Alan made a wooden cold frame last year for one of my raised vegetable beds which is 6 ft long by 4 ft wide. The base of the cold frame sits flush on the raised bed. There is a piece of wood across the middle of the base to provide support (see picture below). The top is in the shape of a tent with the highest point at approximately 2 ft. There is a piece of wood across t
he top to form the peak.
The hidden piano hinges are used on the long side of the cold frame where it meets the base. In order to keep the frame open when looking inside, Alan put wooden legs at either side which are moveable because he secured them with a screw, bolt and washer.
We used a screw hook and eye on the opposite side so the frame stays shut on really windy days.
Now to protect the plants from the cold you need to use 4 to 6 mil plastic sheeting. When we made this frame, we couldn’t find 6 mil so we used two sheets of 4 mil. We stapled one sheet to the top and one underneath the frame. If you thought wrapping a gift was difficult, you should try attaching plastic to a wooden frame!! Don’t forget to raise the lid on warm and sunny days. Check on it when it gets to 45 to 50 degrees. You don’t want to burn your veggies!
As per the top picture, here is what is growing underneath the wooden cold frame. On the left from front to back is French Breakfast Radishes, Buttercrunch and Bibb Lettuces, Speckled and Marvel Lettuces, two types of Bok Choi, Chinese Cabbage, Romaine Lettuce and Plum radishes. On the right from from front to back is Cress, Arugula, Baby Spinach, Dragon Carrots, Watermelon Radishes, Long Salad Ros Radishes, Bok Choi, Chinese Cabbage, Romaine Lettuce, Green Kale, Blue Kale and Endive.
Since the wooden frame was bulky to store, we decided to make the next one out of pvc. Stay tuned for more info on constructing a cold frame out of pvc pipes.
