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Tricking your garden into thinking it is spring!

By Melanie Mathieson
Gardening Guru

Many gardeners dream of having our very own greenhouse, the reality is that most gardeners do not have a greenhouse or even a cold-frame. Although there are some great new kits and small greenhouses that are made affordable to the homeowner, many of us will never have our own greenhouse. But don’t despair, there are some products on the market that we can use to push the season and mimic the growing conditions of a greenhouse, cold-frame or even warm weather.
Many traditional gardeners will place black plastic on their garden in the early spring. Black plastic attracts the heat of the sun and warms the soil below. By doing this a gardener can warm the soil a few weeks ahead of what mother nature would do without the blanket of plastic. Beware that once the plastic is removed, prolonged cold weather can lower the soil temperature and harm your plants if planted too early. Black plastic is also an effective tool for placing over areas in your garden with heavy weed cover. Keep in place throughout the whole season and the hot sun of summer will burn the weeds and next year you should be able to return to gardening in that area as usual. You can also place plastic over a pile of organic waste to speed up the composting process. Black plastic is very economical to buy but limited to its uses in the garden.
Garden cloches date back to the Victorian era. Traditional cloches were glass but plastic models are available today. Cloches are bell or box shaped devices used as mini-greenhouses. They are placed over tender seedlings once they are transplanted into the garden. The cloche protects the seedling from frost and warms the soil during the day. Make sure your type of cloche has a vent hole at the top as even the spring sun can heat the interior of the cloche to a temperature that will burn the tender seedling. Thrifty gardeners can be very creative and have used many different items as makeshift cloches. Clear milk or other plastic jugs can be used as cloches by cutting off the bottom of the jug and removing the screw cap and placing over the plants. Other gardeners will use empty milk cartons as cloches. I have also seen a modification of the plastic jug kept intact and filled with water and placed in threes around each seedling. This requires a lot of jugs if you have a lot of seedlings. Other times I have seen gardeners use large canning jars filled with water and placed in threes around the plants as well. Do not use an empty canning jar as a cloche over a plant thought as there are not any ventilation holes and your seedlings will burn.
This brings me to the use of frost protectors or known by one brand name “Kozy Koats”. Frost protectors are a series of joined plastic tubes that are filled with water to make a free standing cylinder. The cylinder is placed on the garden soil and the seedling is planted within the confines of the protector. The wall of water insulates the plant against frost and cold temperatures while also warming the soil below. Once normal temperatures remain, the protector is removed. These protectors are great for tomato and pepper plants, as well as watermelon and cucumbers. By using these in early spring to warm the soil before planting, you can then plant these plants, within the frost protector, 4-5 weeks ahead of normal planting time. The protectors are available on the market in different colours and trade names, but all work in the same manner. I have used these and they are definitely worth investing in and with proper care and storage will last for many seasons.
Floating row covers are a very useful plant protector tool that many gardeners are unaware of. I have used these many times in my garden and really like them. I have often planted my garden in late April or the first week of May when using floating row covers. Floating row covers protect plants from frost, hail and insect and wildlife damage. The year we had hail in May my row covers had holes in them but the plants were safe. Once I started using floating row covers I no longer had deer grazing in my garden. Floating row covers are made from a white spun-bonded material that looks like clothing interface material. The covers are light and semi-transparent but are very effective at protecting your plants. Plant your seeds or seedlings in rows or raised beds the width of your row cover and place over top securing the edges with soil. Make sure you allow some slack in the cover to allow growing room for the plants as you keep the row cover on until the plant flowers and insects are needed for germination. The row covers are reusable and last for many seasons if not damaged by hail.
Row greenhouses are miniature and portable greenhouses that you place over the rows or raised beds in your garden. They can be purchased in many lengths but usually have a height clearance of 2-3 feet. The kits contain tubular framing that you install over your plants and cover with the greenhouse plastic. When looking at these kits, look for ease of installation and make sure they have vents within each section, as plastic greenhouse frames can get very hot and burn your plants quickly if there isn’t any type of ventilation.
Shade cloth is another great tool for the gardener especially if your garden is exposed to the full sun all day. While many vegetables flourish in the hot sun, some like the heat and sun in a more gradual exposure. Shade cloth is a polypropylene (plastic) netting that is usually black or green and can be attached to stakes and adjusted as need throughout the garden. Cucumbers and lettuce really benefit from shade cloth as the afternoon sun can be too intense for them. Many nursery growers use shade cloth throughout their operations. You will see shade cloth over areas where they display their shrubs and trees and ovr the outside or hung inside their greenhouses. Shade cloth can be cut to size with scissors and adapted to many needs. It can also be used on your deck or patio on a pergola or frame to provide shade for the humans.
You may have a small greenhouse or a large cold-frame on your gardener’s wish list for the future. While you wait to own a greenhouse, look at your nursery or garden supply store for many of the products mentioned in this column. I promise if you try some of these products you will be very pleased with the results.