Greenhouse Project

[wbpdeer]

I am 95% finished on a greenhouse project. It is 26 by 16 with a gravel pad and 1 1/4 inch electrical PVC hoops.

Some of the users on this forum may know me from my One Thousand Chestnut Tree Project on a different forum. I look forward to meeting new people on here. The first rootmaker express tray I bought was from BigRock Trees.

I am attaching a photo from inside the greenhouse taken on Tuesday of this week. I only have to build my front door and back door to the greenhouse. I have a bad tooth that has swelled my jaw up and I will not be finishing the greenhouse until a dentist visit gets me straightened out.

If there are any greenhouse folks on here please introduce yourself to me - I need your guidance.

 

[wbpdeer]

What did the greenhouse site look like in the beginning.


A neighbor on the side street has a drone and took this photo for me. Look at the clear path on the right side of the pad. That is concrete dust where I cut the old barn foundation so I could get my baseboard installed on the exterior of the new greenhouse.

 

[yoderjac]

Wayne,

That is outstanding! How do you plan to use the greenhouse? Do you plan to install lights and heat and start trees from nuts in the winter? Do you plan to wait until later in the spring and start them in the greenhouse from nuts? Or do you plan to start them indoors under lights in the winter and than use the greenhouse to acclimate them sooner?

Thanks,

Jack

 

[Natty Bumppo]

Nice work. Looks great.

 

[wbpdeer]

Thanks Jack and Natty Bumppo.

I am scratching my head about the best way to start in the coming growing season. I am not installing lights. I have electricity and water to the site. I will use a double clear cover in the winter on top of the shade cloth. The current methods are to blow air between the clear covers to inflate the envelope.
Jack I believe I will start nuts inside in the grow box and then move them to the greenhouse. I just don't know the temperatures we will be experiencing yet.
I have a good design on the greenhouse - I can raise the cover up 24 inches on each side down the 16 feet length for ventilation. I have install welded wire on below those hips boards to prevent animals from entering.

I will finish this thread slowly - right now I am trying to get my doors built. I am 95% finished - this thread just don't show it yet. ;)

 

[yoderjac]

Wayne,

I would love to have one. As I was suggesting on one of the old QDMA threads, I'm considering a different approach for next year. In the past, I've always moved my trees outside as soon as the last threat of frost had passed. I now think the cold nights of early spring, while above freezing, caused a spring growth stall. So, next year I'm considering transplanting to 1 gal RB2s indoors and keeping them under lights longer just to avoid those cold nights. While this will mean fewer trees because of indoor space limitations for 1 gal RB2s over 18s, hopefully it will mean bigger healthier trees.

I think you have the optimal solution with your greenhouse. If you don't plan to install lights, I would move your trees from the grow-room to the greenhouse at your last threat of frost. Before that, the angle and intensity of the sun is too little and will cause poor root development. I'm sure you saw the thread on QDMA on that topic. With a small heater, you can easily raise the temperature in the greenhouse by 10 degrees or more at night which is probably enough to avoid the stall.

Sounds like a great setup!

Thanks,

Jack

 

[wbpdeer]

Jack,

I have one option that I may utilize - divide me greenhouse off in the winter with tarps to heat the front part of it or 1/4 of it. It is 16 by 26.

If I was guessing today - I will start in my basement in the one or both grow boxes and then move them to the greenhouse. Temperatures will drive the decisions that get made.

One thing I know for sure - I will be carrying more trees at home that I plant on my farm to the second spring.

 

[wbpdeer]

I had operated this type of concrete saw in the mid 1980's when I was a school teacher who worked school construction jobs in the summers. I called it "fighting the bear" and it is a hand-full.



After concrete was cut we had to get it moved. My friend brought in his equipment and we got changed around in about one hour.



The tracks on this equipment were kind to the yard. After one month weather had made the marks disappear.



We piled up the large sections of concrete up behind the greenhouse in the yard. At a later time, part of those sections were used to fill in holes where water collected.
At the end of the project, the large sections will be hauled off.

Thanks for reading this thread.

 

[yoderjac]

kinda looks like bear fighting the bear so his trees will bear :D