Things You'll Need:
- Four or six square straw bales
- One old window in frame (for four bales) or two old windows in frames (for six bales)
- Old newspapers (the equivalent of eight Sunday papers worth)
- Homemade compost or two large bags of compost from a local garden center. Check with your local government, which may have wood chips, leaves or soil to give away.
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Step 1
Arrange four straw bales in a square. If you want a double cold frame, arrange six bales in a rectangle. Choose a sunny spot for sun-loving plants, or a shady spot for shade loving plants.
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Step 2
Ball up old newspaper and fill the cold frame about one-fourth full from the bottom. Cover newspaper layer with compost or potting soil until half full.
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Step 3
Choose plants carefully, using the most cold resistant ones in the later part of the winter and the more delicate ones in early fall and late spring for best results. Place plants in the soil of the cold frame, inside the straw bales. Cover with an old window still in the frame, or sheets of clear Plexiglass.
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Step 4
Make "themed" cold frames. I like the "pizza garden" theme: cherry tomatoes, green peppers, basil, onions, oregano and garlic. "Soup Base" theme includes carrots, onions, garlic, celery, and Roma tomatoes. "Peter Rabbit Special" has carrots, Bibb lettuce, spinach, butter crunch lettuce, and scallions.
