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This picture shows a home made cloche I knocked up in 5 minutes with a spare bit of plastic and the remains of a pallet (a "proper" cloche is behind it in the background). enter image description here

As you can see my cloche doesn't have any sides and is really just a roof.

In terms of the heat, light etc, and the scientific properties of a cloche how adequate is my home made version?

I'm sure "better than nothing but not as good as a sealed in cloche" would be a rough answer.

But can anyone answer more fully about the importance (or otherwise) of sealing in your seedlings properly?

Tea Drinker
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3 Answers3

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Well as you're talking about seedlings, these would often be planted in a cold frame - this has sides and a back and front, but a glass lid that can be left open during the day and closed before night falls to keep the seedlings warmer. A cloche is often removed during the day for a period of time if the weather is fair, and replaced before nightfall, in the same way.

The cloche you've made won't achieve that - your 'better than nothing but not as good as a sealed cloche' statement about fits the bill really. To illustrate, imagine a cold, windy night - your semi cloche is over your seedlings, but it won't stop the wind and cold getting in at the ends. And being open at the ends means it won't retain ground heat as effectively as a closed in one would. It will, though, prevent ground frost settling on the seedlings on cold, still nights. If possible, add something at the ends which more or less seals it off, even if not tightly, to make it more effective, or take a chance with it as it is.

Bamboo
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Another thing your cloche might help with is preventing rain from getting to the seedlings or plants underneath it. Which is actually a useful thing if you are getting too much rain during the rainy season and wish to cut down on the chances of root rot or mold on the leaves.

TeresaMcgH
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You could put some material on the sides which are open to block cold winds and trap heat better, but it strikes me that your cloche is very low to the ground, too, so it won't be useful for terribly long. Once the seedlings are on their second set of leaves, they'll already be too tall for it. Is it worthwhile to create a cloche that can only provide protection for the first couple weeks?

If you'd like to make your own home made cloches from found materials, plastic bottles work very well. You just need to cut off the bottom of the bottle and remove the cap. They are the perfect shape and the open top provides ventilation.

michelle
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