 |
| Extend Your Growing Season |
|
| Our growing season is
pretty short but there are ways to add precious weeks to the beginning
and end of the season. Season extenders can be relatively expensive,
like a full-size, walk-in greenhouse, or they can be "free" items you
already have on hand like sheets, blankets, or buckets.
My favorite season extenders are Wall-O-Water miniature greenhouses.
They're reusable for many years, and even come with repair kits in case
they spring a leak. They provide plant protection up to two months
before the last spring frost. My tomatoes love these!
Another alternative
is to build a cloche over each row. Cloches are miniature hoop houses
made with a series of tubing hooped over a row every few feet, then
plastic sheeting is placed over the hoops. This is an inexpensive way to
give vegetables and annuals a head start.
Hot caps are
dome-shaped, lightweight covers for individual plants. With a wax paper
appearance, they are stackable for easy storage, and are inexpensive.
Put a vent hole in the top of each cap so seedlings don't become
overheated, or remove the cap on hot sunny days.
To learn more about these season extenders and others, click here.
|
