/06/2025 17:45

JKRismyPatronus · 05/06/2025 17:37

I have a two greenhouses but also got my DH to make me a cold frame. It is great for hardening off plants.

2!! Gardening goals!
I also ‘need’ a potting shed

OP posts:
JKRismyPatronus · 05/06/2025 19:02

HippyKayYay · 05/06/2025 17:45

2!! Gardening goals!
I also ‘need’ a potting shed

I was lucky and given the greenhouses from people who didn't want them anymore. The smaller one contains self-watering quadgrows for tomatoes and cucumbers. The larger one is for seedlings, cuttings and young plants.

I tend to get carried away and sow far too many seeds and end up with more plants that I have room for.

I would love a potting shed.

Colechester · 05/06/2025 19:32

Hot bed is a proper old fashioned thing. You need fresh manure, layered with compost to get it fermenting and build up heat. Earth on top and monitor the heat too make sure it doesn’t get too hot. I’ve made one here as I’ve access to fresh manure. It’s brilliant. Have a Google

AlwaysGardening · 05/06/2025 20:40

HippyKayYay · 05/06/2025 17:12

Thanks @AlwaysGardening - so do you mean things you've grown from seed (e.g. veg)?

Yes exactly that. Or if you have bought a tray of bedding plants which were greenhouse grown, you'd want to harden them off.

BunnyRuddington · 05/06/2025 20:51

Some MNers brag about income, holidays or little Tarquinius who has mastered 3 languages and is reading the 12 month assessment questions out to the HV.

@JKRismyPatronus has gone in large and out boasted everyone on MN and it wasn’t even stealth! Grin

I thibk I need to get your DH to explain to mine how he should treat his wife Grin

GnomeDePlume · 05/06/2025 20:52

On our allotment I have a 6m by 4m polytunnel with automatic irrigation for the beds. Couldn't be without it.

We had a coldframe but it hardly got used.

@Colechester agree to a hot bed. Ours was brilliant but sadly no room for it in the new tunnel.

HarpieDuJour · 05/06/2025 21:25

I have a polycarbonate tunnel (polycrub) and its about 8 metres long, so I produce a lot of plants for the garden. I really, really want some coldframes, for hardening off. Taking plants in and out of the tunnel is a massive faff, and I wish I'd had some built at the same time as the polycrub.

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