I am looking to buy some cloches. I have thought about making some but want ones that will last as plastic sheeting rips. I have come across these on the internet and wonder if they are a good buy. They appear to be hard wearing. (Plus £4.95p+p)
http://www.harrodhorticultural.com/HarrodSite/product/Plant%20Protection_Cloches/GDN-368.htm
Opinions please. (other photos and ideas welcome)
kings also sell them, don't know how the price compares :)
I bought 3 of these from two wests and elliott I believe, last year. They are hard wearing, and still as good as new. Growing salad leaves and beetroot under them now!
I think pricey and small but ok if you only want to protect small items - if I didn't have a greenhouse I would be tempted to DIY
I've seen these on our allotment site, a row of butterhead lettuces totally filled 'em! (good, but very small cloches) ;)
I wouldn't think that nearly £75 for a total maximum cover of 12 feet by 18 inches is worthwhile. It is only the size of the seating area on two three seater settees.
That PVC cracks, more easily than polythene rips.
I would suggest that you will get a greater area covered with a roll of polythene and some half inch plastic water pipe cut to length to form arches. For the same price.
Try e-bay for similar products
A plot holder made this for me. I used environmesh but he did say I could use heavy duty polythene if I wanted to. So once you have the pipe's fixed you could use anything to cover it.
(http://i191.photobucket.com/albums/z284/sunnyday_012/100_7519.jpg)
Sinbad
I couldn't afford that amount for cloches, I use corrugated plastic sheets from a D.I.Y. shop. Then hold it in shape with canes, you can either use perspex or wood for the ends also held in place with canes. Its not state of the art, but it does work at a fraction of the cost too :D
I was given 3 of these as a present a few years ago, without appearing to be ungrateful, I am not a fan of them. The side pieces with the vents are very flimsy, and had soon all blown away. The main plastic also kept popping out of the frame, and they only cover 1m of space. I would not buy them ... :-\
I've had similar problems to Deb P. but I'm pretty sure I got them cheaper than the present price and have found them quite handy because they are the same width as my beds and can moved around easily. On the other hand they are quite low and I've grown lettuce through the winter under enviromesh. Probably not as warm as a cloche but seems to do the job and you can get an awful lot of enviromesh for £70.00 :)
B & Q have some great ridged cloches for £6.95 !!!!! they are about 3ft long and have metal pegs to hold them down and will last years !!!!
They do seem dear KT, I have two of the ones from B&Q that Dawn mentioned, £6.25 I payed and they seem to be bigger all round, closed with two ventilation dials. ;D ;D ;D
That's settled. B&Q it is then. I am not back in the country for another 30 days. 8) 8) Hope they have some left and do not sell out.
Just looked on their website and the only thing they have is what is described as a Pop-Up-Cloche with no image available. Hopefully that is it? I like the idea of corrugated plastic too.
KT, this link takes you to B&Q plastic cloches (scroll down to 5 & 6 on list)
http://www.diy.com/diy/jsp/bq/nav/nav.jsp?isSearch=true&fh_search=GREENHOUSES+HOME+DELIVERED+GREENHOUSE&selected=products&fh_sort_by=_price_rrp_min&fh_reffacet=categories&fh_location=%2f%2fcatalog01%2fen_GB%2fcategories%3c%7b10073%7d&fh_sort_order=1&ecamp=sch-goog-seas-046&gclid=CNr_3bz_7ZYCFQzpXgodJX0irg
Thanks Amazin. They will do me just fine. ;)