[Shed Dweller]

Hello Folks,

I, like most I am sure, when starting out 'growing your own' want to keep the cost down along with trying to ensure I don't get all of my first crop eaten or battered by the weather.  I have managed to source some wood and have build my 1st raised bed 8ft x 3ft and 2ft deep.  I have also started growing a few seeds in my mini greenhouse.

What I really need some advice on is; what is the best form of protection for my raised bed fleece or polytunnell? also, what is the cheepest way I can go about building and attaching to my bed (raised bed that is, I don't plan to sleep under plastic).

I am really trying to do this on the cheap so any support would be very welcome!!!

[Kristen]

Do you need anything? Fleece is only to keep the frost off things that are planted a bit early. (Also helps if there is an unexpectedly late frost, of course).

Poly-tunnel / cloche is to force things a long a bit faster - warm the soil before planting, and then keep the young plants a bit warmer, and out of the wind (which definitely reduces their stress).

So you could just plant a bit later and save the cost of the "protection"??

2L clear Pop bottles, with bottoms cut off, will make protectors suitable for each plant.

I used mains water-pipe (the underground blue stuff, but the black sort would be better as it won't be effected so much by sunlight), and stuck some short canes in the ground and then the water pipe onto the canes looped over the bed.  Then fleece / netting (to keep butterflys / birds off) overt he hoops. Some pictures on my blog.

[Trillium]

Welcome shed dweller, and please introduce yourself to the welcome forum. It would also help a lot if we knew where you lived to give the best advice so if you could add that to your profile it would be great.

Again, your location depends on how strong your defenses should be. Severe weather until the growing season might require poly sheeting, but then pigeons, pea moths and cabbage butterflies would require debris netting for best protection (yes, the little so and so's can slip under or through regular netting).
  

[mumofstig]

have a look here to see the blue pipe sort of thing
http://chat.allotment-garden.org/index.php?topic=31553.msg378150#msg378150