Best Time for poly Tunnel

[steve533]

Hello - been reding the forums for while and thought i would post.

Purchased a poly tunnel of ebay (simila to this 3 m x 2 m Large Greenhouse Polytunnel Poly tunnel New Green House Pollytunnel | eBay)

Wished i had saved and went for a green house now - but hindsight and all that!!!!

So if i put up my tunnel now is there anything i could grow in it? Only growing toms, chillies and melons / cucumbers so when would these be ok to get in the tunnel?

Steve

[Alison]

I don't know where you're based but round here I don't plant out my toms etc until mid May at the earliest although they do go out in pots before then with the safety net that I can bring back in the warm if there is a later frost.

[Matt94]

you can put you toms,chillis,melons and cucumbers in april/may (depending on where you are) - can you put your location in you profile please!

[zazen999]

I don't know where you are either - but I retrieved mine from the hedge after the last winds only a couple of weeks ago. The guide/guy ropes [never did know which spelling was right] broke and the frame collapsed and it went sailing away. I am reusing the frame for netting frames but the actual frame proper was kaput.

They aren't real polytunnels - those are anchored into the ground - so just beware.

[steve533]

Ta - and oops, my location is Birmingham - Midlands.

My PT is going on a patio up against a hedge / fence. I will use metal brackets to anchor it to the patio slabs and the same to anchor it to the 2 concrete upright that once supported a hedge. I m just a little concerned what to do with the overlap at the bottom of the frame!

[zazen999]

Weigh it down with paving slabs.

[Corris]

why do you wish you got a greenhouse?

I am choosing between the two and was heading for a polytunnel,

[steve533]

why do you wish you got a greenhouse?

I am choosing between the two and was heading for a polytunnel,

I havent put mine up yet, Its just for the money i think i may have made a mistake as it was £80! But then again it was only £80 and we rent.

Do poly tunnels get as warm as green houses?

[Vince G]

I've just bought one of these from Citadel Polytunnels.

10' (1.98m) x 10' (6.1m) (polytunnel)

I've got the frame dug in but am waiting for a warmer weekend before putting cover on as I gather they're easier to tension properly if they're not stone cold.

This is 10' x 10' (which is as big as my lottie allows) and whilst it's a little pricey at a shade over 200 quid, Citadel are considerably cheaper than other tunnel suppliers for (seemingly) similar quality, and a greenhouse of a similar size may well cost three times that. So in my opinion I wouldn't be upset at not buying a greenhouse really, I'd just spend a little bit more on a nice tunnel.

[OverWyreGrower]

I've got a 30ft polytunnel, and there was no way I could have got a greenhouse that large for the same money!

It gets just as hot as a greenhouse, and I think you have to be just as vigilant, or more, about venting/cooling, as there are no windows to open! I think during the hottest spell, my tunnel got to just over 30 degrees C. I've grown melons and sweet potaoes in there over the last few years.

You can grow just about anything in there - the best thing is that it extends your growing season considerably if used properly (so says I, when currently my tunnel is empty, as the chickens are using it as refuge from the gale force winds and torrential rain!!)

[Dead Dogs]

I'm greedy, I have both,
12 x 6ft lean-to gh and a 4 x 10m (approx 13f x 33ft) Poly.

Greenhouse tended to be hotter that the poly and has auto openning vents.

As to which is the better choice...........