Build a sturdy crop cover

I guess this time of year is all about cover.

Cover crops, crop covers, covering your bod from the cold...that kind of thing.

The one thing all of these coverings have in common is that they're only good if they're actually, you know, COVERING things.

What I'm trying to say is that they're no good if they're blowing around your yard or whoknowswhere instead of your cover-needing crops, am I right?

Um, do you feel a draft? I feel a draft.

It's OK, you can say it - I'm right.

Crop covers need to be sturdy, hardy and battened down so that they do their job while the winter weather rages outside with the evil cabbage moths, carrot flies and other EW GROSS NOT ON MY PLANTS YOU DON'T no-no pests that want ever so badly to consume your plants before they can produce the vegetables that you want.

So, let's build a nice sturdy crop cover, shall we?

Again, the answer here is yes.

These crop covers are good for fragile plants that need cover, but don't appreciate having the cover draped right over their little growing bodies. These covers also make it easy to cover only those plants that need cover in a multi-crop bed and they're easy to remove when you want to check on your plants' well-being between winter storms.

Build a sturdy crop cover

Materials

1. Medium gauge wire mesh (chicken wire works well, too)
2. Lightweight permeable cloth like this
3. 4 clothespins
4. 2-4 garden staples per row cover

How-To

1. Measure the area you'll be covering and determine the final height of the plant you intend to cover. Add these two numbers together and cut your wire mesh.
   
   So, if your area is 2' wide and you're growing broccoli that will get to about 1' tall, you'll cut your mesh to 3'.
   
   This way you can form an arch tall enough to accommodate the final height of your plants.
   
   It doesn't need to be exact, but you don't want to end up with your plants all smashed against the cover since that could keep them from reaching their potential, inhibit air flow and other annoying no-nos.
   
2. Measure out enough of the cloth so that it's at least 4 inches longer than your wire mesh, cut it and drape it over the top of your mesh.
   
   
3. At each corner, twist up the excess cloth and pin it taught to the mesh with your clothespins.
   
   
   
   
4. Do that on all sides.
   
   
5. Cover your crops
   
   
6. Pin down either end or all four corners (you decide how STAY PUT you want to be about it) with your garden staples.
   

That's all, folks. 

That's better. Now I can run around nude.