Makeshift Greenhouse

We used the frame from the swingset to make a "makeshift greenhouse". Last year another DG member had the same idea....Joannabanana. We did ours a little different. We covered it in commercial grade (70 X 78") clear shower curtains from Wal-Mart ($5.67 approx each).
It took six. We used duct tape to connect the shower curtains, and fondue skewers in the holes where the rings normally go to help anchor it. I may have to go buy some real camping type stakes. It holds quite a few plants. We'll see how this works.

We still had to hang the shower curtains in the "hut" also, as not all of the plants would fit in the other one. At least now when it does freeze we're ready.





This message was edited Oct 24, 2008 7:29 PM

Another view

The hut as a makeshift greenhouse....

Another view of the hut / green house. So now we are ready for the cold. It's supposed to be 44F in the morning, but will warm up in the day time. I will go out and open the front panels so that the plants can get some air.

Brilliant - I may try that for a few of my houseplants so I don't have to bring them in.

Thanks Kay!

I also made some plant hangers and hung them on the hooks inside. I hung two plants per hanger. Got to use all of the space you can. I'm sure you could also hang some hanging pots from the top pole also.

I went out and opened up the front of each this morning so that the plants could get fresh air in the day, and then will close them back up at night.

What a scream! Looks like a halloween costume!

DO NOT get insulted. Great idea.

Keep us posted on how it works. Do you have quilts for freezing nights?

LOL! No offense taken! Fortunately we don't have many freezes. When we do it usually only gets down to 28F.

The last couple of years we enclosed our patio canopy with the canvas curtains
and then the hut with the plastic. All of the plants survived OK. Hopefully the plastic will be enough.

Your greenhouse looks beautiful! How very inventive!

Hey Texasgal, that's luxury for plants. In Lower Puna that could be a house!

That is very clever, Jeanne. Have heard some bad stories about what all has washed up on the beach here at Corpus Christi. Seems Galveston wound up here.

Thanks everyone! Met. we had people living in tents on Galveston until this weekend.

Christi, that's really sad that the debris and other things could go that far. Galveston sure is a mess. Hope you are having a good vacation.

I hope all the storms are over and folks can get back to their normal lives. What a privilege we have to enjoy nature, with all that is happening on the planet.

The weatherman said the other day that most of the storms that form now go up the East coast, so with about five weeks left in the season, I think that we are OK.
However, it will take the people in Galveston and nearby areas quite awhile to do all of the repairs or rebuild. There are so many people displaced.

We are very fortunate here in our subdivision not to have much damage! That is one reason that we moved here so that we would be at a higher elevation...all of 26 ft.

Hey, that's 26 ft higher than sea level! If all the "rising ocean" predictions come to pass, I will be growing gills and webbed feet. Eat your heart out Kevin Costner!

Jeanne - looks like it will work wonderfully! That's yet one more thing to love about DG...the exchange of ideas!

Hope you are having a great time on the island Christi - even if the beaches are depris prone.

Yokwe all,
Shari

Hi, everybody! Cool here as well. No real problem, we spend a lot of time deciding what we will eat next. We are on the fifith floor of the condo and it is billed as the closest to the water on Mustang Island. When tide is up, only about ten feet to the water from the board walk. The sound is soooo relaxing. Going to the Texas State Aquarium today in Corpus Christi. Only 3 more days before starting home. Anxious to see our babies but at the same time, hate to leave.
Dallas is supposed have gotten pretty cool this week. Hope we haven't lost any of our tropicals. Only part of them had been winterized.

BTW Corpus is only about 15 miles from here. Port Aransas is the "city" on the island. On one end is a causeway and the other is the ferry. Not much traffic this time of year.

Yokwe and aloha

Princess Kilikina

Shari....it was definately high enough to keep us from getting any rising water so we are very blessed. Those homes right on the Bay definately took on (in) water.

Christi, that area is very nice. We spent a week down there when the kids were young. We had a lot of fun. It's been quite a few years since I've been there, but I love Corpus! Have a great time!

So far the swingset gh is holding up. We had 25 mph winds yesterday. We have had storms in Nov. where the winds were much higher, so hopefully it will be OK.
So far, so good!

Note: Duct taping the top together probably wasn't the best idea. It did come loose. I got a "I told you so" from DS. He originally suggested that we run rope thru the wholes to hook the two at the top together, then push the stakes in thru the plastic at the bottom. I was concerned that the plastic at the bottom would tear, so we did it my way.....Oh well. Duct tape is cheap. LOL! We reinforced it with more duct tape. Lots more! It rained really heavy last night, and was windy enough to push my 7ft hibiscus tree over to one side, but, the GH held up! YEAH!!!!!!

I will have to get more tent stakes tho, because the skewers are breaking. Hey they were a $1 for a package at the dollar store. We have yet to fondue since I bought them! No great loss!

I am thinking about buying some more shower curtains and doing like DS said to add to the top before we have a freeze. Might decide to use the roll of plastic in the garage instead if I can find it. It's been in there for many years. It may not be any good, who knows. It is worth a try before I go spend another $20. Still my total cost is still less than $50 so far, so it's been a good deal!!!!!

Corrected cost so far to under $50. Went back to WalMart. They had the tent stakes 4 / $2 so that wasn't bad. We got 3 packages. Probably should have gotten two more. They did not have any more of the $5.xx shower curtains.

The added Duct tape is holding so will wait to do anything else.

This message was edited Nov 12, 2008 12:11 AM

Too bad the duct tape didn't work. Out here we have this stuff called "100mph tape". It's duct tape plus. I don't think there is a residence or boat on the island that doesn't have some of that holding something together or plugging a leak or something! But I'm glad it is working so far, and giving you ideas for improvement. Good job my friend!

Yokwe,
Shari

Supposed to be in the mid 30's here this weekend. Trying to be sure everything is secure.

Oh, I just can't even imagine how cold that must be! When I go home in winter and we are up in the mountains in the snow, I am just in awe of the beauty and don't really feel the cold. Living with it is something I just can't believe anymore!

Stay warm my friend,
Yokwe,
Shari

In alot of areas where it snows it is a "dry" cold, so you don't feel it as much. Here with the high humidity it is a "damp" cold. It cuts right thru you. You aren't able to dress warm enough, at least I can't. (Plus the cold makes me hurt.)

When I was in PA years ago visiting a friend there was snow everywhere and it didn't even seem chilly. My friend said, "That's because its a dry cold." I was amazed. It was fun to play in the snow. It's beautiful, but I don't like having to shovel it....that's why I live in the SOUTH! LOL!

Good Luck to all who utill has to put their plants up. Mine are ready.

Everything is secured but the brugs and they are in a full flush.

I have one that has lots of buds on it! Can't wait for them to open!

It has rained here off and on for days now, and the GH is still holding together with the added Duct tape. YEAH!

I've had it closed up during the rain. I hope I can open it tomorrow for awhile to let the air circulate. It has been so windy that I was afraid it would pull on the plastic if there was anywhere the water could collect. With it closed it is staked down at an angle so the water can run off. So far VERY good!!!!!!!!

Good for you, Jeanne. Wish I had kept my old swing frame.

Thanks! It's working great!

Looking great Jeanne, how very inventive of you! Have your brugs bloomed yet?

Yes, a couple of buds have opened. Hopefully more will now that the rain has let up. This is the white one that Randy gave me. It's a single and very delicate.

Hey Jeanne, you are up late tonight! Is all okay, or are you just a night owl tonight?

We're OK. Went to visit Mom this evening, and then came to check in and see what's happening here at DG! Hope you are doing well.

Sure am! It's only 7.45pm here...get yourself to bed Jeanne, it must be almost midnight for you!
Take care, my friend.

11:45 pm......and not even sleepy.

It is so beautiful here! The weather is just gorgeous! The swingset GH is still holding up. It is supposed to be in the 50's tomorrow, and another cold front coming in on Monday. The plants all look fine.

Today is my Mom's 80th birthday so we are all going over there to celebrate afterwhile. Everyone have a great day!

Happy Birthday to Mom, Jeanne!

Thanks Jen! We had a great time.

I went out and looked at the plants today. Everything looks fine! Will need to water proabably tomorrow.

My daily "inspection" of my makeshift GH found: One grey cat cozy and warm....(However this is not a good thing, because it is not mine!) Needless to say it left when I went to open up the GH; Two red hibiscus in bloom.....forgot to take the camera out there.....so no pix.......Part of the back plastic at the top had come loose, so off to Lowes. Got some "Gorilla tape" which is not as good as 100 mph tape, but an X-strong duct tape. Redid the top connection again. It should hold this time!!!!!!! This stuff is strong and very sticky!!!!!

Also found a green outdoor extension cord to run out to the pond in the Spring. It should look better than the bright orange one. Most of it gets hid under the canopy and the hut. I wrap artificial flowers around the parts that are exposed so that it can be seen.

Would you believe I got out of there without buying one plant????? No kidding....not one. (NONE, ZERO, NADA!) Really.

Hi. I just happened across this thread. Hope I am not butting in too much.

Did you know you can buy plastic in a box at HD that would cover your swing set frame in 1 piece so you wouldn't have to worry about a storm tearing it apart? And you would have enough for another 2 years? It was very cheap too. Between $40 and $60 dollars. I will see if we still have the box tomorrow. Yesterday my husband put up the frame of our hoophouse. We keep it up till March then take it apart, tossing the plastic and the PVC separates into smaller parts easily stored.

It takes about 6 hours to put it up.

Here is the PVC frame. I think it is 15 ft long and 12 feet high. We had it 15 feet high the last 2 years for my tall brugs but this year I am not putting my tall ones in. I can take a shot of it covered tomorrow.

Hi Kell! You are certainly welcome here anytime! Thanks for the info! It is appreciated!

Where did you get your PVC pipe? I would be interested in getting some in the future.

How do you protect your Hibiscus collection or do you have to in your zone?

HD or even Lowes will have it though I think my husband had to look for certain sizes at a local hardware store.

He followed a design I found online thru another Dave's gardener and then over the years he has changed it to make it easier.

Hibiscus are planted here all over the neighborhood but I rarely see the fancy ones we have here on the hibiscus forum. I think they may be a bit more tropical. I do keep mine in the hoophouse. But if I had them in the ground they probably would make it OK if a little bit protected. The ones planted here get huge.