Quick questions about Maine

[Maineac]

Ah, but many of the greenhouses are now built 1.) well below the ground level with proper drainage and 2.) The film is on the inside AND the outside of the frame, creating an air pocket barrier - that makes a huge difference. Add on a hot air gun furnace to keep everything above 38 degrees and you got year-round fahmin.' Just make sure your water line comes in below the frost level.

[Maine Writer]

Originally Posted by OutdoorLover

Amazing what that thin film can do! It's not just the snow and cold - the ground around must be frozen by the New Year? I wonder how cold it gets in there at night?

It freezes up to 12" in but the rest is open and gets watered to keep plants alive. It stays 10-20* warmer inside 36" above the soil at night. The plants are ground level or below ground so it's a little warmer. On a still, sunny day it might reach 80°at 36". Leaves do freeze. I choose varieties that do well in cold weather, always pick the oldest/largest leaves first, and leave the young leaves. Young cell walls are pliable so they don't burst when thawing starts.

I have to keep the soil damp because it collects and holds heat better than when it's dry.

Originally Posted by Maineac

Ah, but many of the greenhouses are now built 1.) well below the ground level with proper drainage and 2.) The film is on the inside AND the outside of the frame, creating an air pocket barrier - that makes a huge difference. Add on a hot air gun furnace to keep everything above 38 degrees and you got year-round fahmin.' Just make sure your water line comes in below the frost level.

I wouldn't mind having a small greenhouse below ground level. I have one layer of 6 mil poly on the tunnel. It does its job. It wouldn't be worth it for me to add heat. The sun does it's thing and plants are fine in the shortest days of the year. I harvest all winter without additional heat so it would be a waste of money.

[Maineac]

Originally Posted by Maine Writer

It freezes up to 12" in but the rest is open and gets watered to keep plants alive. It stays 10-20* warmer inside 36" above the soil at night. The plants are ground level or below ground so it's a little warmer. On a still, sunny day it might reach 80°at 36". Leaves do freeze. I choose varieties that do well in cold weather, always pick the oldest/largest leaves first, and leave the young leaves. Young cell walls are pliable so they don't burst when thawing starts.

I have to keep the soil damp because it collects and holds heat better than when it's dry.


I wouldn't mind having a small greenhouse below ground level. I have one layer of 6 mil poly on the tunnel. It does its job. It wouldn't be worth it for me to add heat. The sun does it's thing and plants are fine in the shortest days of the year. I harvest all winter without additional heat so it would be a waste of money.

Got some tough, lighter poly at Lowe's recently. I THINK it was only 3 mil. Might've been 4, but the 6 just isn't very clear. Wife wanted to see who drove in the yard through the screen porch. I wrap it every year, and when the sun shines its 75 degrees out there. It withstood the windstorm a couple months ago. Saw a cool hoop house made out of 2 x 4's and strapping. 2 x 4 ridge pole, some LONG (or spliced) strapping doubled with 2 x 4 blocks in between and PT 2 x 4 on the ground. Simple, and throw poly both inside and out. Leave one end clear and put a door in the other, with a closeable exhaust vent.

[Maine Writer]

Originally Posted by Maineac

Got some tough, lighter poly at Lowe's recently. I THINK it was only 3 mil. Might've been 4, but the 6 just isn't very clear. Wife wanted to see who drove in the yard through the screen porch. I wrap it every year, and when the sun shines its 75 degrees out there. It withstood the windstorm a couple months ago. Saw a cool hoop house made out of 2 x 4's and strapping. 2 x 4 ridge pole, some LONG (or spliced) strapping doubled with 2 x 4 blocks in between and PT 2 x 4 on the ground. Simple, and throw poly both inside and out. Leave one end clear and put a door in the other, with a closeable exhaust vent.

There's nothing like a warm porch in the winter. The strength of poly is surprising. We got eight years out of a four year poly. Light transmission dropped too much so we replaced it but the poly is still strong. I'll use it to solarize a weedy part of the garden in the spring.

We built a few hoop houses in the beginning but didn't find anything that would hold up to 100+ inches of snow. The steel frames we have now were worth the peace of mind for our winter food supply. Being able to plant tomatoes transplants in April gave me a huge head start for farmers markets and quickly paid for the tunnels.

One of the 1000 sq ft tunnels is now being used for firewood drying and storage. The wind blows through, sun beats down, and the wood sounds tinny in two or three months. The rototillers and wood splitter are also in there. The third (smaller) tunnel is a grape arbor now.

[Maineac]

Ah grapes. We found concord grapes appear immune to the japanese beetles, but all other grapes get destroyed. HUGE concord crop every year, but the others were wiped out by the beetles eating the leaves.

[Maine Writer]

Originally Posted by Maineac

Ah grapes. We found concord grapes appear immune to the japanese beetles, but all other grapes get destroyed. HUGE concord crop every year, but the others were wiped out by the beetles eating the leaves.

I think I've only seen one Japanese beetle. <knocking on every piece of wood in reach even though I'm not superstitious> I learned recently that they're going to be on the decline. There's a virus going through that's already killed a lot and should wipe them out in the next few years. Watch for beetles with unusual spots on them and don't kill them. They're infected and will pass it on to others. I hope they don't get here before they die out. My grapes are young and wouldn't hold up to that kind of attack.