I have actually bought a cold frame (a wood framed one from Aldi) which is coming tomorrow but it has shelves so not suitable for mature (?) tomato plants… I have been eyeballing some pre loved lean to greenhouses but I want to take small steps at the moment!
Hello newby. a bit of information for you for next year maybe,I only use John Innes seed compost for my tomatoes. As you say the peat free stuff,is woody,bitty. I sow mine in quarter trays,north facing kitchen window sill, normally in January, but I am in the SE UK corner. What about growing them in your front garden, quite a few people round here do that
Small steps is the way to go A cold frame is used mainly for hardening off small plants, or for doing autumn sowing, where the plants aren't going to get big. I'm surprised it has shelves though - it must be quite high. If you can take them out, it would allow more room and help with that hardening off process for your toms. They still need ventilation in a frame - opening the lid most of the time. I gave up with the plastic gr'houses as they don't last very well, and got a timber framed, polycarbonate one, which is fine for my needs. I don't really have room for a bigger, proper greenhouse, without getting rid of lots of plants, although I've been looking recently. The frames/shelves from the plastic ones have come in useful though - for bird cages and plant supports.
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Hello newby. a bit of information for you for next year maybe,I only use John Innes seed compost for my tomatoes. As you say the peat free stuff,is woody,bitty. I sow mine in quarter trays,north facing kitchen window sill, normally in January, but I am in the SE UK corner. What about growing them in your front garden, quite a few people round here do that
Thank you I will look into this. When I started things off this year I needed lots of things for the garden and things just kept adding up! I thought the basic compost might be ‘fine’.
I will keep the light thing in mind! Front garden may not be ideal where I live (city) I’d be worried someone may take them!
Small steps is the way to go A cold frame is used mainly for hardening off small plants, or for doing autumn sowing, where the plants aren't going to get big. I'm surprised it has shelves though - it must be quite high. If you can take them out, it would allow more room and help with that hardening off process for your toms. They still need ventilation in a frame - opening the lid most of the time. I gave up with the plastic gr'houses as they don't last very well, and got a timber framed, polycarbonate one, which is fine for my needs. I don't really have room for a bigger, proper greenhouse, without getting rid of lots of plants, although I've been looking recently. The frames/shelves from the plastic ones have come in useful though - for bird cages and plant supports.
I suppose it is a mini-greenhouse (as the title says!) but I wasn’t sure whether it would be as warm as a greenhouse so I was calling it a cold-frame! (Sorry!) So I think for the suggestions you made it would work (hardening off etc.)
I looked into this one vs the plastic ones and I thought this was better as it is easier to keep air flowing, as you could just prop the doors open etc.
Just realise what you were meaning before I opened your link @GardenNewbie1 - it's basically a smaller version of mine. Identical apart from size Good price too. Not quite tall enough for full grown toms, but perfect for all sorts of stuff - there'll be no stopping you A cold frame is really just a mini greenhouse - a place for that in between stage for plants, or the overwintering as I mentioned earlier. Those don't give the same protection as glass, but are much better than the plastic ones. Mine is showing a bit of wear now - a few holes in the outer layers, so I'll need to think about a replacement or repair. I've had it about 8 years. Re the seed compost - I've never used it, and I know other people are the same, but it's essentially a low nutrient medium. Ideal for that autumn sowing, when you don't want lots of soft growth, but at this time of year, anything will do -old compost, sieved soil or leaf mould, with some grit added if needed. The Multi Purpose Composts we're used to were ideal for anything at this time of year, as seeds want to germinate, and plants want to grow, but the initial stages are more about the texture, which is why @Nanny Beach has suggested it. The new composts are generally dire in terms of that friable texture, so they're better if sieved before use, and usually with a bit of grit or Perlite [or similar] added for drainage, but that also depends on the plant as to whether it's needed, and the quality of the product. It's just how it is nowadays. If you eventually have home made compost, you can do the same with that- sieve it to get a finer texture ,and the grit etc. If you use it for potting on the plants, you'll need to add a little food. Home made compost is basically a soil conditioner, and ideal for mulching, but doesn't contain enough nutrients for plants which are growing on.
Sorry if that's a lot of info to think about, but I remember how confusing it all was when I started out, and it would have been great to get some simple help with various things. My climate is also different from the Gardeners World TV programme locations over the decades, so that's a factor, because seed sowing timing related to your local climate is important. Nanny Beach's isn't like mine, a north east of Scotland climate isn't like mine, and a town garden isn't like mine.
It's a place where beautiful isn't enough of a word....
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Our tomato seeds are growing on a south facing window sill one per 400ml clear yoghurt pot. They won't be going out into the greenhouse for 2 weeks yet. If they get cold they go dormant for several weeks and we don't heat the greenhouse.
Like a lot of things, your location is important. I have 5 different types of toms and all have been in an unheated GH ( SW UK ) for several weeks. All but 2 are in their permanent beds/pots. Whilst they are not as far forward as those forced indoors, they are sturdy plants and given we actually have a Summer, they should do as well as in previous years. Fingers crossed anyway - for me and everyone else
Update: I was taking the compost from the seed tray that had the seedlings in (as I thought they were all rotten etc) and in the process of disturbing the soil, discovered five more seedlings in the process of germinating!
I’ve transferred them into individual pots; no idea if the disruption will affect growth - or even if they will get very far this year!
My impression is that the soil was very claggy … or perhaps planted too deep (although I did follow the instructions!)
Posts
I have actually bought a cold frame (a wood framed one from Aldi) which is coming tomorrow but it has shelves so not suitable for mature (?) tomato plants… I have been eyeballing some pre loved lean to greenhouses but I want to take small steps at the moment!
A cold frame is used mainly for hardening off small plants, or for doing autumn sowing, where the plants aren't going to get big.
I'm surprised it has shelves though - it must be quite high. If you can take them out, it would allow more room and help with that hardening off process for your toms. They still need ventilation in a frame - opening the lid most of the time.
I gave up with the plastic gr'houses as they don't last very well, and got a timber framed, polycarbonate one, which is fine for my needs. I don't really have room for a bigger, proper greenhouse, without getting rid of lots of plants, although I've been looking recently.
The frames/shelves from the plastic ones have come in useful though - for bird cages and plant supports.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
When I started things off this year I needed lots of things for the garden and things just kept adding up! I thought the basic compost might be ‘fine’.
I will keep the light thing in mind! Front garden may not be ideal where I live (city) I’d be worried someone may take them!
Thank you 💐
https://www.aldi.co.uk/wooden-mini-greenhouse-natural-/p/812717580118600
I suppose it is a mini-greenhouse (as the title says!) but I wasn’t sure whether it would be as warm as a greenhouse so I was calling it a cold-frame! (Sorry!) So I think for the suggestions you made it would work (hardening off etc.)
I looked into this one vs the plastic ones and I thought this was better as it is easier to keep air flowing, as you could just prop the doors open etc.
Thank you again
Good price too. Not quite tall enough for full grown toms, but perfect for all sorts of stuff - there'll be no stopping you
A cold frame is really just a mini greenhouse - a place for that in between stage for plants, or the overwintering as I mentioned earlier. Those don't give the same protection as glass, but are much better than the plastic ones. Mine is showing a bit of wear now - a few holes in the outer layers, so I'll need to think about a replacement or repair. I've had it about 8 years.
Re the seed compost - I've never used it, and I know other people are the same, but it's essentially a low nutrient medium. Ideal for that autumn sowing, when you don't want lots of soft growth, but at this time of year, anything will do -old compost, sieved soil or leaf mould, with some grit added if needed.
The Multi Purpose Composts we're used to were ideal for anything at this time of year, as seeds want to germinate, and plants want to grow, but the initial stages are more about the texture, which is why @Nanny Beach has suggested it. The new composts are generally dire in terms of that friable texture, so they're better if sieved before use, and usually with a bit of grit or Perlite [or similar] added for drainage, but that also depends on the plant as to whether it's needed, and the quality of the product. It's just how it is nowadays.
If you eventually have home made compost, you can do the same with that- sieve it to get a finer texture ,and the grit etc. If you use it for potting on the plants, you'll need to add a little food. Home made compost is basically a soil conditioner, and ideal for mulching, but doesn't contain enough nutrients for plants which are growing on.
Sorry if that's a lot of info to think about, but I remember how confusing it all was when I started out, and it would have been great to get some simple help with various things. My climate is also different from the Gardeners World TV programme locations over the decades, so that's a factor, because seed sowing timing related to your local climate is important. Nanny Beach's isn't like mine, a north east of Scotland climate isn't like mine, and a town garden isn't like mine.
I live in west central Scotland - not where that photo is...
Whilst they are not as far forward as those forced indoors, they are sturdy plants and given we actually have a Summer, they should do as well as in previous years. Fingers crossed anyway - for me and everyone else
My impression is that the soil was very claggy … or perhaps planted too deep (although I did follow the instructions!)
We will see what happens…