Tomatoes in the greenhouse

ozark_rocks · Tue Mar 15, 2011 11:15 pm

Does anyone have tomatoes growing, in an unheated greenhouse yet? I took three plants out to mine today. I 'm thinking I could put all of the tomatoes out , but it's my first greenhouse and I'm a little nervous about it.

soil · Wed Mar 16, 2011 12:04 am

i started in our unheated greenhouse(two of them actually) 2 weeks ago, and then another batch yesterday. will most likely do one more in another 2 weeks when some trays open up.

ozark_rocks · Wed Mar 16, 2011 2:57 am

Soil, when is your last frost? Mine will likely be between April 15 - 25....so I guess my question is .....Am I to early, putting tomatoes in an unheated greenhouse?

Bobberman · Wed Mar 16, 2011 3:37 am

Does your greenhouse have double plastic. if not watch out! Also i would get some water storage barrels at least 100 gallon to hold the day heat for the cold nights! All my plants are up except my tom and pep. My nights have been too cold in pa.. Even with all the water storage my inside temp was around 30 several nights this month!

ozark_rocks · Wed Mar 16, 2011 4:06 am

Bobberman wrote:Does your greenhouse have double plastic. if not watch out! Also i would get some water storage barrels at least 100 gallon to hold the day heat for the cold nights! All my plants are up except my tom and pep. My nights have been too cold in pa.. Even with all the water storage my inside temp was around 30 several nights this month!

I have one 55 gallon black barrel, and another 60 gallons in 4 and 5 gallon buckets and bottles. The house is double layer heavy pastic...8x6x8, the north wall covered with insulation board. I've been down to 30 once this month, but around 40 for they last week.

rootsy · Wed Mar 16, 2011 12:53 pm

I am jealous. Still in the teens and 20's here at night. May actually make 50 for a high today but consistently in the 30's and 40's. I have about 2500 seedlings struggling along in the basement with the heat of the wood burner. As well as a lot of 4 foot shop lights... I hope to move them to the greenhouse in the next week or so as the forcast is looking UP.

soil · Wed Mar 16, 2011 2:24 pm

we get frosts up until early May.

wordwiz · Wed Mar 16, 2011 6:14 pm

I've posted this in other areas but it is worth repeating:

If you do not have an automatic vent in your GH, be very careful at this time of the year. A GH can go from 40 to 100+ in 90 minutes. Unfortunately, I found this out the hard way. Forecast was for mostly cloudy, high in the upper 40s. I did not open the door because it was 42 (I had mature plants) to leave for about four hours. About 90 minutes before I returned, the sun came out - strong, and the temps rose into the upper 50s. By the time I got home, it was 125 in my GH - and that was about a foot off the ground. Closer to the top, it was considerably warmer.

Mike

DoubleDogFarm · Wed Mar 16, 2011 6:48 pm

If you do not have an automatic vent in your GH, be very careful at this time of the year. A GH can go from 40 to 100+ in 90 minutes. Unfortunately, I found this out the hard way. Forecast was for mostly cloudy, high in the upper 40s. I did not open the door because it was 42 (I had mature plants) to leave for about four hours. About 90 minutes before I returned, the sun came out - strong, and the temps rose into the upper 50s. By the time I got home, it was 125 in my GH - and that was about a foot off the ground. Closer to the top, it was considerably warmer.

Yep! I've seen these extremes several times this winter.

I have around 150 little baby tomatoes in the greenhouse and several hundred more started. Sweat chamber.

Eric

ozark_rocks · Thu Mar 17, 2011 6:54 pm

DoubleDogFarm wrote:
If you do not have an automatic vent in your GH, be very careful at this time of the year. A GH can go from 40 to 100+ in 90 minutes. Unfortunately, I found this out the hard way. Forecast was for mostly cloudy, high in the upper 40s. I did not open the door because it was 42 (I had mature plants) to leave for about four hours. About 90 minutes before I returned, the sun came out - strong, and the temps rose into the upper 50s. By the time I got home, it was 125 in my GH - and that was about a foot off the ground. Closer to the top, it was considerably warmer.
Yep! I've seen these extremes several times this winter.

I have around 150 little baby tomatoes in the greenhouse and several hundred more started. Sweat chamber.

Eric

Ok, Erik you inspired me. " 150 baby tomatoes and more on the way"

. I started harding off my 75 babies , in the greenhouse today, in a few days they get to stay.They have been going outside on pretty days for two weeks so, it should not shook them.

Wordwiz, thank for the reminder. I've been watching the temputures since January, and low to high can be extreme.

DoubleDogFarm · Thu Mar 17, 2011 7:06 pm

Just pricked and up potted more little ones. 230 and climbing!

Eric

ozark_rocks · Thu Mar 17, 2011 7:34 pm

DoubleDogFarm wrote:Just pricked and up potted more little ones. 230 and climbing!

Eric

Wow, how much garden space do you use to grow that many, or do you sell the seedlings? I plan on planting 100 plants this year, we love tomatoes!

DoubleDogFarm · Thu Mar 17, 2011 9:24 pm

Farmers Market
https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=128611&highlight=produce#128611

If we keep talking Farmers Market and Greenhouses maybe Roger will add to the forums.

Eric

ozark_rocks · Thu Mar 17, 2011 9:41 pm

DoubleDogFarm wrote:Farmers Market
https://www.helpfulgardener.com/forum/viewtopic.php?p=128611&highlight=produce#128611

If we keep talking Farmers Market and Greenhouses maybe Roger will add to the forums.

Eric

Thanks for the link. Nice set up at the market.

We can only hope they add to the forum

. There are threads about greenhouses skattered all over the forums

Being a novice on hot houses, I've tried to read them all, but you have to do a new search everyday or so to catch them.

DoubleDogFarm · Thu Mar 17, 2011 11:08 pm

digitS' · Fri Mar 18, 2011 3:21 am

The greenhouse sits unheated but, for a few more days . . .

Right now, I'm carrying tiny seedlings out and carrying them back. Mostly, ventilation has been easy since the days have been cloudy with rain, graupel, hail . . . sunbreaks were so brief today that the greenhouse never warmed above 72Ã‚Â°F.

But, yes -- spring weather and a lack of automation means being chained to the greenhouse. And as it is, mornings and afternoons - I am dancing between the greenhouse, the table in front of the good south window, the utility room, the top of my fridge . . . must fire up the furnace out there soon.

Steve

ozark_rocks · Fri Mar 18, 2011 12:55 pm

DoubleDogFarm wrote:

what happened to the link?

DoubleDogFarm · Fri Mar 18, 2011 4:30 pm

The poll was axed!

Gary350 · Sat Mar 19, 2011 3:02 am

rootsy wrote:I am jealous. Still in the teens and 20's here at night. May actually make 50 for a high today but consistently in the 30's and 40's. I have about 2500 seedlings struggling along in the basement with the heat of the wood burner. As well as a lot of 4 foot shop lights... I hope to move them to the greenhouse in the next week or so as the forcast is looking UP.

Don't be jealous you have an advantage over us folks in the south you can grow things I can only dream about. None of the cold weather crops do very well here it gets too hot too soon. When I lived in Michigan many years ago I had the most amazing garden. Soil there was excellent and things would grow like magic and 1000s of butterflies would come to pollinate the blossoms.

garden5 · Sat Mar 19, 2011 2:41 pm

Sounds like everyone's getting their gardens ready to go. I've yet to start my seedlings....I will any day though.

Quick question for you guys with last frost middle of May: Do you have to supply supplemental heat to your greenhouses from like the middle of Feb. onward? Or, do you just get by with using water, block, etc. storage?

ozark_rocks · Sat Mar 19, 2011 3:24 pm

garden5 wrote:Sounds like everyone's getting their gardens ready to go. I've yet to start my seedlings....I will any day though.

Quick question for you guys with last frost middle of May: Do you have to supply supplemental heat to your greenhouses from like the middle of Feb. onward? Or, do you just get by with using water, block, etc. storage?

Good question, I hope someone will answer it. My greenhouse was still below freezing, at night, untill about two weeks ago.

ozark_rocks · Sat Mar 19, 2011 3:35 pm

Gary350 wrote:
rootsy wrote:I am jealous. Still in the teens and 20's here at night. May actually make 50 for a high today but consistently in the 30's and 40's. I have about 2500 seedlings struggling along in the basement with the heat of the wood burner. As well as a lot of 4 foot shop lights... I hope to move them to the greenhouse in the next week or so as the forcast is looking UP.
Don't be jealous you have an advantage over us folks in the south you can grow things I can only dream about. None of the cold weather crops do very well here it gets too hot too soon. When I lived in Michigan many years ago I had the most amazing garden. Soil there was excellent and things would grow like magic and 1000s of butterflies would come to pollinate the blossoms.

Gary350, I agree. By the end of May my cool season is over, and all of the cool weather crops struggle, then die. Then we get a heat wave, and the tomatoes and peppers won't produce, till it cools off again.

DoubleDogFarm · Sat Mar 19, 2011 4:24 pm

Quick question for you guys with last frost middle of May: Do you have to supply supplemental heat to your greenhouses from like the middle of Feb. onward? Or, do you just get by with using water, block, etc. storage?

I'm finding out the more you stuff into your greenhouse the longer it stays warm into the night. Everything holds a little warmth. My propagation chamber loses a little heat to the greenhouse.

Eric