It has been a colder winter and therefore a slower start to getting things started in the greenhouse. But with some recent sunshine and slightly warmer temps I have some plants up and running. I have several types of tomatoes, regular and multi-colored bell pepper, egg plant, etc. Last year I had good luck starting rattlesnake beans and silver queen corn in the greenhouse. I have these ready to go this year:
Also, I am trying to get a jumpstart on some yellow squash. I can already taste it, shredded like hash browns and fried with onion and corn meal in a little hot grease.
Some regular and red romaine and kale should be good too.
I have lots of tomatoes: Celebrity, Brandwine, BetterBoy, Fantastic, Sweet 100, Umberto, and some others I received from the webmaster. My new greenhouse location has more sunshine and most of the plants are doing well, and not getting so tall like last few years. I hope that continues.
These are not very big, but very healthy. Maybe the late start will be good since Easter is so late this year.
Here is that same group, along with others on the large door that I can open and give the plants some direct sunlight, and help harden them before garden planting. The door has worked well, I just wish I could get more plants on it.
Some years back my wife read about using toilet paper cut into small rings as starting points for seeds. This process keeps the seed and young plant in tact, keeps the water around the plant, and is simple to lift out of the flat when time to up plant to larger peat pot. Here is one flat in process. These are some Better Boy and Fantastic starts.
These are not very big, but very healthy. Maybe the late start will be good since Easter is so late this year.
Here is that same group, along with others on the large door that I can open and give the plants some direct sunlight, and help harden them before garden planting. The door has worked well, I just wish I could get more plants on it.
Some years back my wife read about using toilet paper cut into small rings as starting points for seeds. This process keeps the seed and young plant in tact, keeps the water around the plant, and is simple to lift out of the flat when time to up plant to larger peat pot. Here is one flat in process. These are some Better Boy and Fantastic starts.
Here is a shot of the greenhouse in action. The flats start in the shelves to the left, with grow lights. When second set of leaves begin to appear I up plant to five inch peat pots, put them in plastic containers and set them in as much sunlight as possible.
While this is going on it is encouraging to have some bright green produce in the garden that has wintered the storm, and still looking good. Collard greens are still tasty in March.
While this is going on it is encouraging to have some bright green produce in the garden that has wintered the storm, and still looking good. Collard greens are still tasty in March.
Whew!!
Temps dipped into the low 30s two nights in a row. I ran a small propane heater for the little plants to pretend it was still spring. Everything looks ok this morning, and all got a good soaking of water. Decent temps predicted for now so the big door will be opened so the plants can get some sunshine.
I am already trying to figure how I can adapt the greenhouse so more sections can "open" up so the plants are instantly outdoors.
Temps dipped into the low 30s two nights in a row. I ran a small propane heater for the little plants to pretend it was still spring. Everything looks ok this morning, and all got a good soaking of water. Decent temps predicted for now so the big door will be opened so the plants can get some sunshine.
I am already trying to figure how I can adapt the greenhouse so more sections can "open" up so the plants are instantly outdoors.
We had the winds on Tuesday. I have my greenhouse on the back side of my house because that is the South side. The lake is on the front (north side) so when cold wind blows it is COLD. I tried to get a picture of the white caps on the lake and the pine trees bending from pressure of the wind AS COMPARED TO the calm and easy spot my little plants had protected from the wind by my house and greenhouse.applestar wrote:Good save! You are keeping my hopes up that spring IS on it's way... eventually. Down to low 20's here while all that's going on over there. ...not to mention the roaring winds all day yesterday
Nice setup! It has given me some ideas. Just curious as to why you want more doors. I am new to GH seed starting. I have a door on one side and a big window on the other to create a cross breeze on nice days. Is the direct sunlight just as important to harden them off compared to the light through polycarb?
- rainbowgardener
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Yeah, my cold weather stuff that has been going in and out and in and out and in and out, spent an extra night in last night. While it was marginally warm enough to have them out, it was really windy with a pretty big wind chill factor. I just didn't think that was good weather to bring them out into, since they had once again been in un-hardening. They are back out now, if my partner did what she said she would.
Yes, it is good to give the young plants controlled doses of direct sunlight before they go into full sunlight in the garden. I have the one large door with shelves that has plants in the sun just by opening it.Rairdog wrote: Is the direct sunlight just as important to harden them off compared to the light through polycarb?
I would like to use this method to put more plants in the sun light, without having to handle each plant container.
Mine are not as far along this year as in the past, but the little plants look good, putting on lots of low leaves, and so far have not gotten too tall. I will put some in pots in the greenhouse, but will not plant the bulk of them in garden until late Aprilbryce d wrote:my tomatoes are looking quite awful.
What about yours does not meet your approval?
- applestar
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That's too bad.
There are basic requirements and it's not always easy to meet them. I suppose that's why people stick to "formulas" that work. But individual environment of each gardener requires fine tuning of the basic formula.
This year's winter has thrown a monkey wrench into even the tried and true systems. I suspect those who are using a relatively thermo/hygrostatic or thermo/hygrostatically well controlled growing space are likely to be affected less.
There are basic requirements and it's not always easy to meet them. I suppose that's why people stick to "formulas" that work. But individual environment of each gardener requires fine tuning of the basic formula.
This year's winter has thrown a monkey wrench into even the tried and true systems. I suspect those who are using a relatively thermo/hygrostatic or thermo/hygrostatically well controlled growing space are likely to be affected less.
I will transplant the corn to the garden, probably in the next day or so. We have some low 40s for the next two nights, so I am a bit concerned about that. The goal is to have the pier look like this again this summerapplestar wrote:Are those corn? Where are you planting them this year -- or actually what I really want to know us what you are planting on your pier garden.
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- Green Thumb
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Here in the DC suburbs in MD we've had lots of snow. The real killer has been the brutally cold temperatures. My partner's world domination rosemary bush seems to have succumbed to it. That plant lasted through winters when we had snowstorms that dumped 20"-30" at a time. But we didn't get the brutal cold with them.
- rainbowgardener
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It has been a tough winter. I think my hardy rosemary didn't make it. It was in a smallish pot and not protected. It made it through the previous, milder winter. I may try again (with a new one) and try to take better care of it. Meanwhile my regular rosemary has over wintered well indoors, growing the whole time. The question will be if I can successfully transition it back to outdoors. I have had rosemary die at that point.
I am on an extended trip so this is the only picture I can provide today. I have been watching closely the 10 day forecast for my area, and this looks like the only thing my little plants will have to worry about.....Big Winds and one COLD night. Hopefully, they will be ok. They have enjoyed some beautiful mid to high 70s for almost two weeks now, so I am hoping they are very healthy and ready to shiver a bit.
Great looking set up.
The wind was howling last night and I transplanted some parsley, lavender, carnation, dill, and other odds and ends yesterday. I hope they don't dry out. It is still dark so I haven't seen them yet. I still have about 50 long green eggplant, cutting celery, and rooted rosemary cuttings to pot up.
It was cold again last night and it is 67 degrees now. I know most of you would love that, but that is cold for here. I did plant some more superchili and cal wonder peppers, so I'll see if they will sprout this cold. I planted some cal wonder a week or so ago and so far nothing. I did not cover it though, so I will have to see if the seeds are still there. The doves here like to pick out the seeds from the starts. At least my older peppers are flowering, so I may just repot and rejuvenate them. More Trinidad Scorpions survived than I thought.
It is times like these that I wish I had a green house like yours. However, you can keep the snow.
The wind was howling last night and I transplanted some parsley, lavender, carnation, dill, and other odds and ends yesterday. I hope they don't dry out. It is still dark so I haven't seen them yet. I still have about 50 long green eggplant, cutting celery, and rooted rosemary cuttings to pot up.
It was cold again last night and it is 67 degrees now. I know most of you would love that, but that is cold for here. I did plant some more superchili and cal wonder peppers, so I'll see if they will sprout this cold. I planted some cal wonder a week or so ago and so far nothing. I did not cover it though, so I will have to see if the seeds are still there. The doves here like to pick out the seeds from the starts. At least my older peppers are flowering, so I may just repot and rejuvenate them. More Trinidad Scorpions survived than I thought.
It is times like these that I wish I had a green house like yours. However, you can keep the snow.
I had a friend watering and monitoring the young plants in the greenhouse. Well, give young plants over two weeks in a greenhouse and they become leggy plants. They are all very healthy, and will be in the ground soon, after a couple days of hardening in the sun. They should have been placed outside during the two week span, but no way to make that happen.
Before I left I planted several items (beans, corn, okra, more tomatoes) to have for the garden in case the cold temps cancelled out what I had planted earlier.
Before I left I planted several items (beans, corn, okra, more tomatoes) to have for the garden in case the cold temps cancelled out what I had planted earlier.
- McKinney88
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I, too, put the seed in the ground for most of my corn, in longer rows at the farm. But, for my small garden here at home, I try to get a jumpstart, and also use the starter corn to fill in the vacant spots. Before I left two weeks ago I put some corn seed in the ground. I have some germination, but we got so many rains that the ground got hard and I am not sure anymore will press up. I will plant the greenhouse starter corn there after it has a couple of days to get acclimated to the sun and outdoors.McKinney88 wrote:Your stuff is looking good! I have never seen anyone plant corn in starters and transplant it. I have always just put the seed in the ground. Very interesting.
- McKinney88
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- McKinney88
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Good stuff. That's what my family has always planted. This year is the first time I'm going to try something new. I meant to order Silver King to try but some how I ended up with Honey Select Triplesweet so that's what it will be this be this year.lakngulf wrote:Old standard: Silver QueenMcKinney88 wrote:What kind of corn are you growing?