[cousdude]

What exactly is the difference between the three above mentioned objects? Apart from size or anything, is there any difference is the way they function/results you get?

Thanks!

[noshed]

They obviously all do similar things but:
A coldframe is quite small but dead handy for putting seed trays in - cabbage plants now for planting out in the spring for example.
You can use polytunnels all year round if you can fix up irrigation - tomatoes, peppers, melons and anything else you can think of.
A cloche is a temporary cover over an outside bed. Very handy in frosty weather. You can use eg water pipe hoops to hold up plastic, fleece or enviromesh for a bit of variety.
Hope this helps.

[Lotty370]

Thank you! This info has certainly helped me!

Lotty  

[AndyRVTR]

Are these 3 used instead of a Greenhouse?

[Yorkie]

I would say that a polytunnel is closest to a greenhouse in usage.

You can grow things in both all year round.  The other are more for shorter-term protection, whether hardening off plants / overwintering them (coldframe), or protecting them on the ground (cloche).

[noshed]

Yes. I use a cold frame, cloches and a greenhouse - all home made, cheap or free. Quite scruffy but very effective. Last weekend when I opened the greenhouse door you could feel the air was warmer inside. I've got a max/min thermometer for keeping an eye on the situation.

[mummylonglegs]

Hi - me and my friend have just got our allotment after 2 year wait. Complete novice here so was wanting advice on cloches.

Have just planted some dwarf broad beans (only thing we could find that we could actually plant now!) and our neighbouring allotment guy showed me his crop planted 2 weeks ago - all their little shoots bitten off by mice. He said we should get a cloche as this not only protects them from frost but also will stop the mice. Is he right?

Have looked online and found a 4 metre length of fleece and 4 hoops for about £10. But then I found that you could buy the fleece for 45p a metre and that pvc covered steel wire costs £1.50 a metre... Is this a better way to do it?

[wistow-wizard]

Cloche is a small poly tunnel that can fit over a raised bed or piece of allotment.

I would not use a pre built kit , buy the hoops and add the covering to suit the season, fleece for winter, clear film to warm the ground in spring and netting to keep the £$%^$%^ birds off.

Advert removed

[mummylonglegs]

Thanks ww - that is exactly what I have done! Going to set it all up this weekend - do you think if we use tent pegs (or the like) that will keep the mice out?

[wistow-wizard]

Can use tent pegs or similar.
Depends on spacing of hoops and how windy the plot is.
The more windy the plot space hoops closer.
To be sure it stays down in wind you can fix the covering to the hoops and push hoops well into the ground.
In windy conditions a flapping sheet /fleece can pull pegs out but is unlikly to pull the whole clohe out. Not a problem with netting obviously.

[mummylonglegs]

Ww - what a splendid idea - using the hoops to stick the fleece down with. I'm SURE I would have worked it out too...


Off to the allotment this afternoon to get pegging.