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Winterize Your Garden With This DIY Cold Frame
By RON BAKER
A cold frame is a simple box with a clear top for protecting your plants. YouTube gardener Old Gardener Guy built one with strong joints that won’t fall apart when moving it.
Instead of using weak butt joints for the corners, he demonstrates how to make a plain rabbet joint that’s easy, needs no special tools, and even looks great in your garden.
Screw together two identical scraps of wood, offset about ¾-inch to create a rabbet at each edge of the corner piece into which the sides, front, and back panels can be screwed.
You could use 2x4 cutoffs or even plywood. Your corner boards should be as thick as the wood you're using for the sides and at least 4-6 times as wide as the box sides are thick.
Make the clear top of your cold frame from a piece of glass such as an old window or shower door, or use greenhouse plastic, corrugated polycarbonate, or even a shower curtain.
Cold frame tops are angled 15-35 degrees so they can be positioned to catch the sunlight. Keep this in mind when planning your frame to avoid leaving gaps that let in cold air.