Bob's Projects & Ideas
Raised Growing Beds
Inside my large rebar greenhouse I had several stacks of tires (three or four high) filled with earth. Some sources now advise against tires. Though, I can find no definitive proof that tires are a health hazard. I have changed to barrels and blocks myself for the most part.
I fill the raised beds with soil from the sunken water pit. At one stage the watermelon plants on the ground were one foot long while the plants planted in the raised beds were six feet long. That's due to the difference in soil temperatures after spring thaw. In southern latitudes there may be less variation in temperature.
Raised bed veggie growing (now mainly in the greenhouse) is a passion for me for about a dozen reasons: (less weeding, less compaction, more productions, earlier crops, and healthier , later crops, more aeration, warmer roots for faster growth, ease of access, ease in harvesting, cleaner crops, less danger of root rot, and more. My first raised beds were made with free tires.
Now I Have Barrels of Fun!
Our 50 gallon or so barrels cost is only $3 each from company who makes fiberglass tombstones! The fiberglass is drained from these barrels leaving the sides coated with a thin layer, which helps prevent rust. Some people choose to burn out the fiberglass. The top and bottom are cut out so that the roots can penetrate the whole greenhouse. The barrels are several inches apart to allow air circulation thus warming up faster. Plants at the top of the barrel cascade down the sides making it easy to pick the lush tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, melons and other crops. The plants are also tied to the rebar rods thus quickly producing a jungle of foliage all around the pathway, with cantaloupe bumping your head. All that heat and humidity causes the plants to grow like monster.
Why Do My Plants Grow So Quickly?
I play them Tchaikovsky! There are several other reasons. Moisture is optimal due to the high humidity and mulching. The narrow rebar rods I use for my greenhouses let in lots of light. And the third factor is most interesting: Soil Temperature. That's one reason plants grow so slow in the early spring, even if the air is quite warm, especially "warm" crops like tomatoes, melons and cukes. The temperature of soil in metal barrels climbs rapidly in the warm greenhouse, since the soil is way up in the air three feet high, where the warm air accumulates. (Cool air sinks to ground level.) Also, there is a very high ratio of soil exposed to the warm air through the metal compared to the same amount of soil on the ground. Several times more soil is warmed by the air than if it was at the ground level, so the roots grow fast even at night. The soil will be warmer than the air at night. The greenhouse air, in turn, is warmer than the outside air.
More Advantages of Metal Barrels
The plants are easily looked after, being at chest height. There is greater production. The plants cascade down the sides like a waterfall of fruit. Constant pruning is needed to prevent the path from being invaded by these fast-growing plants. The tons of soil in the metal barrels quickly absorb a tremendous amount of heat and release it at night. Wet soil holds almost as much heat as water. This is a good alternative to using valuable greenhouse space for water containers just to hold heat. You can have your cake and eat it too! The metal absorbs heat very fast. With soil barrels and a water-filled pathway I've found my plants won't freeze until it's below 20 degrees F. outside, even under just one layer of poly. Also, barrels are so much easier than building 3-foot high wooden containers, which will rot if not treated. But I also used raised beds held back by wood. Used barrels cost less than wood, are strong, and can be spaced to allow warm air between the barrels. And metal really absorbs heat. I paint them white to increase light. Black markedly decreases the light and is probably not needed to absorb heat since there is so much thermal mass already there. If you want you can paint them red and blue, which will absorb heat and also provide the plants with most of the spectrum that they need.
Playing With (Concrete) Blocks
Inside one greenhouse I constructed in the past, I built 5' high raised beds out of hundreds of concrete blocks stacked two deep without cement or mortar. I scrounged my blocks for free from houses and buildings being demolished. People are often happy to let you have them just for hauling them away. I have filled my raises beds with old manure and soil and mulched them heavily. Tomatoes and cukes hang down the walls for easy picking.
A Real Metal Tank Garden?
I no longer have this tank garden but include it for your interest: I drove to my neighbor's scrap yard, selected and bought six used 1000 gallon metal water tanks, each 14 feet long and 5 feet in diameter. I had him cut each tank into two 7-foot long cylinders, each 7' high and 5' in diameter. We manhandled each into my pickup truck (one per load!) and I hauled them home. I erected each of them vertically about four feet apart inside my greenhouse. Then even more work! We filled each 7' high x 5' diameter cylinder with good soil and compost, by hand, using buckets, shovels, muscles, and ladders!
Advantages Of Metal Containers
Steel walls are so much thinner than concrete blocks, allowing more soil in the bed, they store heat at night, faster heat transfer from sun and air into soil, more vertical hanging space for tomatoes, peas, beans, cukes, melons, etc. they hang down as well as being staked up. New shoots just keep forming and grow quickly downwards aided by gravity, producing clean, accessible, healthy, beautiful, bountiful fruits!
Bob's Greenhouse Tips
Pollination inside your Greenhouse
In the large rebar greenhouse, I had no problem. Probably because of the large 9 by 6 foot end vents the bees seemed to find their way in easily. And wind blowing inside helps, especially in corn pollination. You can pollinate by hand with a tiny paint brush, even with a leaf blower, or shake the tomato plants. Pollination may be a problem with small insufficient vents.
Bob's Projects & Ideas Raised Growing Beds Ndani ya nyumba yangu kubwa ya rebar greenhouse nilikuwa na rundo kadhaa za tairi (tatu au nne za juu) zilizojaa ardhi. Vyanzo fulani sasa vinashauri dhidi ya magurudumu. Ingawa, siwezi kupata uthibitisho wa hakika kwamba tairi ni hatari kwa afya. Mimi mwenyewe nimebadilisha kwa mapipa na vitalu kwa sehemu kubwa. Ninajaza vitanda vilivyoinuliwa udongo kutoka kwenye shimo la maji lililozama. Katika hatua moja mimea ya matango iliyokuwa chini ilikuwa na urefu wa futi moja huku mimea iliyopandwa kwenye vitanda vilivyoinuliwa ikiwa na urefu wa futi sita. Hilo ni kwa sababu ya tofauti ya halijoto ya udongo baada ya kuyeyuka kwa theluji. Katika latitudo za kusini huenda kukawa na tofauti ndogo zaidi za halijoto. Kukua kwa mboga za kitanda (sasa hasa katika chafu) ni shauku yangu kwa sababu kadhaa: (kupunguza magugu, kupunguzwa kidogo, uzalishaji zaidi, mazao ya mapema, na mazao ya baadaye, hewa zaidi, mizizi ya joto kwa ukuaji wa haraka, urahisi wa ufikiaji, urahisi wa kuvuna, mazao safi, hatari ndogo ya kuoza kwa mizizi, na zaidi). Vitanda vyangu vya kwanza vilivyopandishwa vilitengenezwa kwa tairi za bure. Sasa Nina Furaha Nyingi! Kwa mfano, kwa kila lita ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta ya mafuta. Fiberglasi hutolewa kutoka kwa mapipa hayo na kuacha pande zilizopakwa tabaka nyembamba, ambalo husaidia kuzuia kutu. Watu wengine huchagua kuchoma nyuzi za glasi. Sehemu ya juu na ya chini hukatwa ili mizizi iweze kupenya ndani ya chafu nzima. Matofali hayo yanatofautiana kwa sentimeta kadhaa ili kuruhusu hewa izunguke na hivyo kupasha joto haraka zaidi. Mimea iliyo juu ya pipa hiyo hupanda chini upande mmoja na kufanya iwe rahisi kukusanya nyanya, matango, squash, ndizi, na mazao mengine. Mimea pia imefungwa kwenye vijiti vya rebar hivyo kwa haraka kuzalisha jungle ya majani karibu na njia, na cantaloupe bumping kichwa chako. Joto na unyevu huo wote husababisha mimea kukua kama mnyama. Kwa Nini Mimea Yangu Inakua Haraka? Mimi kucheza yao Tchaikovsky! Kuna sababu nyingine kadhaa. Unyevu ni bora kutokana na unyevu wa juu na mulching. Vipande vyenye nyembamba vya chuma ninavyotumia katika vyumba vyangu vya kutengeneza chafu huingiza nuru nyingi. Na jambo la tatu lenye kupendeza zaidi: Joto la udongo. Hii ni sababu ya mimea kukua polepole katika majira ya kuchipua, hata kama hewa ni joto sana, hasa mazao ya joto kama nyanya, melon na zucchini. Joto la udongo katika mapipa ya chuma huongezeka haraka katika chafu ya joto, kwa kuwa udongo uko juu sana katika hewa, ambapo hewa ya joto hukusanyika. (Haa baridi huanguka hadi chini ya ardhi.) Pia, kuna uwiano mkubwa sana wa udongo unaofichuliwa kwa hewa ya joto kupitia chuma ikilinganishwa na kiasi sawa cha udongo ardhini. Kwa sababu ya joto la hewa, udongo unaongezeka mara kadhaa kuliko ungekuwa chini ya ardhi, na hivyo mizizi hukua haraka hata usiku. Udongo utakuwa wenye joto kuliko hewa usiku. Kwa upande mwingine, hewa ya chumba cha chafu ni yenye joto kuliko hewa ya nje. Faida Zaidi za Mapipa ya Chuma Mimea hiyo hutunzwa kwa urahisi, kwa kuwa iko kwenye urefu wa kifua. Kuna uzalishaji mkubwa zaidi. Mimea hiyo hutiririka-tirira kando-kando kama maporomoko ya maji ya matunda. Mimea hiyo inayokua haraka inahitaji kukatwa mara kwa mara ili kuzuia njia hiyo isiingie. Maji mengi ya udongo yaliyo katika mapipa hayo ya chuma hufyonza joto kwa haraka na kulitoa usiku. Udongo wenye unyevunyevu huhifadhi joto karibu sawa na maji. Hii ni mbadala mzuri wa kutumia nafasi ya thamani ya chafu kwa vyombo vya maji tu kushikilia joto. Unaweza kuwa na keki yako na kula pia! Chuma hicho hufyonza joto upesi sana. Kwa kutumia mapipa ya udongo na njia iliyojaa maji, nimegundua mimea yangu haitafungia hadi iwe chini ya digrii 20 F nje, hata chini ya safu moja tu ya polyester. Pia, ni rahisi zaidi kutengeneza mapipa kuliko kutengeneza vyombo vya mbao vyenye urefu wa meta moja, ambavyo vitaharibika visipotibiwa. Lakini pia nilitumia vitanda vilivyoinuliwa vilivyohifadhiwa kwa mbao. Mapipa yaliyotumiwa ni ya bei nafuu kuliko mapipa ya mbao, ni yenye nguvu, na yanaweza kutenganishwa ili kuruhusu hewa yenye joto kati ya mapipa hayo. Kwa kweli, chuma huchukua joto. Ninawapaka rangi nyeupe ili kuongeza mwanga. Nyeusi hupunguza mwanga kwa kiasi kikubwa na labda haihitajiki kunyonya joto kwa kuwa kuna joto kubwa sana tayari. Kwa mfano, unaweza kuchora rangi nyekundu na bluu, ambayo itachukua joto na kutoa mimea na sehemu kubwa ya wigo wa joto wanayohitaji. """Kutumia mawe ya saruji katika nyumba moja ya kijani niliyoijenga zamani, nilijenga vitanda vya juu vya mita tano kutoka kwa mamia ya mawe ya saruji yaliyojengwa kwa kina cha mbili bila saruji au chokaa." Nilipata mawe yangu bila malipo kutoka kwa nyumba na majengo yaliyokuwa yakibomolewa. Mara nyingi watu hufurahi kukuruhusu uwatumie kwa sababu tu ya kuwachukua. Nimejaza vitanda vyangu vya kupanua kwa mbolea ya zamani na udongo na kuvifunika sana. Nyanya na cukes hutegemea kwenye kuta ili kuokota kwa urahisi. Bustani ya Tank ya Chuma ya Kweli? """Sina tena bustani hii ya tank lakini ni pamoja na kwa maslahi yako: Niliendesha gari hadi uwanja wa jengo la jirani yangu, nilichagua na kununua tanki sita za maji za chuma za galoni 1000 zilizotumika, kila moja ikiwa na urefu wa futi 14 na kipenyo cha futi 5." Alimwagiza akata kila tangi katika silinda mbili zenye urefu wa futi saba, kila moja ikiwa na urefu wa futi saba na kipenyo cha futi tano. Tulimkamata kila mmoja ndani ya lori langu (mmoja kwa kila mzigo!) na nikawapeleka nyumbani. Niliweka kila moja yao wima kwa umbali wa meta nne ndani ya chafu yangu. Basi fanya kazi zaidi! Kila silinda yenye urefu wa mita 7 x 5 ilijaa udongo mzuri na mbolea, kwa mikono, kwa kutumia ndoo, makasia, misuli, na ngazi! Kwa sababu ya ubora wa chuma, ukuta wa chuma ni nyembamba kuliko block za saruji, na huhifadhi joto usiku, uhamisho wa joto kutoka jua na hewa kwenye udongo, nafasi ya kushikilia zaidi kwa nyanya, maharagwe, maharagwe, zucchini, na nyanya. Wao huanguka chini na pia huwekwa juu. Vijiti vipya huendelea kuunda na kukua haraka chini kwa msaada wa nguvu za uvutano, vikitoa matunda safi, yanayoweza kufikiwa, yenye afya, yenye kupendeza, na yenye wingi! Bob's Greenhouse Tips Pollination ndani ya Greenhouse yako Katika rebar kubwa ya kijani kibichi, sikuwa na tatizo. Kwa sababu ya nafasi kubwa ya hewa ya mita 9 kwa 6 ya mwisho, nyuki walionekana kupata njia yao kwa urahisi. Na upepo unaovuma ndani husaidia, hasa katika kupandikiza mahindi. Unaweza kupeperusha kwa mkono kwa kutumia brashi ndogo ya rangi, hata kwa kutumia kifaa cha kupumua majani, au kutikisa mimea ya nyanya. Uchafuzi wa mimea yaweza kuwa tatizo kwa sababu ya mashimo madogo yasiyo ya kutosha.