Time out from the greenhouse project

I’m in the middle of a rare stretch where I am more away than I am home. Being a home-body backyard project recluse and all, this is killing me.

Lucky there is enough time to get things finished and cleaned up in time for family arriving for Christmas…

Or was it Thanksgiving?

Both? Oh yeah… (oops.)

(to Mrs cohutt: Yes dear, I know have a lot of work to do by next Thursday. I’ll find a way. heh..)

Anyway… the greenhouse is doing its job just fine so far. Granted, it hasn’t been so horribly cold yet, although we did have two nights in the 20s last week.

But already I am noticing some things I really hadn’t stopped to think about.

First, the humidity is much higher inside vs the colder autumn air outside. This means more consistent soil moisture and less transpiration, which already has made quite a difference in the growth rate of the plants inside.

Also, the structure provides shelter for the plants from the winds that have been kicking up as the autumn air cools. Of course this helps with moisture as well- both for retention in the soil and again slowing the rate of transpiration directly from the plants.

Examples:

Broccoli: Tonight I cut two of the largest heads I have seen so far in my 3 seasons of fall gardening:

Sugar Snap Peas: The plants outside have been hunkering down in the winds and have done ok, but the plants inside have gone wild… they are upright, touching the ceiling and covered in blooms. During the two weeks spent under some degree of cover they have left the outside plants behind.

(Also note the water drops on the surface of the cover. I assumed this was on the outside since it had rained a little earlier in the day. As I found out when I thumped the surface above me, it was definitely condensation on the inside of the greenhouse.)