The Mobile Greenhouse

Next weekend the first plants (peppers) will be going into the greenhouse. This was difficult to believe last week, because we had a cold snap that was below zero for most of it. We burned through almost an entire face cord of wood. But yesterday it snapped, and today it was up over 40. I was able to work outside.

So there was some urgency today to getting the greenhouse into shape to receive them. 

These little cheap greenhouses are readily available. We have two of them. But they disappointed in their utility. 

The biggest problem is that they go together easily, but come apart just as easily. This makes them really, really difficult to move. 

Yesterday I used an epoxy that will bind plastic and metal to lock the greenhouse together, making it markedly less flimsy.

Today I locked it down to a roller cart that I built. The T-5 fluorescents are fired up and wired in

Last year was especially bad. I started plants on time, but I had them in my guitar room on the north side of the house where they had to rely mostly on fluorescent lighting. The seedlings were weak and leggy.

This year, I am hoping to roll them in front of the southwest facing patio door in my office. I can tuck it in close to my desk when I need to use the door, or I can roll it into full sunshine, and, when the time comes, pick it up and roll it onto the patio to harden off the seedlings. 

I still want to place handles on it for lifting it around, especially for the hardening off process. But I didn't have the right hardware, so that will have to wait. 

Because the fallout from the federal government being decimated by an imbecile billionaire has yet to settle, I thought it would be a good idea to purchase seeds while we can. I placed a second order with Seed Savers Exchange. We now have what we need for the summer. I am hoping to share these with friends, because it seems like we always have many extra seeds. I made a point of buying the heirloom varieties from a trusted source this year. I'd like for next year's seeds to be harvested from this year's plants, decoupling us a little bit from the marketplace.

We will be growing more squash, pumpkins, and root vegetables this summer to maximize the calories we can harvest. I've purchased a vacuum sealer to extend the life of our veg. (Any seeds we do end up with, we can vacuum seal and freeze.) We may attempt canning this year.

It feels like the beginning of COVID. Too much is uncertain right now. We are fortifying our stockpiles. Bad things are already happening. But getting a strong start on the garden, that's something we can control. So we are.