Agriculture Reference
In-Depth Information
devastate a bed of Oriental or salad greens. These little black beetles
eat holes in the leaves and stunt the plants' growth. If your garden is
susceptible to this pest, you have more control over it if you grow
the affected crops indoors or under cover where the insect cannot
reach them. Growing indoors can also prevent blight from ruining
your tomato crop. Blight is caused by a fungus that spreads rapidly if
the tomato plant's leaves get wet, especially during late July and
early August.
Cold Frames
Cold frames work by capturing sunlight during the day and holding
the heat inside through the night. There is no one standard size for
cold frames, but the back is usually higher than the front, giving
them a slanted top. They are usually built facing south in order to
capture as much sunlight as possible. You want to position your cold
frame in a sunny spot against a house, shed, or hillside for added
protection from the wind. These structures are mainly used for over-
wintering tender plants and for growing trays of seedlings in the
spring. It can also be used as a raised bed in the summer months if
you simply leave the lid open or remove it altogether.
If you have access to an electric outlet, a cold frame can become a
hothouse. You can bury an electric cable in the dirt or sand and then
place trays of seedlings on top of the sand, allowing the seedling
trays to be heated from the bottom. Some vegetable seedlings such
as tomatoes, peppers, and squash need a high, consistent temperat-
ure to germinate and this type of hothouse is the perfect way to start
them.
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