Cold Frame Enquiries: rudy@lonelybirch.com |
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Page Last Updated: March 17, 2023 By: Rudy Racek |
| COLD FRAMES DESIGN BRACING BASES INTERESTED? UPDATES |
WHY COLD FRAMES? |
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Whether it's growing produce for the dinner table or flowers simply for their beauty, the short length of the growing season in Northern Ontario presents an inescapable challenge. Additionally, components of the elements such as wind, frost, hail and critters such as raccoons and even deer can prematurely quash the most avid gardener's aspirations for any given season. Protection of a crop and extending the growing season are two very good reasons to want to shelter at least a portion of your plants. Hardening off delicate seedlings started indoors safely within some form of shelter is one way of extending the growing season. Depending on the output of your garden and also how much money you're willing to spend, a greenhouse or hoop house could certainly meet your needs. |
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PAST EXPERIENCE My personal experience with a couple green houses that I put together in late 2021 (tried to have them in place and ready for spring of 2022) wasn't the greatest. I have a place on Sailor's Encampment Drive on St. Joseph Island and anyone familiar with this area, which is right on the river, knows about the occasional bouts of intense wind off the water to which it is subjected. In fact, shortly after the green house kits were assembled, steady state winds of 40 kph (25 mph), occasionally gusting well above that, lasting the better part of a full day caused enough damage to oblige me to rethink my greenhouse dreams. Adverse weather and winter conditions (ie. heavy snow loads) must be considered. Some structural members were damaged leading to the loss and damage of several polycarbonate panels. I was frustrated to put it mildy. I had just built these structures. Because of the nature of the kit assembly, this would have required a considerable time investment in ordering replacement parts and additional labour in disassembly and reassembly. There simply was not enough time before winter. This meant no greenhouses for spring. Therefore, maintenance and cost are 2 factors to consider with both greenhouses and hoop houses. How easily can they be fixed or replaced, if necessary? As a result, my wife, Nora, and I decided to explore the idea of a smaller and lower profile solution called a cold frame. I will let you know that we do not claim to be expert gardeners and we have never had the opportunity to actually use cold frames in the past. We have done some research and are willing to give this concept a valiant attempt. |
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THE REASONING Here are a number of reasons that we believe that this may be the solution for us: 1) I am constructing the cold frames and even milling the wood for them myself, so, other than labour, initial cost is very low. 2) I am able to reclaim undamaged polycarbonate panels (rather expensive) from the greenhouses and put them to good use. 3) I was able to create my own design with the intent to be practical, versatile and durable. 4) The low profile and robust design of these cold frames should help withstand the occasional bouts of high velocity winds. 5) Should the need arise, with minimal preparation, two people can lift the cold frame and move it to any desired location. The intent here is to share any new discoveries as they appear through updates on this website. Also, I would love to guage the local popularity of cold frames. Are they in widespread use or is the idea merely an impractical curiosity? I enjoy learning new skills and techniques and I invite constructive feedback in the form of advice, questions and personal experiences related to cold frames. In fact, information, which I personally find helpful, will be posted in the UPDATES section of this website. Simply email me at rudy@lonelybirch.com For now, the cold frames that I'm constructing are meant to meet specific needs in my garden. However, should there be any interest, I would certainly entertain a limited production for sale in the future. This summer I will be testing out two cold frames and will keep you posted on the results. |
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