Over the weekend we put up the greenhouse we’ve been planning since last summer. It wasn’t all that difficult to do. The hard part was getting the pieces here that we needed in order to build it.
The metal framework under the plastic is wire fencing called "cattle panel."
Each section of fencing is four feet wide and sixteen feet long. Set side by side and wired together along the touching and overlapping edges, and then stapled into the inside edge of the two raised beds, it creates a stable and sturdy framework. Our friend Thad was telling us how these panels could be used to do this project, and we didn’t quite get what he was talking about. So he bought one, carried it down to the garden, stuck it in the raised beds and said, “See?” And we did.
Draping the plastic over the top without tearing it was a challenge, but once it was in place, we stapled it down on the sides and cut a slit in both ends for a doorway. It is overlapped and held in place with a piece of paving stone.
The resulting greenhouse dome shape is about seven feet high in the middle and pretty straight up on the sides. Very roomy. Each raised bed is over sixteen long and four feet wide. A lot of growing space!
On Tuesday we got plants to put into the greenhouse, and got them planted. Tomato plants, peppers of various kinds, and a honeydew melon plant were installed in their new homes. Plus we planted the other greenhouse-resident seeds – cucumbers, and some hot pepper seeds which may or may not germinate.
I also filled the planters surrounding the bird bath. A lavender, pansy, fushia, peony, and lobelia, all will give some color to the middle of the walkway in front of the arbor.
Really do need to sweep off the bark that gets dragged around by the hose, but that’s not too pressing.
No, that's not out of focus. that's the camera lense immediately fogging up when we walk into the greenhouse just like our glasses do. It is a good 30 degrees warmer inside the greenhouse than it was outside (55F was the temperature outside today).
The five tomato plants are all in their cages, and everybody looked perky and took the transplanting well in stride. Good news!
Ah, much better. Fog has lifted. The Rainbow Swiss Chard in the middle of the tomato plants over wintered and is starting to put on some new growth. With the help of the higher temperatures and humidity in the greenhouse, it will take off.
The roof was dripping and the soil around the plants is still wet, so no watering was needed today.
Today we did a soil test to see what changes or improvements need to be made to the soil in the raised beds.
We finished the planting in all the raised beds yesterday. We planted the first group of Yellow Snap Beans and filled in one raised bed. And I planted a row of Dill next to potato plants, and on the other side I planted a row of Walla Walla onion sets.
Then today we looked at pH requirements for various plants. I didn’t know but potatoes and onions like wildly different pH in their preferred growing environment. Oh well 🙂 It seemed like since they go together well in cooking, they would grow in the same place. Learn something new every day.
Today we also planted two replacement climbing roses for the two that died over the winter.
So all is planted now and we just have water everything, pull weeds, and talk to the plants on a daily basis. Gardening is fun!