Continued Cold – Cold Frame is challenged!
It has been a snowy and cold start to 2010. My cold frame has struggled to preserve heat – my 100W light bulb has helped, but clearly a couple of changes need to be made for next season.
(My home control software program measures and plots the temperature inside the frame and temp immediatly outside, so I get clear record of what is happening)
First of all there are a lot gaps at ground level, between the bottom boards and the rough ground. On windy days this allowed the cold air to push in and drop temperatures. Secondly, some sort of thermal blanket to drop over the glass would help. Finally, for these really cold nights, a proper heater would be nice.
Having said that, the lettuce and rocket is still alive, albeit hardly growing ( we had to buy lettuce at the store last week for the first time for months).