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Nov 28, 2015 11:35 AM CST
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Name: Carol Texas
Central Texas (Zone 8b)
"Not all who wander are lost."
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Now I have two (6 x 8) units. Unfortunately, we are still waiting on some parts my husband needs to complete attaching the roof so for now its draped and sealed off fairly well with plastic sheeting and a piece of pool cover. So I currently have a "duck and squeeze thru" opening between the two - haha. Once the parts arrive on the slow boat from China it will become a walk-thru. I am using the newer unit as the primary entrance (because the door faces away from the cold wind) -- and that unit will be for plants that aren't as temperature sensitive. Then as you walk thru into the original unit, all my warmer loving plants (lemons, jalapenos, figs, mulberry, etc.) are in this unit. Also in this unit where I have my growlight installed, I attached clear plastic around it to make sort of a "mini greenhouse" in a greenhouse. Using this for my seedlings. I've draped those space blankets around the plants and it continues to amaze me how much heat is trapped by those. The 3 CFL lights in warmer GH are keeping it around 51 degrees today (and it's 41 outside). The little mini GH with the seedlings is staying at 75 to 80 degrees. Have lots of experimenting I want to do in these two GH this season. I am so new to this and hoping I have better success this winter than last. My ONE claim to fame is growing jalapenos - that jalapeno was planted summer 2014 and has been in continuous production both outside and in the GH during last winter - and it appears to want to keep going !


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Www.carolmedfordart.com
My passion is painting but gardening is running a close second.
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Nov 28, 2015 2:03 PM CST
Name: Ric Sanders
Dover, Pa. (Zone 6b)
And his children Are his flowers ..
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You are developing a nice setup there Carol. Having 2 temperature zones would be great for hardening seedlings and such for outdoors, as well as giving you a separate place for marginally hardy plants to overwinter. I would love to have that space.
I've been considering a second unit, but would rather have my shed built on the north end, especially if I can incorporate a small root storage under it for all our cannas and such.
Ric of MAF @ DG
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Dec 24, 2015 3:32 PM CST
Name: Melissa
Memphis, TN (Zone 8a)
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We are going to build two 10x12s end to end when we move. The house is on the market and we found a house that we like.

Fingers crossed!

The L shape is interesting but I think we would have hose tangling issues.
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Dec 24, 2015 4:35 PM CST
Name: Ken Ramsey
Vero Beach, FL (Zone 10a)
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I too like what you are doing, Carol. We learn by experimentation and you have a lot going on with your three climates.
drdawg (Dr. Kenneth Ramsey)

The reason it's so hard to lose weight when you get up in age is because your body and your fat have become good friends.
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Dec 24, 2015 5:39 PM CST
Name: Karen
New Mexico (Zone 8a)
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That'll be a great setup, Carol. I may have to do that. I have a new 15 foot dome greenhouse but I filled it up the first week. Now I need more protected, greenhouse area. We are on a super windy hill, but maybe the HF ones could be modified to stand up to our winds. I could use 2 or 3 of them hooked together. I can only grow outside for about 3 months in the summer. I'm tired of carting plants into and out of the house every year.
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Dec 24, 2015 10:29 PM CST
Name: Sandy B.
Ford River Twp, Michigan UP (Zone 4b)
(Zone 4b-maybe 5a)
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I like this setup, too -- I don't like the 10 x 12 because it's SOOO high. And, mainly I use my GH for seedlings in the spring. It would actually be great to have one 6x8 that I could heat in the early spring for the seedlings, and then as things warm up spread the plants out between the two units. (I presently have an 8x16 Rion that is getting near the end of life). Really got me thinking now, Carol!
“Think occasionally of the suffering of which you spare yourself the sight." ~ Albert Schweitzer
C/F temp conversion
Avatar for Pippi
Jan 6, 2016 1:23 AM CST
Wyoming (Zone 4a)
I owned and operated a commercial greenhouse during the 80's in Nebraska. I sold both houseplants and annuals (inside) perennials outside. After lot of research, I had my greenhouse built from my own design. It was made from redwood and fiberglass panels. Size was 12 x 25 ft. It was a year around greenhouse and was fitted with a 24" fan, and 2 heaters. It didn't take long to figure out that the fan was useless in cooling. Air had to go through water to cool so a evaporated cooler was on the menu.

The most important fact was to run a greenhouse north to south. The reason in that as the sun moves across the sky, you can have both sunny and shady areas in the greenhouse without hot spots.

When I started the first year, I had no idea how hot it gets in the greenhouse over the summer. All I can think of was all that sun and growing space, unlike my house. And I lived in Nebraska zone 4. A fan was not enough. I used lots of shading material on the west side, and an evaporated cooler on the North side of the greenhouse. Most people starting out don't realize how hot it gets---too hot for plants in the summer.

My daughter bought a small 8x 6 ft from Harbor Freight and had the same problem. She uses it to start seedlings in the spring and over the summer, grows potted tomatoes, shading the west, running a moving fan and leaving the door open.

Karen. Wyoming and Nebraska are very windy. We can get 60 mph gusts. My son-in-law had to do a lot of work to prevent her greenhouse from blowing away. HF greenhouses are too lightweight for windy climates.

Just my 2 cents worth for anyone either buying or own a greenhouse to keep in mind for Summer 2016.

Photo inside my greenhouse. Never took a photo of the outside for some reason.


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Jan 6, 2016 3:40 PM CST
Name: Karen
New Mexico (Zone 8a)
Region: New Mexico Region: Arizona Region: Ukraine Cactus and Succulents Plant Identifier Plays in the sandbox
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I also found they get super hot inside, even with vents and fans! The hottest mine was this last summer was 103 F. Ideally I'd like a small evaporative cooler.

Thanks for the info on wind and the HF GH. We also get gusts like that, so we should probably build our own, or find another inexpensive one.
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Jan 6, 2016 7:06 PM CST
Name: Ric Sanders
Dover, Pa. (Zone 6b)
And his children Are his flowers ..
Birds Seed Starter Keeper of Poultry Ponds Region: Pennsylvania Greenhouse
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Pippi, most of us using HFGHs have an interior frame built from EMT to help strengthen them. That and a brace across the front and rear wall make them very stable. Mine has been modified far beyond that and does well in high winds.
Ric of MAF @ DG
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