That is neat looking thing you have there Tom Termine. I hope it protects all your C&S this winter.

Unfortunately, I think it will be put away by the time winter sets in. I am hoping for it to get me through fall...my yard could be 2-3 feet deep with snow in our winters ;-(...

T

Tom, where in the world did you ever find it, some thing like that would work great for some of my larger cactus.

Bear

I like it! what are the dimensions?

Tom, I LOVE it!

You'll be able to keep them outside till at least December like I did..:-)..You will love it.

Where did you get that one...I like it better than mine..

MIke

I got this one at Home Depot...online only, I believe. It is called the Flowerhouse Springhouse...it is 6.5 ft high by 6ft by 6ft. They have a whole bunch of styles and shapes there, and I thought the price was pretty reasonable. Check the link below...

T

Here is a link that might be useful: Springhouse

That's very cool Tom! Thanks for the link.

Very nice! That was a good find. Were you able to set it up yourself or was help needed? Why don't you show us a pic after you get everything moved in?

Which critters are you worried about? The 4 legged, 6 legged or 8 legged? LOL!

Hey, why do you need this until winter, because it gets too cold through the fall? Then where will your plants go?
I'm always curious about managing plants in other zones since I'm in CA where the gardening never stops!

That's a sweet pop-up!
It reminds me of the covered wagons used by the pioneers comin' out West!

Josh

Hi Socks -

I set it up myself...well, my six year old son and 12 year old daughter helped a bit...pretty easy. Now, I am definitely not as confident in my ability to get it to pop 'down'...we'll see...

I am mostly concerned about squirrels and chipmunks, I think. They just tear into everything around these parts. One summer they used every singly seat cushion on my deck furniture chairs to pad their nests! I really despise them. Maybe they won't be interested in this (I hope). Not sure what to do to keep them away, really.

So, I am trying to extend the amount of time I keep a bunch of my cacti and succulents outdoors, rather than jamming them into my sunroom this year. That way, I may try to segue them into a dark dormancy in my garage instead of the sunroom - giving them a deeper sleep perhaps AND freeing up growing space under HID lights in my sunroom. They just wouldn't get the same dry cold in the sunroom that I think I can give them with the greenhouse - maybe end up with better flowering next year, too?

By the end of November, I think they will all be indoors somewhere - either garage or sunroom. Then, the snows come...seems so far away with 90s forecast all week for us ;-).

Josh - I see what you mean...just hope it doesn't get overtaken by marauding banditos!

T

Tom.

There is only one place for the varmints to keep warm in my area, and not a one has ever been in mine..You just might be lucky!!

I love your pop up!

Mike

...that's good to know, Mike. Thanks.

Don't know about your part of MA, but mine is full o'varmints.

T

I have one of those too, but a larger size, 6' x 12', although those dimensions apparently include the skirt at the bottom. This one came not only with plastic zipper doors, but also screen doors inside.

I've luckily not had any varmints, and because of the heat, have kept the screen doors open...so more pollination! :)

-R

Looks good! Keep a thermometer in there and start recording outdoor vs indoor temps in various conditions (sun, cloudy, party cloudy, etc.) and times of day. It will help predict when to keep the vents open during the day when you are at work. Without any sort of shade cloth it can get very warm on a sunny day.

You may also want to get one of those $15 box fans at Home Depot and leave it in there running 24-7 via a waterproof electrical cord. Air circulation is critical especially
when it heats up. Plants burn when air is stagnant.

A great thing about the "greenhouse effect" is that succulents will much better tolerate cold nights when it heats up quickly the next day.

x

R -

This one has a screen door and window, as well, which is critical considering how hot it can get in there...

x -

I do have a thermometer in there. Yesterday around noon it was about 110 degrees in there when it was in the upper 80s outside! I see what you mean about temperature differential! It is in full sun from around 9AM until around 3PM (when it starts getting shady again), so it heats up pretty good in there.

It did come with a shade cloth so I do have that if I need it. This weekend, I was thinking about putting a few of my dormant winter growers in there - I will be away for a day or two and did not want to worry about them getting rained on. That said, if the forecast holds I may not have to, though...rain on Friday, but sunny in the mid to upper seventies Saturday and Sunday. We'll see...

Thanks again for the idea on this pop-up, x.

T

Btw- x, R, and Mike

How well do yours hold up to wind and rain?

T

Hi - same question as above...how well do these things hold up to wind and rain?

x - are you guys expecting Earl to mess things up out by you? I think he will be mostly a nor'easter kind of storm by me...worse out on the Cape...

So, any tips on getting these little greenhouses through windy rain storms? Mine is staked down, and I also placed my cinderblocks over the inside floor edge flaps. Anything else I should know?

Thanks.

T

I have one similar to this that I use through the winter and take down in the spring. To keep it from blowing away I used concrete framing rods at each corner hammered into the ground, then attached marine rope to one stake and went over the tent and fastened to the opposite side. Basically tying it down. Kept it place all winter, strongest gusts were 35mph