Blue Ridge Gardener

Yesterday I took some time in the garden to clean up and get ready for the rest of the summer season.  

• I weeded the beds that had been flooded on Sunday and gave the soil around the plants some breathing space.  This involved using a hoe, some hand weeding and some muscles.  This is totally different than working in the Square Foot Garden beds.
• I spent a little time thinning in the SFG beds (minutes).  I like this system very much.  I have excellent, organized stands of vegetables in the square foot sections.  It is very easy to spot unwanted seedlings, and there is a full stand of each vegetable.  The system just seems too easy to be true.
• I disassembled the hoophouse and stored it for the fall.  Based on weather forecasts and and best estimates, I will not need to use the hoop house until around September.  Rather than leaving it up and having to move it on a regular basis to till and cut grass, I have stored it for the summer.  It served its purpose well and will become an even bigger part of the garden next fall/winter/spring.  It will need some repairs and adjustments, but overall, it is in very good shape.  It withstood all of the elements and will be ready for another season.

Last night the wind picked up in the neighborhood because the shingles were rattling.  It sounds like an animal on the roof, but from experience, it is just the gusting of wind.

I figured i would awake to see plastic hanging in the trees and my hoophouse in shambles.  I was pleasantly surprised.  It was in one piece (figuratively speaking) and in good condition.  I came home to check at lunch and found it in the same condition.

I put my inside/outside thermometer to work this afternoon and found that the hoop house, without end walls attached, raises the air temperature inside about 15-20 degrees.  The outside air temperature was about 42 this afternoon (chilly by my standards) and the air in the green house was 62 degrees in a bright sun, and 57 degrees with a little overcast.  I will be able to check maximum/minimum temperatures as well.

Tonight we are supposed to see the thermometer go down below 30–I am planning to get the ends on the house before dark.  I’ll post some stats tomorrow.

They are calling for below freezing temperatures on Monday night here in Haywood Countty. So far, all of my green crops have survived the patchy frosts, but I am not sure how the garden will fare with some below 30 degree temperatures. I have been planning for a hoop house since August. The weather forecast made me get my act together this weekend.

I built A 10 X 12 ft. structure that is sturdy enough for a light wind (my garden has a stand of trees blocking winds on one side, a house on the other and my neighbor’s storage shed to the west. I may be in trouble if a storm comes from the east, but I have some wind protection from my storage shed.

Here is a basic list of materials: