Greenhouse: Taking the plunge, 1 by nautical99

nautical99 wrote:
I am still sore from the little bit of digging I did two days ago, so the pipe will go in deep enough to not freeze. I don't want to dig it up again. :)

As a rank amatuer, I really don't know what I want to grow, just know that I want to. I am sure I will want to grow from seeds, so I will need all the help I can get. If warm water helps, then I will use warm water.

Many years ago, (over 30) I spent some time helping out a friend that was in the GH business. We lived in far NE IL, and winters are brutal. Al heated the greenhouses with steam. He had a large 50hp Cleaver-Brooks boiler. I know he ran steam pipes under the beds to keep the soil warm. Not sure for what plants though, he grew a lot of cut flowers for wholesalers. (pomps?) Then he also grew bedding plants for the spring time and pointsettas for Christmas. Unfortuanately I don't remember much about "how" he grew as I mostly helped him with plumbing projects, etc. I do remember he covered the long beds with a thick rubber mat, then ran a live steam hose under it and "steamed" the bedding soil to sterilize it. He always did this before he started his next crop.

I really think that is when I became so fascinated with growing flowers, etc. I am a mechanic by trade, and have been in the auto repair business for 31 years. Here are a few pics of my auto shop in far NE IL, so you can get an idea of how much I like flowers.

Guess I don't know how to post more than one pic at a time, so will add one to more msgs.

Nautical99