The Greenhouse Thread

[48k]

TLDR: I have no idea what I'm doing. Please help.

I think middle age has hit me and I finally have to admit it. First the Aston Martin, now....the greenhouse!

I love cooking and suddenly got the urge to grow stuff to eat. Zero interest in pretty flowers and all that jazz, but having barely kept alive potted herbs from the supermarket one too many times I bit the bullet and bought a greenhouse, because obviously growing stuff from scratch is so much easier and simpler than just buying what you need.

Don't have a massive amount of space so ordered a little 6x4 kit just after Christmas and over a few weekends froze my knuckles off putting it together.







Being a geek, naturally the first thing to install was a bluetooth thermometer and hydrometer.



Added bubble wrap and a 135W bar heater (powered from an outdoor electric extension screwed to the side of the shed) just to keep the morning frost away.





I have an automatic vent opener and automatic drip feel waterer thing to set up along with the water butt when the weather gets properly better.

So to business. Got some staging and a propagator. Mrs 48K bought me some seeds for Christmas (who says romance is dead) so my beginners greenhouse starter kit consists of: tomatoes, cucumber, spring onions, chillis, carrots, broccoli, kalettes, onion, beetroot and lettuce. Of those, the tomatoes, cucumber spring onion and chilli say sow in Feb under glass so that's where I'm starting.

Toms and cucumber are in the propagator at 24 degrees. I've chucked in a dying supermarket basil, mint and rosemary from the kitchen to see if the greenhouse can rescue them.



Due to lack of room in the propagator I've had to put the spring onions and chillis in the lounge to start off.

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According to the packets, green stuff should start appearing in 7-21 days. What can possibly go wrong?

Hoping that the greenhouse experts on PH will pitch in with help/advice/inspiration so please post your greenhouse pics / tips / successes and learnings here!

[48k]

Have I left it too late to start garlic ?

[48k]

Greenhouse day 7. Green things appearing!

[48k]

Skyedriver said:

48k said:

Have I left it too late to start garlic ?

Hope not, I've got some to go in

I was reading up and all the info was saying autumn/winter sowing. What have you got and how are you sowing it? Really would like to get some going if I can.

[48k]

Pheo said:

If it really is 37c that’s too hot - everything will bolt/go leggy the light levels aren’t high enough yet.

I’d set it to 12c max, and you need to make sure it’s vented.

I started garlic about now last year and did ok but I’d get on with it right away.

Edited by Pheo on Sunday 24th February 20:24

I've never seen 37 degrees. 34 is the max I've seen (assuming the reading is accurate) at that was at lunchtime today with the sun shining directly on the GH. I opened the door to lower the ambient temp. The average temp inside the GH over the last week according to the readings has been 14 degrees.

The propagator is set to 24 degrees as that's what the packet of seeds said. I've opened the vents now that green things are starting to appear. I've read references to "bolting" / "going leggy" - what does that jargon mean?

Any recommendations for what garlic to try? I assume you need something that works in our climate you can't just buy a bit of garlic from the supermarket.

[48k]

I've got a bit of south facing garden that I marked some beds out in today, they definitely also fall in to the "I have no idea what I'm doing" category.

This is the remaining selection of my Christmas present from Mrs 48K

[48k]

Day 10 and cucumbers (in the lounge), tomatoes and spring onions (greenhouse) are poking out over the compost. Just the chilli (in the lounge) yet to awaken.

Is the next stage to take individual green shoots and put them in to their own pots? Is that called "potting on"? How do I know when they are ready for that?

Greenhouse temp has been showing massive swings due to the unseasonal weather:

[48k]

C0ffin D0dger said:

Skyedriver said:

48k said:

Have I left it too late to start garlic ?

Hope not, I've got some to go in

With garlic they say it's best to get it in during autumn as the frost helps the process that turns a clove of garlic into a bulb. But you can plant it now also, might work, might not, but that's the thing with gardening. It can be frustrating at times!

I've ordered some garlic from the farm on the IoW but I think it will be too late when it arrives. Will give it a go anyway, nothing ventured and all that.

[48k]

S6PNJ said:

What bluetooth thermometer and hygrometer are you using? Does it store the temps/humidity and then download them once you 'bluetooth' to it or is it constantly transmitting and you have a bluetooth receiver connected to an old phone/computer/tablet etc in your home?

I'm using a Govee monitor - this one: https://www.amazon.co.uk/Thermometer-Hygrometer-Bl...

It connects to my phone when in range and downloads the data on demand. Seems to work ok. The only niggle I have with it is that I can't seem to change the display on the unit to C from F so if I'm in the GH I have to check my phone to see what the temperature is as my brain doesn't work in old money.

[48k]

Jambo85 said:

48k said:

Is the next stage to take individual green shoots and put them in to their own pots? Is that called "potting on"? How do I know when they are ready for that?

Pretty much yes. I think there are some rules of thumb for when is the right time but I can't remember them, and most things tend to survive no matter when you do it... I just do it when it suits me, and ideally before too much in the way of roots are established otherwise you cause a lot of damage and set them back.

Something you can do when potting on is to bury anything which has gotten leggy down deeper. Limits the leggyness and should improve its roots as well so win/win.

Handle seedlings by the leaves not the stem - it's counter intuitive at first but they can grow new leaves, they can't grow new stems.

Thanks. Do I pot on in to the same type of compost or am I supposed to use a different type / add fertilizer etc.

Sorry for the daft questions but I really do have no idea what I'm doing.

[48k]

Day 12 in the "my first greenhouse" experience. Spring onions are sprouting manically - these are actually in the lounge by the south facing window not in the greenhouse. How do I know when it's time to pot them on?

Cucumbers and tomatoes poked leaves out but are all lying down on the compost - is that called leggy? Have they got too wet? There is a lot of condensation on the inside of the popagator even with the vents open.

No sign of the peppers at all. They were in the lounge next to the spring onions but have swapped them with the toms in the greenhouse so they spend some time in the propagator.

This is supposed to be fun but I'm finding it hugely frustrating and I'm barely two weeks in .

[48k]

OK here's what I'm dealing with.

Propagator in the greenhouse:


- toms have been there since the start (10 days ago) and almost all the little shoots are limp and lying on the compost. Have they got too wet? Is it game over?
- Peppers on the right have been in the lounge for 7 days and done nothing, so have moved to the propagator. One of the four things I am growing said on the packet 7-21 days to germinate so I'm guessing (hoping!) it's these. Not panicing yet.

Lounge ("sunny" south facing window)


Spring onions have been there since the start (10 days ago) and are going well (too well?). Is it time to do something with them?
Cucumbers started out in the propagator in the greenhouse but all the shoots were lying on the compost - again I'm worried I've got them too wet so I've moved them to here to try and rescue them.

Any advice / help gratefully received!

[48k]

No lids on the trays in the lounge. Should I get some? There's a lid on the propagator in the greenhouse I just took it off for the photo. Have given those two a drop of water tonight.

The compost is "Miracle Grow All Purpose Enriched". I'll keep an eye out for seeding compost for my next adventure, thanks.

[48k]

Thanks for the tips chaps. Regarding starting early - of all the seed packets I got for Christmas I started with the ones that had "sow in February under glass" on the calendar on the back. Might need to get a beefier heater for the GH, the one in there was to keep the frost off , lowest temp in there has been 8 degrees. Will look up vermiculite and seed compost. What worried me about the toms and cucumbers were that they have sprouted but are "lying down" on the compost and look limp and wet so I was wondering if they'd got too humid in the propagator.
Thanks for the advice all good learning experience.

[48k]

How the heck do you sow the seeds individually? They are microscopic. I'm guessing my technique of shaking them along in a few parallel lines was not one of my better ideas :-))

[48k]

A few days in the propagator seems to have rescued some toms - this morning I've got a few stalks appeared and standing to attention not flopped on to the compost.

Also peppers have appeared!



The cucumbers look a bit more sorry for themselves still. Am going to get some seed compost this morning when the garden centre is open and try another batch.

[48k]

See that's just showing off

[48k]

Cucumbers v2.
Upgrade includes:
- seeds planted individually
- in something called "John Innes Number 1 young plant compost"
- in a heated propagator from the start

[48k]

That's impressive!

I love that there is a chilli called Ring of Fire

My garlic arrived from the Isle of Wight today. Probably too late but I'm going to give it a go.

[48k]

Spring onions have now got this far:



Is this the stage to move them to individual pots or do they need to grow more in the tray?

Peppers have appeared. Toms looking like they went the same way as the cucumbers so like those I'll do version 2 with individual cells and my newly discovered seed compost.



Garlic arrived yesterday the instructions say this variety can be sown till March 3 cloves to a 7" pot so will give that a go and see what happens.