First week of March and it is time to rev up the gardening machine one more time.  Yes I know there is still snow on the ground but there is hope for a warmer tomorrow.  My timeline for the year starts with the month of February (for some soil preparation work) and goes to November. But March is when I get my seeds out.

I used to start my first seed trays late January.  In our climate zone 6, that meant a lot of special care and equipment: a (cool) greenhouse, heat cables, heat lights, fluorescent lights. My electrical bills were high, germination rates uneven and the final gains in earliness limited to a week or two.  I learned to wait 3 more weeks to the end of February to get going when the days are warmer and longer.  There is a place for season-extending techniques, but if you push too far it becomes an expensive and worrisome fight against nature.

So on with a late February start.  I just finished my seedling table set-up in my small (to be expanded) greenhouse.  I have used two work-horses, spaced to span the space available at the end of the house.  I attached two sets of 2 heat-lamps facing each other on the legs of the horses and attached a couple of high-power lights over the tray area.    I stretched some metal wire mesh over the horses and stapled it to create a flat sturdy surface.  I covered the whole thing with a piece of plastic overhanging on all sides.  With the lights on  a timer, the heat and light will be on between 2 and 8 am to help my cool season seeds with an early start.  The heat will come mostly from underneath the plastic and will warm up the bottom of the trays.  The plastic has a dual purpose: it captures the heat on its way up from the heat-lamps and it protects the bulbs from the overhead watering. 

Like with most things I build, I have a general method.  I first survey the materials and supplies on hand like old plastic, wire mesh, lights, etc.. I then draw my set-up on paper trying to think of all important aspects beforehand:  in this case access to water and electricity, frame, light positions, etc.. Then I do it.  I find that starting with the stuff I have is very cost-efficient and justifies , at least in my own eyes, my pack-rat tendencies.

Another economical way of approaching garden-projects, is to use generic hardware-store supplies, as opposed to specialty garden supplies.  Of course this does not work for everything but I will show you as we go some good examples.  Here for instance, I am using for heat simple heat lights you can find anywhere including Wal-mart, instead of heat cables.

This is the way the table sits on the end of the greenhouse, facing South.

last modified on: Monday November 10, 2008 06:41 AM -0600