Vince took off a few vacation days so we got a few things done around here. And, we went to town every day but one . . did I mention how much I do not like going to town?
We had talked about the greenhouse . . were we going to use this this winter? It’s rather expensive to run. I have to turn the heater on early, even though it doesn’t get cold til way up in the night. I’m not going way out there by myself at 10 p.m. Most nights I could turn it on about midnight and be good so I’m running the heat probably 4 hours per night longer than I have to. We had about decided that I wouldn’t try to keep the lemon and lime trees alive and we’d just give up on the greenhouse. We had bought it for Vince to do hydroponics and so far, he hasn’t gotten around to that.
But then we talked about how nice it was to have fresh tomatoes all winter and then we decided to give it another try but pack it full and see how much we can get out of it. Maybe more veggies to harvest will make the cost of heating it more justified.
I had also started most of my bedding plants in there but with the bad garden again this year, I’m not so sure I’m even going to plant one next year. I know I will and if we have the greenhouse running anyway, I’ll start my plants in there again.
On one of our trips out this extended weekend, I picked up a few plants and that was all it took to get me going.
Seeds
The seeds in the little black 6 packs, as well as those in the peat cups will go into larger pots once they sprout and grow a little.
Seeds
There are cherry tomatoes and Better Boy tomatoes, as well as broccoli and cabbage that I can transplant to the garden once it gets cooler.
Seeds
In the cups are (left to right) carnival peppers, jalapeno peppers, litchi tomatoes, cucumbers and Red Jelly Bean tomatoes. The litchi tomatoes are new for me so I’m hoping they produce something. The Red Jelly Bean tomatoes are seeds from a friend so I’m anxious to get some of those too.
Seeds
In the blue containers are Cilantro, Cress and Poblano Peppers.
Seeds
There’s Beulah Rose lettuce, Giant Caesar lettuce and pepper cress.
Seeds
There’s parsley, basil, another type cucumber and spinach.
Once the lettuce, spinach, cress and things like that begin to sprout and grow an inch or so, I’ll plant more. With successive plantings, we should be able to have those things through the winter.
Plants
Vince drilled holes in the bottom of some 5 gallon buckets and we put a couple of inches of rocks in the bottom, then added potting soil and transplanted them. The tomatoes that were in buckets in the greenhouse last year were the first to produce in the garden and I believe with the cooler temps and a little more water, they may give me some fall tomatoes. So, I’m hoping to have a good many of these older plants for the garden next spring . . if we do one.
None of this will add up to producing enough to justify the cost of keeping the greenhouse going but hey . . it’s still pretty cheap entertainment for me.
Linda says
Why don’t you put a timer on the greenhouse? Or, if it’s powered to a switch in the house, just switch it on when you go to bed.
JudyL says
It’s propane heat and there’s an igniter to get it on. Someone has to physically do it. It’s a good ways out there so much after dark and I’m not going out there by myself.
susanssnippets says
My father-in-law likes to put his sprinklers and lights on timers so they only come on when he wants them to. I wonder if this is something that would work for your greenhouse. I know he doesn’t spend a whole lot for the timers, but it sure keeps his costs down.
Jeri Niksich says
Judy you always amaze me with all the things you’ve got going on and you still have a wonderful sense of humor that keeps me looking forward to seeing what you’re up to every day. Thank you for always making me smile, even on my worse days you can make me smile!
Jeri