The Greenhouse
Motivation
In planning a homestead, one should consider their source of food. Trading other goods or services from other growers or offset your needs with a garden, orchard, vineyard, etc…
PRO
Prolong growing season.
Protection from extreme weather.
Storage for tools and equipment.
Microclimate control.
Pest control.
CON
Price.
Time to build.
Pollination.
Using tree space.
Limit production.
This is a hoop-style greenhouse that I set up on my property. I had to get creative with where to put it, and settled on a north-south orientation. The open field to the south allows the wind to flow through my property and give the least amount of cross-sectional area to catch wind. I reinforced the structure with a base frame made of 4x4 pressure treated lumber, and secured the greenhouse to the frame with conduit clamps. The frame was anchored to the ground with 16 - 12” screw style ground anchors. I wrapped the areas where the bolt heads were exposed and rubbed against the plastic with scraps of felt. The rear of the structure was further reinforced with a 4x4 train-style stopblock to deal with the constant wind. It had held up well, even in extreme weather with winds that reached 60 MPH.
The nail in the coffin was the floor. After spring storms dumped several inches of rain the floor became mushy and perilous to walk on. Adding inches of gravel could have helped, but there were other issues as well. The zipper doors easily wore out after about 2 months. The seams of the plastic were also coming apart from freying, perhaps from wind and the structure shaking often in the wind. The high heat in such a short tunnel also scorched most of the plants. The cheap/thin metal rods would not allow for hanging other plants from them, but I can recycle those.
Version 1 (pre-website)
I was browsing the internet looking for greenhouse ideas. I like the simplicity of using 1 inch PVC and bending to form hoop styled greenhouses.They are not too expensive either, but I was looking for something a little more traditional. I eventually found a deal on some generic looking ones that measured 9’(width) x 26’(length) and were roughly 7’ tall in the middle and thought I would give them a try.
This structure seemed to work well for a while. I was able to use a swamp cooler and open various “windows” to allow for airflow and cooling.
The Downfall
The frame to secure the greenhouse would get in the way, having to step over, and would not allow a cart to enter. This made moving plants and supplies into and out of the greenhouse a pain.
Oh Hail No! I was surprised at how well the plastic held up to the various hail storms the first spring. Only a dozen or so holes were found that I patched with greenhouse tape.
