help with heating cold frame! (growing zone 4b/5a)
Amy Wickett
5 years ago
last modified: 5 years ago
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roseguy
5 years agoparty_music50
5 years agoRelated Discussions
Kaki and Hybrid Persimmons winter protection for Zone 5A
Comments (25)I was reading a response in the NAFEX "Richard Moyer and others is that for Zone 6/7, it is not the absolute winter minimum that kills kakis, but late spring freezes after the trees have broken dormancy. The great Easter Freeze of 2007 killed 10 out of 12 'cold hardy' kaki cultivars I had, most of them 4-8 inches in diameter. The two that survived unscathed are 'Hira Tanenashi' and 'Sung Hui', only because neither had broken dormancy. We ate and sold many fruits from these two trees this fall, until Christmas. Three nights of +19, 24 and 27F killed the other 10 'cold hardy' cultivars to the ground. In themountains of Korea, I observed huge, old kaki trees at Buddhist temples. So it's "not always how cold it gets, but how/when it get's cold", especially for some of these Asian plants we try to grow in the eastern US. Cliff England, at Nut Tree nursery in KY, also is trialing cold hardy kakis. Some of his material from northern Japan and north Korea". So Tony, can I protect the hardy Asian persimmons wtih your method for short period from a late freeze in early April? Others comments are welcome. Thx....See MoreGreenhouse in Zone 5a
Comments (13)It is single skinned. There are two collar ties that would make double skinning more complicated, but it could be done. Since I did nothing after pulling the tomatoes, it didn't really get winterized, and day vs. night numbers aren't great. Last summer I just wanted it a little warmer and a lot drier in order to grow tomatoes. As it is, the low for the winter here has been -4° (so far, which is very mild for here) and the low for the winter in the greenhouse has been 7° (and I doubt it will get lower). With a few rodent holes around the foundation stopped up, extra layers on the north side, and the vent covered over I bet I could increase the temperature difference to 20°. I just started spinach in the middle beds in the greenhouse. I covered them with scraps of GH plastic laid directly on the soil until they germinate. One local writer says using remay tunnels over the beds gets him a 10° gain. Dan...See MoreZone 5a and 4b Hardy Japanese Maple Cultivars
Comments (15)I'm in zone 5 Ottawa,Canada. Zone 4 for you in the US. They used to say you couldn't grow J.maples around here. But for 20 years I always could, and have never lost any, except 2 variegated ones. I have about 25 varieties, a sort of J. maple forest in my back yard & I am running out of room. Good thing they are dwarf trees, unlike our native maples that grow to 50 ft. I wholesale them from (grown in)BC, zone 7-8. They do not loose hardiness by grafting and propagating in a milder climate. The hardiness is built into the plant. I will say that they can sometimes be slow to establish, and this is the important part. Any tree should be planted early and well cared for in the first season, so it is well established going into it's first winter. I don't believe in bare root trees doing well, too slow to establish, or over wintering in a pot. They should always be planted in the ground and well mulched. I do think they prefer a more acidic soil. Ours is neutral approx. 6-7ph, so I spread sulphur everywhere every couple of years to acidify a little.(I don't like pink hydrangeas, prefer blue) I saw a study once, out of U of Michigan I think, where when they tested plants, and they found that plants growing in acidic soil seemed a little hardier than the same plants growing in more alkaline soils. In the past I have used geo-textile fleece as a winter cover for the first few winters, but snow makes a great insulator as well. I get a bit of tip dieback sometimes, but it doesn't matter since they grow back very well, as if they were pruned. There is a sort of wilt going around in J. maples lately, others have noticed as well. It doesn't hurt the tree, it just attacks some of the newest growing tips as they are finished flushing out in summer....sort of self pruning. We regularly get to minus 22 celcius (-10 far.)here most winters, with minimal problems. Even with last winter, the worst in 20 yrs., there were no losses. The only damage I ever notice is the heavy snow pack in spring, will sometimes crack the weeping types as it weighs them down and melts. Variegated types do seem less hardy, possibly due to the fact that variegation is a mutation and therefore weaker. Red and green types are perfectly hardy. They all seem hardier as they get older. thanks, Rich...See MorePot or ground for zone 5a
Comments (7)Soso, I think you will be fine if you keep them in the WoW until the second or third week of June. That would work fine. I got mine in the ground last w/e. The overnight lows have been in the mid-forties and they are doing great even unprotected. This is the earliest I've gotten them in for several years. The aridity is actually our friend because we don't have anywhere near the problems with disease they do in other parts of the country. It can happen, but it is far rarer thanks to the aridity of our climate. Use a soaker hose around the plants to cut down the chances even further. If your plants are a good healthy stocky size, they will do well. The supersweet 100 will go like gangbusters, no prob and so will the Oregon Spring. I'm not familiar with golden boy, but I'm sure it will do well in your area, just judging from the name. The WoWs will also protect those young plants from the wind that accompanies the spring storms through the end of May and early June. Quite often, the wind does more harm than the cooler temps and storms around here. You might join us at the Rocky Mt. board. We discuss the problems unique to the area like aridity, alkalinity, and short-season. GW Rocky Mountain Gardening...See MoreAdvance Greenhouses
5 years agolast modified: 5 years agofloral_uk z.8/9 SW UK
5 years agoAmy Wickett
5 years agofloral_uk z.8/9 SW UK
5 years agoAdvance Greenhouses
5 years agoAmy Wickett
5 years agolast modified: 5 years agofloral_uk z.8/9 SW UK
5 years agolast modified: 5 years agoAdvance Greenhouses
5 years agoAmy Wickett
5 years agolast modified: 5 years agofloral_uk z.8/9 SW UK
5 years agolast modified: 5 years agokitasei
5 years agoSkip1909
5 years agolast modified: 5 years agogjcore
5 years agolast modified: 5 years agodefrost49
5 years agolilyd74 (5b sw MI)
5 years agoMatt z5b - Greenhouse 10a
5 years ago
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