Hoop House Survives The First Hard Frost
A look at what happened in the gardens and inside the hoop house after the first hard frost of the autumn on October 7, 2011.
21 Responses to Hoop House Survives The First Hard Frost
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A look at what happened in the gardens and inside the hoop house after the first hard frost of the autumn on October 7, 2011.
Thank you. They are earwig traps made out of bundles of drinking straws. I need to add more tape to make them darker inside. Earwigs hide in them in the daytime and you shake them out into soapy water which will kill them.
dalecalder2003
September 2, 2012 at 4:24 am
Dale, what are the little bundles of white things wrapped with what appears to be duct tape laying on the top of the raised bed in several places? I am really enjoying your videos, I am working my way through them from the beginning now. I especially enjoy the ‘chick flicks’. Thanks.
islandhomesteader
September 2, 2012 at 5:19 am
No I don’t have any heat at all. You should be fine especially with cool weather crops.
dalecalder2003
September 2, 2012 at 5:58 am
Dale,
Do you have a source of heat in your hoop house? If not, I think im going to be ok with no heat. It rarely gets into the 30s down here much less 20s.
itsjustdeb579
September 2, 2012 at 6:32 am
@luvintherawlife You’re welcome, glad you found it useful.
dalecalder2003
September 2, 2012 at 7:19 am
The hoop house is still doing great. It’s getting colder everyday now but still no more frost forecast. I brought the pepper cuttings in the house today and put them in front of the glass door, hope a little warmth might help. The hoop house is so far form the house it would take a very long cord and it is such a large high space I doubt if it would do much good. Next time frost is forecast I plan to cover as much as I can with row cover to see if that might help.
dalecalder2003
September 2, 2012 at 8:00 am
Hooray, things still look good in your hoop house. Outside, it’s a different story for sure. I’m guessing the hoop house will really extend you season. Stick with those pepper cuttings, mine took a long time and were looking pretty pathetic but ended up just fine. Could you put a small heater in the hoop house just to keep the temp above freezing?
Regards, Gary
garygardens
September 2, 2012 at 8:18 am
Its OK here and at the new house but the floods are affecting a lot of the country and more rain every day flooding more areas. The end is no where in sight.
lifeinthailand
September 2, 2012 at 9:05 am
We had the one cold night then it was like summer for a week almost 30 degrees. Cooling of a bit now rain for tomorrow but no frost in the forecasts.
dalecalder2003
September 2, 2012 at 9:10 am
Can’t believe I missed this 1…frost already…it was cool early last week here, nice until rain today then not bad 4 next week….fall colours r almost over.
ttitanic121
September 2, 2012 at 9:30 am
It sure does I’ve already had a lot of food out of it and I’ve only had it a couple of months. I’m sure the frost will take it soon but I can hardly wait to start using it again in the early spring or late winter. Our news is talking about the flood preparations in Bangkok how is the situation where you are?
dalecalder2003
September 2, 2012 at 10:13 am
A little plastic makes a world of difference.
lifeinthailand
September 2, 2012 at 10:35 am
That’s why I’m going to try this our coldest day last winter was minus 21 a friend in Spain who’s sister lives in Switzerland has a fig loaded with fruit this year and they had lots of snow and minus 17 last winter. I’m not sure if it being in a large pot will make a difference or not. Maybe after it goes dormant I should try to see if I can dig down deep enough in there to plant it right in the ground.
dalecalder2003
September 2, 2012 at 10:56 am
For what it’s worth…my fig tree survived 3 weeks of -20C last year, I was amazed. That’s not a guarantee, more a ray of hope…maybe. LOL.
baconsoda
September 2, 2012 at 11:45 am
LOL Strawberries , herbs, self-seeded perennial flowers, weeds and a few blades of grass. I often tell people I don’t have a lawn just green stuff that I mow.
dalecalder2003
September 2, 2012 at 11:48 am
I just love your lawn, it’s all strawberries!
Helioforge
September 2, 2012 at 12:32 pm
I’m going to pick the last of my tomatoes this week too I just want to get the plants out of the hoop house so I can build two more raised beds to have it ready for spring. I’m bringing in one of my figs for insurance and can’t decide if I should wrap the other one or not to help it through if that is possible. We have such extended cold periods and the sun is so low in the sky for the first part of the winter that without a supplemental heat source I doubt if the chills would live.
dalecalder2003
September 2, 2012 at 12:50 pm
Just had another thought. I saw a lady on ‘buntysblog’ build a small, insulated room in her polytunnel to grow stuff in Winter. I am going to adopt her idea and use fleece and bubblewrap to wrap up my chilli plants and polystyrene sheets to protect them up in the greenhouse. I’ll fire up a video when I think this through more. Maybe you could organise some sort of affair to ‘double glaze’ your fig and chilli? I am also bringing a chilli into the house for insurance reasons, LOL.
baconsoda
September 2, 2012 at 1:35 pm
AH HA! My cunning plan to sabotage you is working! However, the guy whose cunning plan it was to sabotage me is also working! Yeah, my tomatoes are on the way out. I noticed, today, that some are rotting at the part where they connect to the truss so I’m going to pull them off and make more green tomato chutney. But, I do think removing the leaves did help speed up the ripening process.
Best Wishes, Brendan.
baconsoda
September 2, 2012 at 1:53 pm
Yes without the hoop house the garden would be finished until next May, I’m not sure how long it will survive in the hoop house, time will tell.
dalecalder2003
September 2, 2012 at 2:50 pm
Wow that cane in a rush didn’t it! Good to see that the hoop house has paid for itself already 🙂 I guess without it, you would have a lot more damage. Your cabbages look great! I planted lots of seeds but seem to only have 1 🙁
Watsamadoing
September 2, 2012 at 2:54 pm