As the winter months approach, the Kitchen Garden here at Pennsbury begins to grow dormant like many others. When more fresh produce was needed for the long winter ahead, 17^th century gardeners employed two similar techniques to extend the growing season and keep the chilling frost at bay.

Cold frames and hotbeds, both alike in shape, function to generate higher temperatures than the surrounding environment by insulating young plants with thick brick walls and heavy glass windows.

Cold frames are set into the ground often near a companion greenhouse or a fence. They aid growing produce in the hardening-off process, in which plants are gradually exposed to harsher conditions than they experience in a greenhouse.

Hotbeds, like cold frames, keep the worst of the winter weather out but are regularly filled with organic matter that decays and releases heat into the soil. This can lengthen a garden’s growing season thus bolstering the winter stockpile of fresh produce.

These structures have a long history of use across the world and are still employed today. Whether growing cabbage for stew or frost-hardy radishes, cold frames and hotbeds are invaluable assets to the Kitchen Garden here at Pennsbury Manor.