Greenhouse advice

[ogilvie]

I have just been out in the greenhouse, the first time for days- what with the rain and wind, and I've been poorly. I have minimally watered everything that needed it but I have a lot of grey mold on certain more tender plants, I know this is caused by bad ventilation. The winds have been gale force with heavy rain here since before the New Year and I cannot open my greenhouse door without fear of damage by the winds. Any suggestions? I have parsley, bay and a couple of thymes so I don't really want to use chemicals, is there anything else I can do?

Help!!!

Ogilvie (feeling very helpless)

[Alice]

You're right about the problem being due to damp and poor ventilation Ogilvie. It is all this terrible rain we've had to blame. That's why I don't use my greenhouse until later when I've got enough plants to put in to justify putting the heating on.
You could save your herbs by taking them out of the greenhouse. Pick of the gray bits (its probably botritis) and dispose of it in the bin.
Can you take your bay into the house for a while. If you harden off your parsley and thyme it can probably go outside and just be lifted into the greenhouse, or indoors, if we get any really cold weather. My parsley growing in the ground is still doing fine and I had thyme which lived outside for years. The flat leaf parsley gets through the winter better than the curly varieties.
I see you're a "near neighbour" of mine.

[ogilvie]

Alice,

My greenhouse is almost at capacity at the moment. It is filled with fuschias, margarites, geraniums, bacopas and other assorted bits and pieces but I haven't put any heating on yet. My heating is paraffin and it causes damp. I have brought an electric fan heater from the caravan with the thought that if it gets too damp out there, then I could put it on for say an hour a day. Right now this is as much as I could manage, I have just retired through ill health and it is taking my company months to sort out my right to ill health retirement pension rather than reduced early retirement pension. So for the first time I have kept the heating off as an issue of cost.

I'm sitting here in my craft room at the computer listening to the tiles on the roof rattling about in the wind and the rain is battering at the window, when will this ever end.

We can't live to far away from each other, maybe when the weather picks up a bit we can arrange to meet.

Thanks for the advice
Ogilvie

[Alice]

Sorry you haven't been so well Ogilvie, hope you get evrything sorted out soon. If you put your electric heater on at fan only this would help with the ventilation and wouldn't really cost anything.
When the weathers better you would be most welcome to call. In the meantime you can have a look at my garden. It just might cheer you up in this awful weather.
Alice's Garden

[ogilvie]

Alice,
Your garden looks gorgeous and you can keep your spirits up in the winter by reminding yourself what it's like in the summer. You are very lucky to have such a nice garden. I look forward to seeing it sometime.
Ogilvie

[mandyballantyne]

Hi Ogilvie,

Sorry to hear that you have been poorly, maybe when this weather cheers up a bit we will all feel better.

I can't help on the greenhouse issue as my little polythene one has blown away in these gales and so did everything in it!

Need to start saving up for a new one and start the chilli's off again. I am so annoyed as they were doing great in there!

I am not far either, just between Cumbernauld and Falkirk.

Mandy

[Alice]

Oh Mandy, what a shame. I'm so sorry you lost your wee greenhouse and especially your plants. This weather has been just awful.One of my neighbours has lost the cupula off his roof TWICE.

I pass Allandale way regularly on my way to Falkirk to visit my mother in law. Maybe in the summer I could call in at your lottie and admire it.

[mandyballantyne]

Hi Alice,

You are more than welcome, be good to meet you.

Not much of a lottie, I have just 'borrowed' some land between my house and the canal. Spent months clearing it then had a go for the first time last year.

Had some sucess and some disasters, so better luck this year. My only regret is not borrowing more land and a very well meaning Dad who surprised me by laying turf on half of the area!! might need to dig that up.

Hope to see you in the summer, if these gales ever go!

Mandy

[Alice]

See you when the sun shines Mandy. You're probably right about the turf. You can't eat grass But it does make very excellent compost if you just stack it green side down

[ogilvie]

Mandy,

Sorry to hear about your greenhouse and it's inhabitants. I hope you get a new one alright and gather up the stuff you need to go in it. Did you lose much? I used to work in Falkirk and travelled there from Livingston, in what seems like another life. Moved here three years ago to a house with a postage stamp garden back, and front.

I lost one of my cold frames from beside the house wall on New Years day and thought I was going to lose my greenhouse, however it survived. Remember the boxing day storms a few years back. I lost my greenhouse then, the wind got in and blew off the door and blew all the glass out and then mangled the frame. I didn't bother to fix it then, I just gave up gardening and it wasn't until we moved to East Kilbride that I caught the big again.

Let me know how you get on getting your new greenhouse.

Ogilvie

[mandyballantyne]

Thanks Ogilvie,

I have found a greenhouse on freecycle, it has coal heating in it and sounds very intresting. I am waiting to find out how big it is, probably too big for me.

If I can not take it I will put up a post for it and see if anyone else can make use of it though.

Hope the gardening goes well for you this year, Mandy

[ogilvie]

Mandy,
Now I'm totally intrigued. A greenhouse with coal heating, how would that work. If you find out please do let me know. And good luck.
Ogilvie

[mandyballantyne]

Mandy,
Now I'm totally intrigued. A greenhouse with coal heating, how would that work. If you find out please do let me know. And good luck.
Ogilvie

I am very intrigued too, I am waiting for her to get back to me about size etc as all she said is it is huge??

But it has coal heating at one end and a warm sand box and has a wooden frame. A few panes are broken but that is not a big deal. I can't wait to find out more but in truth think it will be to large for my garden/plot.

How much space do you have? It would be a shame for it to go to waste.

Mandy

[nick the grief]

Thanks Ogilvie,

I have found a greenhouse on freecycle, it has coal heating in it and sounds very intresting. I am waiting to find out how big it is, probably too big for me.

If I can not take it I will put up a post for it and see if anyone else can make use of it though.

Hope the gardening goes well for you this year, Mandy

I doubt it will be too big Mandy, doesn't matter how big they are they are still not big enough!

As to the coal heating, I would guess its a solidfuel boiler with water pipes and an expansion box (I'll do a sketch if you like) as to the sandbox I can only assume that it is just that a box that you put dap sand in that is either heated by the boiler or has a soil warming cable in (like my propagator)

[nick the grief]

There you go, the same principal could be used with a Oil or Gas central heating boiler to heat your greenhouse but you'd need to have electric to them as well.