It’s that time of year when I try to push the gardening limits with winter ending and spring starting. The greenhouse is getting final cleaning to prepare it for the real season that will begin soon. And hot houses and cold frames will appear in the backyard. Living in a zone 5 climate you learn to push your growing season.
photo credit: forestgladesiwander

As I was gathering up my materials for a Straw Bale Cold Frame I was also thinking of additional garden spaces for this summer. So I decided to try a method of using the Straw Bale Cold Frame to start my plants and then arrange it so that the cold frame would become a square Straw Bale Garden later in the season. I made sure my location for the cold frame was one where I would want a mini small space garden all season and began laying it out.

I placed four large straw bales in a square shape and put the bales in an area with a bit of a slant. This will catch the sun at a southwestern angle. I then placed cardboard inside on the ground to kill the grass. Next I put a large amount of rotted manure in the square and topped with more straw. Once again I put a smaller layer of manure and a layer of straw, Finally I topped with compost. My Straw Bale Cold Frame has a 2-foot filling and has space for the seedling to grow.

I watered the Straw Bale Cold Frame and put a 3-½ foot by 3-½ foot window on top of the bales. These windows were from an old trailer that was being torn down so I hauled them away for free. What I like about them is that they have a lever to open the windows. This will give me a way to supply fresh air to the cold frame and cool the air on a warmer day.

I will let this sit a few days them plant it with spring crops such as lettuce, cabbage, spinach and onions. Normally I would use black plastic and clear milk jugs in this cold frame to help heat the frame naturally, but the manure should supply the heat I need. This is almost a hot house set up. 
photo credit: faeryboots

My plan is to use the Straw Bale Cold Frame for the early spring season then when the regular planting season arrives  fill the straw bale square with more manure. I think this will make a perfect garden for melons or for gourds, both of which need plenty of fertilizer. I plant to add poles inside the straw bales for the plants to grow vertically on.

I also will  add flowers or vegetables to the straw bales by planting them directly into the bales. This will add more decoration to the yard and make more use of the space. Time will tell if I decide to plant flower or vegetables, but I think this will make a fun mini small space garden for my backyard.

Technorati Tags: small space garden, straw bale cold frame, straw bale gardening

The solar heated greenhouse is up and running. It’s not totally solar heated but I get enough heat with my creative heating techniques to get my vegetables and perennials going and with a few more tricks I heat the greenhouse in mini climate area areas until the temperatures become more consistent in NW PA. With the price of heating it pays to experiment.
photo credit: quinn.anya

Today I started my tomato and pepper plants. Normally you start both of these plants six to eight weeks before your last frost but I like large plants to set out and I trade my plants for perennials so I start my plants now and use the tomato and pepper re-potting method. In my growing zone you normally plant your tomatoes and pepper plants from May 15 to 31. Even in May its wise to be prepared for a late frost and cover you more tender plants at night.
photo credit: rudy.kleysteuber

I also collected more milk jugs from friends and family to fill with water and lined another wall of my greenhouse and one side of the mini greenhouse I setup inside the larger greenhouse. The smaller greenhouse is for my perennials that are requiring a little more heat to grow and this should supply the extra heat needed.

Milk jug solar heating has been my primary heating source in the greenhouse for four or five years but I have to admit this winter has challenged the heating. I may have to break down and add a small electrical heater if this cold doesn’t break soon.

My first batch of perennial plants that I am raising from seed are now 3 inches tall. I will move them into the smaller portable plastic greenhouse I put up inside the larger greenhouse and start a new crop of perennial seeds. I have been giving my perennial seeds a cold treatment in the refrigerator as shock treatment to force them to germinate and wake up earlier than they normally would. My first group of herbs are also doing well.

I also have three batches of compost brewing in the back of the greenhouse. They should be ready in a week, just in time for another round of seed planting.

As spring nears I am slowly starting my plants, perennials and herbs first. Next will be flower that require a longer seed starting period, then on to the regular seeds that take six to eight weeks to be ready to set out in the gardens. It feels great to be back out in the greenhouse playing in soil and making plans for the new gardening season.

Technorati Tags: greenhouses, milk jugs, solar heated greenhouse, starting seeds, transplanting plants

Auctions are fun. You meet great people and find great deals. And one of the most unique auctions I went to was a local greenhouse auction. Due to illness the greenhouse had a huge auction and deleted their inventory.

As I would like to start a gardening business I headed up to look for bargains. And what bargains I found. I came home with a car so packed I hardly had room to steer the vehicle.

My purchases included 12 bushes, more than 88 perennial plants, strawberry plants, seven flats of annuals, vines, vegetables plants, and 4 hanging planters. And I purchased all of this for 84 dollars.

There was a festive air at the auction with plant and nature lovers selecting plants, shrubs and trees for their yards and gardens. The crowd numbered more than 300 people at first and getting to some of the areas for bidding could be challenging. The perennials seemed to draw the largest crowds.

Bringing home this many plants at one time created quite a rush at my house. I used a trench method for a few of the plants to at least give them a temporary home and rototilled up a new area for the perennials until the fall when I will give then a permanent home.

The strawberry garden goes in tomorrow. I had to make sure the ground was properly prepared for strawberries so that they will grow well and stay healthy. I also built a raised circular bed out of foraged bricks for the strawberries. The vegetables have been planted and the annuals have been potted up for a garden sale.

At this time of year you will find garden centers and greenhouses having end of season sales. It’s a great time to pick up perennials and extra pots for next year.