Tropicals & Tender Perennials: Follow the Yellow Brick Road, 0 by Xeramtheum

Xeramtheum wrote:
I've been using them for decades now, for starting seeds and nursing extra tropicals through an 8b greenhouse winter.. I always keep a thermometer in the soil so I can adjust the temperature according to whats needed. I use an old photochemical thermometer, its encased in glass. When I've used electric blankets, I put a shower curtain under and over it .. heating pads are already waterproof. They really make a difference. Just use common sense. The general idea is to maintain a consistent temperature .. I've noticed that the colder temperature itself is not the real problem. The real problem is the ups and downs.

I also use passive solar heating .. I've got 2ltr bottles painted black and filled with water. I set the plants right on top of them. In the day time the bottles collect heat in the water and releases it at night. They work astonishingly well and the temperature of the soils never fluctuates more that 5 degrees either way.

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