Makin' Room for More!

As you can see, the the little greenhouse is now full... all three levels! It's still too early to move them to the bigger, unheated greenhouse, so where were we to go from here?

Well, a trip to Costco and $172 got us this tent. Instead of using the tarp siding & roof, my DH has covered it with plastic.

Add some saw horses, table tops and an oil heater, and you've got another heated greenhouse!

Arrgghhhh! Green with Envy
he he he he he

When you think about it, Kim, it's not a bad alternative. Of course, it helps to have $172 bucks and a heater! LOL! These tents are pretty sturdy, and they can be disassembled when you're done with them. I have another tent like this I use as my Weezingreens 'headquarters' during the summer. It gives me protection from the rain. One of these temporary greenhouses could also serve as a summer canopy with just the roof. DH put the plastic up with furnace tape.

I really need to come up with something...I LOVE IT!
Maybe next year...sigh sigh..patiently waiting

These Costco tents are 10 ft x 20 ft, so they've got lots of room for the most gardeners (notice I said 'most'). The table tops are made with 2x2's & 2x4's and covered with that PVC lattice. I use them in the summer to display plants for the customers. In the fall, we just stack them up in a pile and tarp them. We also stack up all the saw horses, as well.

Yet another use for....duct tape, aluminum tape! ..... LOL!

~* Robin

Blue tarps and duct tape are basic elements in Alaska... not to mention visquene! This makeshift greenhouse is holding about 90 flats right now, and soon I'll be adding more underneath the tables.

visquene = 6 mil. thickness black or clear poly-plastic tarp, in the USA.
I love some of the green and junglegreen tarps they sell here, too.

~* Robin

I always buy the green tarps when I have a choice. They blend in so much better. I wish they have them in fern patterns, or maybe 'brick'.

Wow, WZ! You (and DH, of course) are just amazing! I like the idea of using an inexpensive tent frame.... that's the sort of thing I could set up on our patio and take down during the summer...... :-)

Love the idea of fern patterned tarps, btw!

Critter, the tents take two people to set up and take down, but it's really not complicated. You would be hard-pressed to build a temporary greenhouse for under $200. If you spend $172 on the tent, then another $25 for plastic and tape, it's under $200. In warmer climes, I should think greenhouses would sit idle over the hot summer months, so being able to take it down would be a plus.

hey there weezin
I wondered where your post went
lol,I wanted to let you know I got the car port cover 6 mil clear poli and now i got door framed up.hopefully tommorrow door will be on and now i am thinking heat----does keroseen heaters work ok or what is cheapier.
and looking to purshase flats,soil what prices have you found are reasonable?
ihatebugs-robin

Hi, Robin. We use a Toyostove oil heater because my husband is a dealer for them. They are economical to run, but not cheap to purchase. What is cheap is directly related to where you are. If you have access to natural gas, that is really the best bet, but bottled propane is quite high. Do you still need heat in your greenhouse this time of year? As far as flats and soil, etc. are concerned, if you plan to sell plants, look into local wholesale businesses. You will save a lot on containers, potting soil, etc.

Hi weezingreens,

I have a toyostove, but I heat my downstairs basement with it. We love it. We are going to get another for the upstairs (we use a woodstove upstairs in the winter and it's pretty messy with the wood chips finding their way in with the wood) Toyo is definetely a great way to go.

Oh, one more question,

About that tent idea, we have some pretty high winds here in Idaho on occasion. How does it hold up to wind there? Because it sounds like a great idea, but we tried a similar one with pvc pipe and iron rods and the plastic just shredded.
Thanks,
Sunnyskies

sunnyskies, we use the Toyostove in the spring, so it doesn't shred in that timeframe. We have winds here, but perhaps not what you are dealing with.

It's kind of funny when you think about how people view Alaska. And here I am in Idaho (the new CA) and we get these crazy winds every once in awhile. Not often but when they come, whew!
I think I might just try that idea next year though. At worst I'll have a new tent.
Thanks for the idea Weezingreens.

Sunnyskies

You're welcome, Sunnyskies.

Here's what I'm using this year -- mini greenhouses! They've worked out well for hardening off transplants, although the row cover on the top is necessary on my very sunny patio so they don't get cooked. It's also a good place to put pepper plants when they get too tall for their indoor lighted shelf!

I was quite pleased when a friend and I found these last year at JoAnn's -- at 90% off!! We paid less that $5 apiece, including tax. What luck! We bought all they had left, which was 9 of them between us, and we gave a few away at Christmas....

I'm seriously considering WZ's tent idea though.... definitely going to keep an eye out for a good deal.... DH says the morning room is maxed out in terms of overwintering plants & still having a little space for the breakfast table, but you know that doensn't mean I'll never be tempted by another tender plant! LOL

Critter,
What do they look like? Can you post a pic? Tell me if/when they have the clearance by you again and I might have a look at ours here, just in case! ~ Suzi :)

Oops! I meant to post a picture, maybe it didn't go through. I'll try again -- thanks for the nudge!

I'd been looking at these in the catalogs, considering getting one of the 4-shelf ones, and I think the cheapest price I found was about $60 on sale..... So this pair of 2 shelf ones saved me $50! :-)

I've found that if I zip up carefully, I can fit 2 standard flats on a shelf, despite the fact that they overhang the shelf a little on each side. The higher peak in the roof makes a nice spot for those tall peppers that I started early (too early, but had fresh seed and couldn't resisit).

Critter,
WOW! $5 bucks is a deal! Let me know if/when you see them again marked down. I will run to JoAnn's or where-ever, ASAP! What timeframe was that, that you got them? Is that why your tomatoes look so darn good?!! You snatched a terrific bargain! ~ Suzi :)