Hi guys
I’ve got a bunch of kitchen scraps I’ve been starting. The goal is to use them in smoothies. Spinach, mizuna, komatsuna , bok choy. I’ve started them in pots near my house for ease. So far the bok choy are doing fantastic, and the spinach are really struggling.
This week will get typically highs of 10 in the afternoon, lows of 1° at night. It will only get colder, bottoming out in February, maybe lows of -5° or so at night if we’re lucky. Should never get below -10.
Fairly good amount of sun in the daytime.
I just set up plastic bags over each planter with a bunch of holes punched in them. I’m not crazy about these, as they make it too humid and risk of over cooking (although I think I got that solved with all the holes). We can get fairly strong winds here, and they’ve held up all right so far.
Is there a better way? I’m thinking cloth covers are going to obstruct too much sunlight, and provide not enough heat retention.
I don’t want something that requires fiddling with it twice a day. Minimal maintenance.
It would be a bit of work, but I could build a large cover that would open and close automatically with a thermostat.
Is this even worth all the hassle? With the exception of the bok choy (which I expect to slow as it cools), the growth has been glacial. Am I going to have to wait four months before I can harvest any of this stuff?
Thanks
I grow greens all late fall, winter, spring… in a hot bed that I setup on the south side of my home… harvest gallons and gallons of greens. Early June they start getting buggy and I take them out.
I use a piece of cattle panel bent to form a nice frame to suppore ag fabric (floating row cover)… i use some of the thicker fabriic…
I am in zone 7b TN… and most of that timeframe… i can leave it uncovered… if it is getting down in the 20s… i will cover it with the ag fabric… if colder than that… i will add some old bed sheets or blankets… and on the coldest nights… i simply turn on a string of incadescent outdoor christmas lights.
The last two winters we had lows in the 2-3F range… and my greens survived just fine.
I have started more lettuce from seed during a warm spell in January… and it germinated and grew just fine. A little slower growth in those coldest months but still growth.
We had more salad greens than we could eat for right at 6 months… and gave gallon bags away to family and friends.
Here is what that looks like.
TNHunter
Link to the other post on growing greens all fall winter spring.
TNHunter
Looks great, thanks a lot.
Any idea how long it takes from planting cuttings to be able to start harvesting?
I guess most people just try to protect from freeze rather than boost heat via greenhouse effect etc with a mostly sealed system?
@TheNiceGuy … I plant seeds in my hot bed.
In October here they germinate and and get started just fine. Good germination, good growth.
From mid December to mid Feb here… you have to time it right to get decent germination.
Often after we have a string of very cold nights… it will warm back up for a week or two… we may get mid 60s for highs for several days.
Keep your eye on the 10 day forecast… look for those favorable temps… plant more lettuce or spinach then. I have had very good luck with plantings in Dec Jan and Feb… if timed right.
Ps… my hot bed remains completely uncovered most of the fall winterand spring.
I only cover it when it gets cold… lettuce and spinach can take light frost well… but if I think it is going below freezing… i normally put on my ag fabric layer only.
If they are calling for mid teens… i will add on top of the ag fabric layer… old bed sheets or blankets.
If the forecast is low teeens to 0F… i will put all that stuff on and turn on the incadescent christmas lights.
Any time the temp… gets back above freezing for any significant amount of time… I remove all cover… so they are back to getting full sun and air flow.
Ps that bed of mine is on the south side of my home at the base of a brick wall and the bed slopes to the south… ideal microclimate location.
It is right beside my in ground fig… again finding that ideal microclimate location… very important for both of those.
TNHunter
Last night the forecast was 15F…
I covered with ag fab… and extra bed sheets and blankets…
We actually got 21F hear at my house… and it did not get back above freezing until 930 AM. By 10 AM it was 34F and I took off all covers except the ag fab… and I left it on but opened the ends of the tunnel to allow good air flow.
I do this often when expexting the next night to be below freezing…
But when I see several days in the forecast (not below freezing)… i roll back that ag fab too… so they get full sun.
Note south side of your home gets all day sun. If there is a south slope there… it is amplified.
TNHunter
Looks good. Do you use any fertilizers? Do you do any weeding?