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Can you use a glass bowl as a cloche?

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  • Lizzie27Lizzie27 Posts: 12,494
    @jomacl, you can get plastic cloches with ventilation holes at the top. They come in different sizes at reasonable prices. and need small metal pins to stop them from blowing away. They won't protect your plants from prolonged deep freezes but they are better than nothing.
    North East Somerset - Clay soil over limestone
  • nick615nick615 Posts: 1,487

    jomacl  5-litre clear plastic water bottles (bottoms removed) with a stick or stiff wire to hold them upright will do what you want.  Insert stick.  Sprinkle slug pellets around plant if desired.  Slide bottle down over stick.  Wiggle cut bottom into soil.  This has the added advantage one can spray a hose over them without battering the plants.  Water runs down the outsides.
  • jomacljomacl Posts: 18
    Hi @nick615 ,

    Thank you for your suggestion, that seems like a very budget-friendly option! I think I know what you mean, but you wouldn't have a picture at all, would you? 
  • nick615nick615 Posts: 1,487
    'Fraid not, jomacl, and I haven't the type of phone that will take photos (or reproduce them).  I must get some pics but, next time you go to a supermarket, have a look at the bottled water in the 5-litre size and imagine slicing the bottom inch off with a Stanley knife.  All you then need to do is insert a stick into your soil beside a plant.  After removing the cap from your bottle, slide the bottom over the stick until it reaches ground level, and you've got a cloche.  I've got about 30 hung on strings from a rafter in the shed.  They've been there for 4-5 years and still usable.
  • JennyJJennyJ Posts: 10,576
    If you're a fizzy pop drinker, the 3l bottles that are sometimes available in some of the "bargain" shops do the trick for small-ish plants. I've used them over pots.
    This is what OH drinks gallons of - other shops and other brands available
    Doncaster, South Yorkshire. Soil type: sandy, well-drained
  • it occurred to me to just use a glass cloche that I bought for displaying desserts. A glass bowl would work too, or a glass dome that comes with a cake stand.
  • FairygirlFairygirl Posts: 55,117
    panservid said:
    it occurred to me to just use a glass cloche that I bought for displaying desserts. A glass bowl would work too, or a glass dome that comes with a cake stand.
    As mentioned earlier, ventilation is needed, so solid covers of any kind aren't very good long term  :)
    It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....



    I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
  • DovefromaboveDovefromabove Posts: 88,147
    edited December 2022
    I would also point out the potential danger of using glass which might be hidden by snow … if someone slips ⚠️  🏥 👩‍⚕️ 

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





  • NollieNollie Posts: 7,529
    I have two large antique glass cloches that have no ventilation holes but I used to just prop them up on bits of wood to allow air circulation. I don’t use them anymore, they are relegated to decorative objects. One is green and the other purple glass and they have knobs on top, so hard to miss or fall over those!
    Mountainous Northern Catalunya, Spain. Hot summers, cold winters.
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