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Sprouts in a plastic cold frame - so far so good, but what about over winter?

xhannnahxxhannnahx Posts: 2
in Fruit & veg
Hi there, I'm a first-year allotmenteer and write this knowing that I don't know a lot when it comes to prepping for the winter, so please be kind!

About a month ago, I planted out some brussels sprout plugs from the garden centre. I had a plastic cold frame tent going spare and planted some of them in there, thinking about the bugs and birds that could go for them if they were out in the open. Now they're coming along nicely, but I'm conscious that while they're happy in their warm, humid bubble they probably won't stay that way as we get towards winter.
I can lift off the cold frame, but I would imagine they'll need some hardening off rather than just being exposed to the cooler weather, and probably better to do that soon. How would you go about this while still keeping off the pests? Once the frosts appear, will they then need some extra protection? 

I'm grateful for any tips or suggestions :)

Posts

  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,147
    edited September 2021
    They need planting out in the soil. 

    Sprouts will stand any amount of hard weather… I’ve seen them stand for weeks under 4 ft of snow and then be frozen rigid with layers of icicles from the thawing snow and still be perfectly fine. 



    The two problems for Brussels sprouts in the winter are strong winds rocking them back and forth.  This can cause the sprouts to ‘blow’ so that they don’t form firm sprouts, but are more like rosettes. Still edible but not as good. So if they’re in a vulnerable spot it can be a good idea to tread the soil around them very firm and then stake them with a tomato cane or three. 

    The other problem is wood pigeons … in hard weather a flock of hungry woodies will descend in a field of sprouts and strip it in a day. I’ve seen it happen. So I put mine under a tall cage of netting if at all possible. 

    Hope that helps. 😊 

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





  • xhannnahxxhannnahx Posts: 2
    Fab, thank you! They're in the ground already so hopefully we're partway there (I guess it's more of a big cloche than a cold frame, but that's how it was marketed).

    It's good to know they can take the cold - our plot is at the end of the site and last to get the sun in the morning, so a bit of a frost pocket compared to our neighbours'.

    We do have a bit of a pigeon problem so I'll investigate netting them when the cover comes off. It'd be a shame to get them so far, only to have the harvest disappear!
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,147
    edited September 2021
    Make sure the netting is raised high enough above them otherwise the woodies will sit on the netting, weigh it down, and peck your sprouts through the holes 😠. 

    Wood pigeon damage 

    Mind you there’s a lot to be said for a nice fat woodpigeon with your sprouts 🍽  😉 

    Gardening in Central Norfolk on improved gritty moraine over chalk ... free-draining.





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