February's Greenhouse Tips
Owning, using, and enjoying your own greenhouse can be fun and relaxing - but there are still "Things To Do" to keep it clean, healthly, and usable. For each month of the year we have gathered useful greenhouse tips and information from our customers, employees and friends like you to help you get even more enjoyment from your greenhouse.
We've gathered these greenhouse tips from a variety of sources, much of it has been over the years and is not known. Please feel free to send us some of your own ideas.
Lets talk salad!!
It may seem far off now, but warmer days will soon be upon us. That gives us limited time to cultivate cool weather crops. This month is a good time to start some cool weather crops of lettuce, broccoli, and radish seeds.
Lettuce - Plant lettuce seeds in rich, well-drained soil and near the surface where they can get a little light (this helps trigger germination). Since lettuce has such shallow roots, transplanting can be cumbersome so plant lettuce in large container (why transplant if you donít have to?). Plant leaf lettuce and expect a crop in 50 to 80 days. According to The Greenhouse Gardeners Companion, a leaf lettuce variety called ìgreen iceî is well suited for growing in greenhouses. HINT: Plant sweet alyssum between lettuce rows to attract predatory insects that feed on aphids.
Radish - Plant radishes about 1/4" deep about 2 to 4" apart. Radishes need long periods of daylight for fast maturity so keep them under a fluorescent grow light. Keep the greenhouse temperature between 45ƒ and 50ƒ at night (temperatures that are too warm can lead to non-edible radishes). Did you know Radishes are high in vitamin C, fiber, and folate?
Broccoli - A great source of vitamins (especially vitamin C and calcium), broccoli takes about 2-3 months to mature. Harvest the central head before flowering and you will continue to get smaller side sprouts. Needs to be kept cool for bigger heads and to slow flowering. Vitamin C, calcium, vitamin A, potassium, folate, iron, and fiber are some of the wonderful benefits of this cool weather crop.
ACCESSORY OF THE MONTH:
Create longer days with our Fluorescent Grow Light System. Complete 24" tall by 48" wide anodized aluminum structure includes two 48" full spectrum fluorescent tubes. Easy pull/push system can adjust the height of the light to 2" above your plants to keep them short and sturdy.
BOOK OF THE MONTH:
An excellent book for all your greenhouse needs is the Greenhouse Gardeners Companion. It gives you an overview of the greenhouse environment and describes how to assess your greenhouse situation & needs. Includes advice on selecting and propagating plants and setting up your greenhouse as well as providing environmentally friendly ideas and economical suggestions. The book also features an alphabetical listing of more than 300 flowers, fruits, vegetable & herbs. Nearly 500 Pages!
Our Greenhousing "How-To" Resouce Guide
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