Have you ever heard “3/3/3” can kill
you? Three (3) minutes without air, 3 days without water, and 3 weeks without
food. I sure hope that you will make it beyond this point. If so, one of the most
important long-term issues is food supply. In a real life SHTF/TEOTWAWKI, the
wildlife population will be hunted out in a matter of a few weeks to a few months.
Hunting is a great skill to have, but only until the wildlife is decimated.
Prepping
is simply preparing for the future by taking precautions against potential
risk. Whether it is on a grand scale or on a small scale, year round food is
the ultimate in long term prepping. It is also healthy in our every day lives
to have fresh grown foods. I started out this winter on a quest to build a
green house. While the construction went easy, and without many hiccups, this
write up is to demonstrate some of the do’s and don’ts that I have learned by
trial and error.
I planned
to kill two birds with one stone by placing a 55-gallon barrel elevated off the
ground, use it as a gravity fed drip irrigation system, and help keep the green
house warm.
The irrigation portion of it worked really
well but I was also hoping that during the day the water and the barrel would
heat up and radiate heat over night warming the greenhouse. During the day,
even in Texas
cold weather, the greenhouse heats up nicely, however it does not hold the heat
well at night. In theory, it was a brilliant plan, and the temperature of the
water in the barrel stayed warm, but was not enough to radiate sufficient heat
overnight.
A simple
space heater would do the trick; however, it needs to be adjustable. A handy
product from http://www.thermocube.com offers several small outlets that
have a build-in thermostat. The TC-3 will help keep your green house from
freezing. You can run power to your greenhouse, and use this inexpensive device
to plug your space heater in. The device automatically turns on the heater and
turns off at various built in temperatures. Unfortunately, I did not find out
about this device until after the greenhouse froze over. I have yet to use it
during the summer months where getting too hot is a concern.
Now you might ask, why not use a garden
hose and/or a sprinkler. A garden hose is an excellent way to irrigate. It
allows you to water when needed and convenience of not having to purchase
additional equipment. Some things to consider if thinking about using a water
hose is the proximity of the greenhouse location to the hose itself. In
addition, if you are planning to use a hose in the winter months, you might
want to think of an alternative. In the winter months, the "tap"
water can be near freezing temperature (and scalding hot in the summer). Plants
do not like cold showers as much as people do not, so the rain barrel is the
route that I went. I can fill up the barrel when it is getting low and during
the day, the sun will help warm the water so it is not as cold. I have thought
about doing my own rain catchments, but right now, the greenhouse is not large
enough to warrant it especially in the winter months when watering is less
needed then in the heat of summer. A ceiling mounted sprinkler is an option I
gave a lot of thought to, but it too would be cold the winter and hot in the
summer. It would also get the entire greenhouse wet, not just the plants.
As I
mentioned before, irrigation was simple. I constructed a simple stand that
would support a 55gal drum at a downward angle to assist in the flow of water.
At my local farm supply store, I found a complete drip irrigation system for
about 30$. Assembled and attached to the drum and voila’, simple adjustable
irrigation. It took some close monitoring and adjustment to get the flow just
right. I ended up setting each drip valve at its near lowest setting and
manually turn the valve on in the evening and let it run overnight. Due to the
mechanics of a greenhouse, the humidity should stay relatively high, so only
water when necessary. Over watering can, be as bad as under watering.
www.howtospecialist.com/garden/greenhouse/how-to-build-a-small-greenhouse/
MATERIALS:
1.
SIDES
a.
2 pieces of 2×4 lumber – 120”
b.
2 pieces – 113”
c.
10 pieces – 85”
2.
ENDS
a.
2 pieces of 2×4 lumber – 80” long
b.
1 piece – 96”
c.
1 piece – 65”
3.
ROOF
a.
1 piece of 2×6 – 120” 1
b.
8 pieces of 2×4 lumber – 40 ¾”
4.
DOOR
a.
2 pieces of 2×4 – 32”
b.
2 pieces – 73”
c.
1 pieces – 25”
5.
TOTAL
a.
(5) 10’ 2x4s
b.
(21) 8’ 2x4s
I hate Moles and Gophers. I wish
there was an easy way to get rid of them (JR Ray comment: that would be a post
worth reading). I believe they can smell plants and are drawn to it like a
vulture is to fresh road kill. Multiple products on the market can, and will temporarily
rid your greenhouse of these annoying rodents. The electronic deterrent
devices, flat out do not work. Do not even waste your money. Traps and poisons
are the only sure fire way to get rid of these guys, but traps are dangerous to
family pets, and to you when placing them. Poisons are just that, poison. I
would not want to trust a poison and the possibility of it getting into my plants,
and or ME! However, there is a better solution. Moles will typically dig down
to about 40 inches deep. If I could do it all over again, (and I probably will),
I would purchase or find a few pieces of corrugated tin or plastic or plywood.
Rip it into lengths of about four feet wide and as long as each side of the
greenhouse. Then dig them down and place vertically in the ground so the top of
it just barely sticks up out of the soil and butts up to the greenhouse. The
other alternative to this would be to build raised beds within the greenhouse
itself. If you are like me, you like to use what you have on hand. Some of you
may have the wood to build raised beds, or the material to quarantine off four
feet deep around your greenhouse. Either way, this is sure to almost eliminate
your problem. (JR Ray comment: Using a
narrow ditch witch to dig a trench around the green house as deep as possible
and pouring it full of concrete should help).
Crop
rotation and planning is important to a consistent harvest. Like me, you may
choose to can some of your goods. Planning is going to be an integral part of
your crops. For instance, lettuce is not something that keeps for extended
periods. Therefore, I started ten seedpods, ten to fourteen days later I
started another ten pods. As I harvest lettuce, I replace them. Other plants
can carry the same concept, zucchini, squash, eggplant etc. (JR Ray
comment: Look for ever-bearing plants
that continue to produce like Okra rather than a climax variety that puts out
then dies)
While your
experience may differ from mine, I hope that this has given you a few things to
consider with your greenhouse.
J Loy
For additional
information see the following links:
