Get a Jump Start on Spring Planting

Start the growing season early with these techniques for protecting tender plants from frost

Do n’t you just screw the magical spell of warmer Clarence Day ( between storms ) that remind us that wintertime is coming to an end ? In the Mountain West , we gardeners have it away we still have a ways to go before plant our annual and vegetables , as our frost - destitute date is mid to recent May . But if you have a case of spring fever or you love a serious DIY opportunity , now is the fourth dimension to get ready to hand with a few projection that can jump - initiate the growing time of year .

Cold frames

dusty frames are one of the best agency to extend the growing season . These multipurpose mini - greenhouses can winter perennials and shrub you did n’t get embed in the fall . Or you could place one directly in the garden to grow cool - season crop ; this is a heavy way of life to get early lettuce , spinach , and arugula begin . you may buy cold frames online or work up one yourself to check your space . Be sure to open them on warm days so plants do n’t get too hot and to close them on cold nights or when a tempest approaches . For entropy on how to build your own cold frame , get through here .

Low tunnels

Another great option for extending the grow season is the humble tunnel . modest tunnels not only cater security from frost , but the textile can also protect from former season worm scathe . If secured well at the grease stratum , they can protect against rabbits as well . ( stop tunnel often , as those rabbits can be sneaky ! ) you may also allow the hoops , supercede the hoar cloth with netting to help protect low - uprise harvest from birds and hail . Leave hoop up all season to lend frost protection again in the drop .

To build your own low tunnel , start by creating a sturdy flesh of either ¾-inch PVC or metal tubing . Form hoops by anchoring the tube to the primer using ½-inch rebar , burying the rebar several inch into the priming coat and leaving several inches above ground for the tubes . Cover the hoop with frost - trade protection textile that can be purchase at your local garden center or online . Anchor the cloth to the basketball hoop using ¾-inch clinch . you’re able to secure the cloth at the ground using a variety of methods . After using clamps to batten down the cloth to a straight premature ventricular contraction or alloy pipe along the edge of the frame of reference , staple the textile into the priming coat using landscape staple , or use rocks or George Sand bag to hold it against the land . The internet is full of DIY project for low tunnels , but if you do n’t want to make one yourself , you may find them at your favourite garden supply vender .

Wall O’ Water

If you ’ve ever wondered what the green or red cone - shaped plastic thing in people ’s garden are in other give , wonder no longer : they ’re Wall O ’ Waters . This product , available here , is made up of plastic circle composed of tubes of water that provide protection to private industrial plant . The water heat up during the day , gradually cooling during the evening while put up beaming heating plant to the industrial plant it surround and the grime beneath it . I have used Wall O ’ water often over the years to jump - start Lycopersicon esculentum and peppers with much success . Here are a dyad of tips : Use a 5 - gallon bucket to support the plastic when fill it with water ; this makes it a one - soul job . Check the water horizontal surface periodically , and refill as needed to avoid the Wall O ’ pee crumple on the industrial plant . And if a former - time of year snow is anticipate , you may want to sum up some staking to help keep it unsloped . For more about Wall O ’ water in action , snap here .

Frost cloth

If everything above sounds like a fiddling too much oeuvre , frost cloth may be used by itself . Laying it over newly emerge seedlings when a intemperate freeze is expected can make all the deviation . Just be certain to drop anchor it so it does n’t gas away .

And when all else fails , simply cultivate a small patience and hold back until your frost - devoid day of the month to commence found .

— Michelle Provaznik is executive managing director of the Gardens on Spring Creek in Fort Collins , Colorado .

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Frost cloth

Frost cloth is one of many techniques for protecting seedlings from cold temperatures in order to start growing them earlier.Photos: Greg Holdsworth

cold frame

This cold frame was made from a mix of recycled greenhouse plastic and additional plastic and lumber purchased from a local home improvement center. Inside, frost blankets are providing additional protection to the plants growing underneath.Photos: Michelle Provaznik

low tunnel