A Gabriel Ash Cold Frame

For several years I have been taunted by the Gabriel Ash stand at the Chelsea Flower Show. I have the dilemma of limited space in my London Garden and I am also a bit of a plant-aholic and know that I would never have the room for the plants I would be bound to produce if I had the facilities. I tell myself, and this is a very real promise, that when I move to the country, a Gabriel Ash glass house will be something I put money aside for as it will be my ally and nerve centre for the garden that it will enable to grow around it.

That aside, I like the use of western red cedar, a traditional material that has a long-standing history in horticulture and one that weathers well without demanding hours of maintenance –time that is best saved for gardening. I like the fact that this wood is selected to last and that it does so without the need for chemical treatments or paint but what also drew me to the company was their attention to design. It is simple, unembellished and all that is needed, with powder coated aluminium fittings and toughened glass for safety. This craftsmanship, combined with a well-crafted wood selected for longevity, is the best of form following function. These are products that will pass the test of time.

The dilemma in my garden runs to the fact that I have to produce most of my half-hardy plants on the window cills in my house. I tailor this to space but this is far from ideal come April and early May for the plants are always straining for more light and room. I also have a garage with a plastic roof and this is useful for over-wintering pelargoniums and other tender plants but everything else has to sit out in the winter. Pots of bulbs that I bring in for an early display and cuttings and plants that I am growing-on, have to contend with winter wet and the vagaries of our climate. I could be gardening better and more efficiently.

With that in mind, I have dedicated the 3’x5’,5” that is needed for a Gabriel Ash Grand cold frame and have it slotted in alongside the vegetable beds. It runs east, west as it should, to face into the sun and I can already see it will work hard for me in this productive area of the garden. It was delivered flat-packed on a Friday and took less than an hour for two of us to set it up on Saturday morning. The rest of the day was spent ordering what should go into it.

The etiolated salvia and pelargonum cuttings that have been straining in the garage can now be given the light they need a whole month early. They will grow away heartily and be hardened off in time for the next batch of window cill annuals to fill their place in May. I will be able to get these plants beefed up in the frame where in previous years they had to acclimatise in a sheltered corner under fleece. Summer will see the frame planted up with Basil –it needs the heat to do well and one end will be kept shaded for cuttings which I will be able to house with safety next winter. There is something very satisfactory about doing things correctly and it is very nice to be doing it in style.

Dan Pearson, Landscape and Garden design