Wednesday, November 10, 2010

Bloom Day-November 2010 and Greenhouse Talk

From In the Garden

One really fabulous thing about blogging is the blogger has both a pictorial and written record of her garden. I find myself going back to look at older posts more and more as the growing season wanes and we enter into a somewhat dreary period for the garden. The Bloom Day posts are such good posts to help to remind me of how the garden was and where it might need to go. Such was the case for me when prior to preparing this post I decided to look back at last November's post. Surprisingly I found that on the day I posted that post (November 15th) we had not yet had a hard freeze. That is not the case this year. Our first hard freeze came to my garden this past Saturday, November 6th. My garden is fairly well protected by a great overhang of tree leaves but even that was not enough to protect the tender plants. Most of my plants are gone and I'm ever so sad to see them go-especially the huge stand of pineapple sage I had growing by the vegetable garden (picture below is just to remind me of how it looked:( But! All is not lost because I have a greenhouse-more on that below. The freeze was well forecast ahead of the time and I was not only expecting it but I was prepared for it. All tender plants were moved into the house or the greenhouse, summer vegetables were cut back, cuttings for next year were safely tucked away, and the winter crop of flowers and vegetables have all been planted. Whew!

From In the Garden
So let's move on to what is blooming and how the garden is doing today shall we? The camellias are the stars of the show in my winter garden. Right now two of the fall blooming Camellia sasanquas are coming into full bloom. The butterflies (yes-there are some still around) and bees love these late blooming camellias, in addition to the asters and mums now blooming. The camellia pictured at the beginning of this post graces the north end of my deck. It is a double pink, and has been slow to grow but is finally filling out and getting large. We'll look at the queen camellia at the end of this post. I've posted about it many times but wanted to show the double today. As I look back at previous posts I found camellias were the Plant of the Month for November 2009. This year they have been slow to start and were set back by a hard freeze-but not stopped. They may yet be the Plant of the Month for November once I've evaluated all plants blooming this month.

From In the Garden
Mums are blooming wonderfully. Despite over two months of drought you just can't stop the mums. They had been a bit set back by the drought but quickly recovered once we received some rain. The yellow button mums along with some reds, purples and Sheffield mums are all in full bloom. This particular clump pictured used to be about 20' long by 4' feet wide but I had to finally thin them out because the stand was a bit boring. This mum is a mainstay here and I have it in all of my gardens. It does okay in shade and shines in sun conditions (where it can be found here such as in this garden).

Now we move to greenhouse flowers. I can tell already I will have tons of blooms all winter as long as I can keep my greenhouse going-that is the challenge since it is my first year. So far so good. I'll explain.

From In the Garden
Oxalis-sweet plant!

From In the Garden
Proven Winners 'Slightly Strawberry' mallow. This particular plant was part of a box of free plants provided by Proven Winners for me to trial and write about. Now that the growing season is over I feel comfortable talking about a few of the plants that came in my wonderful box of goodies this past spring. Being an in ground gardener more than a container gardener nearly all of my trial plants (not yet offered to the public except in limited quantities but these plants will be available in the Spring of 2011) went into the ground. I tell you this season was a pretty hard season for most of the plants due to the drought. I do not usually baby my annuals and the majority of the Proven Winners plants were annuals. Some did well and some did not do so well. 'Slightly Strawberry' did okay and survived the summer with no help from me. I have decided to see if it will winter over and plan to plant it out in the garden again next summer. I tell you I did not expect it to be so darned pretty! It simply adores the greenhouse conditions as you can see. It grows along side another Proven Winners introduction (not new to the market) called 'Diamond Frost'. Diamond Frost simply rocks and I would not garden without one or two in my garden so it too gets greenhouse treatment in the winter.

From In the Garden
Pineapple sage cuttings with duranta in the background. The huge 3-4 foot plants in the garden bit the dust during our hard freeze of November 6th but these babies are doing fabulous in the greenhouse.

I also winter over a few more plants in the greenhouse which are blooming but not pictured. They include impatiens and geraniums. Ferns, a few houseplants and some vegetables round out the greenhouse plants. I'll talk more of them later.

From In the Garden
I think it is only appropriate to talk of the greenhouse since it is such a big part of my garden now that the outdoor growing season has ended. I was extremely concerned about heating the greenhouse. I had read where ceramic heaters are good for greenhouses but the one I purchased for that very purpose did not work. It would cut off within two minutes and I had to be present in order to turn it back on. I was at a loss as to how I was going to heat the greenhouse then I looked around my garage and found a little 1500 watt radiant space heater (you can see it on the floor of the greenhouse in the above picture). It has done the job in flying spades! I have the exact setting where I want it and it cycles off and on all night keeping the greenhouse a toasty 45 degrees-my specified temperature. I chose 40-50 degrees for the temperature range of my greenhouse because that is the general range my unheated garage stays at during the entire winter. I've successfully wintered over plants in there for many years so I figure it should work for the greenhouse as well. This heater does not have a precise thermostat but fiddling with the heat dial was not difficult.

Can you see the rain barrel in the far left corner? This rain barrel is actually a repository for water I get from a garden hose. It makes watering all of the plants so much easier for me because the water source is right there. I simply fill up my watering can and water a way. Another benefit of having a rain barrel in the greenhouse is that it provides passive heating during the night. It is my theory the water and barrel heat up a bit during the warm days and when the sun goes down some of that heat is released back into the greenhouse. So far I can't tell if it works well or not but I think it does work, at least a little bit. Even when I don't run the heat in the greenhouse it generally stays about 7-10 degrees warmer than the outside temperature. Not bad!

One other extra thing I did to the greenhouse in preparation for the winter was to insulate better. I had done a lot of preparation in setting up the greenhouse back in March, but the Solexx panels are just not very thick and don't hold in heat well. Enter bubble wrap. I had read where many greenhouse hobbyists wrap their greenhouses with bubble wrap. I researched online and found a source that sold the large bubble wrap in four foot widths-a perfect width for me. I ordered it and taped it to the entire inside of the greenhouse-less the door. I had to tape the bubble wrap to the outside of the door due to it interfering with the opening and closing of the door if it was inside. Air is a really great insulator and I think the bubble wrap makes a huge difference with holding in the heat from the space heater. I am relieved the heater does not run all the time and so far, with low temperatures of below 30 degrees, the insulation and heating methods I have employed have worked. I am pretty glad too because I was seriously considering just putting the plants in the garage and not worrying about it. Mr. Fix-it and I both agreed this was not an option. I have a greenhouse so I must use it and I tell you it is better for me and the plants to be in the wonderful humid and warm environment of the greenhouse than to be in the dark and drafty garage. Had enough of greenhouse talk yet? I have so let's move on to one last camellia.....

From In the Garden
I believe this one is 'Jean May' (even if it isn't it is for me because my mother's name is Jean). It grows on the northern end of my home and is really really tall and large. It is simply splendid on this November Bloom Day....

in the garden....

Words and Photos Property of In the Garden Blog Team,

In the Garden

36 comments:

  1. What an interesting post - it's great you'll have so much blooming in your new greenhouse.I've been thinking about bubble wrapping my sunporch to keep it above freezing - sounds like a doable project...

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  2. We have had several mornings with frost and spots of ice. Most of my plants seem to be taking it in stride, have lost some though. Pineapple Sage is a great plant, mine were a little defiant this year, I'll blame the drought. I love your yellow button mums, have never heard of them before. PW Mallow is so pretty...haven't heard of it before either. Have some nice buds on my Camellia, don't know her name though. And I'll leave here with greenhouse envy.

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  3. No frost this far south. I love reading about and seeing your greenhouse. That is really neat about using bubblewrap to better insulate it. We have a radiant heat heater for our little cottage and love it. We found it curbside many, many years ago. It looks like you're all set for winter, and your plants will be happy in their new environment. Much better than the garage, for you and them. More enjoyable for sure.

    Happy winter gardening ~ FlowerLady

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  4. We are still frost free here on the coast, but have flirted with 40. All of my houseplants are still outside, but I plant on moving them in this weekend. I envy your greenhouse.

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  5. Good morning all!

    Cyndy, That bubble wrap is most versatile and pretty easy if you decide to wrap it. A warm sunporch sounds good to me. It would be the perfect spot to have some plants as long as it stays above freezing.

    Hi Darla, I'm sad to see your plants go in sunny Florida. Seems to be that time of the year though. Can't wait to see your camellia!

    Flowerlady, I bet you are so enjoying the garden now that it has cooled down and no frost even! The rest of us will be most envious for that. Those radiant heaters-love em!

    Les, I am thinking you'll be busy moving all your wonderful plants. It is a chore I do not like at all. The greenhouse helped a lot but still many came inside. So great you are still enjoying fairly balmy weather! The ocean is such a good moderator and I miss it so!

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  6. Tina, I am just admiring that pineapple sage--yours really put out some beautfiful blooms before the frost hit. I'm still sad mine didn't get a chance to do much. I can see you have been as busy as usual; I'm glad you were able to get so much into your greenhouse before the frost hit. You'll definitely have a head start next spring.

    What an ingenious use of bubblewrap!

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  7. Happy early bloom day! I like looking back over the seasons too. Your camellias are stunning – that rich color! The greenhouse looks like a fun offset for winter. It's night frozen and windy here in Maine.

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  8. Tina,

    I was looking at some of that foil backed insulation yesterday. My roof areas in the garden shed aren't insulated in any way and I figured that would be easy to install. You should get a radio thermometer that you can put in the greenhouse and you can check it periodically for temps to see where it's going. So far the garden shed hasn't gotten below 35 degrees without any supplemental heat. I'm waiting until seed starting time to worry about the heat issue. The rain barrel is a good idea. Everything I've read says that it is a great way to store the suns energy. Passive solar heating!

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  9. I like the bubble wrap idea. I may put it inside my cold frames to help a bit. A rain barrel inside the greenhouse is new to me but I agree with it holding heat for you. Water changes temperature slower than air so it should help after those sunny days. You have many great plants in there. I hope they do well with their new environment.

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  10. Whenever I have a strong craving for beauty, I pop by your blog. It never ceases to amaze me the explosion of colour by which you are surrounded. If I was religious I would say you're truly blessed. As I'm not, I will say you're very, very lucky. :-)

    Greetings from London.

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  11. Hi Tina,
    You have done a lot to make that greenhouse very functional. I am glad you found a heater that works.
    Is it very expensive for your heating bill? My husband won't let me run a heater in ours... too cost prohibitive.

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  12. I like the bubble wrap idea too.
    I wonder why the ceramic heater did not work, maybe it has a oxygen depleation sensor on it like alot of the lp heaters do today but it sounds like you have just what you want.
    I'm home on this beautiful day in Maine. I need a "study". Figures, who else but me...miss 1%. Ha!

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  13. Looks like you are all ready for the winter! Carla

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  14. You have so much good color. The greenhouse will keep the color going all thru te winter. Awesome that you have it. It probably would cost mega bucks to have one here in Maine. With the ocean behind and across from us, we have not had it too bad so far and I still have some pretty green lettuce and a couple of marigolds looking good.

    You are too sweet and I love you (not just cause you are too sweet, but for a million reasons)!!!!!!

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  15. Great garden. I love the greenhouse. It sure would help save some money. Sounds like your plants will be toasty warm all winter.
    My Camellia doesn't bloom till latter Jan. I don't have a clue as to it's name. I got it in Ga. It sure is eye candy when it blooms. I muust get some of the Pineapple Sage. It is so pretty.
    Bubble wrap--What an idea. Thanks Tina.

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  16. Rose, The bubble wrap might be the next duct tape? Tons of uses:)

    Sarah, I've heard some snow even fell up there. Geez-too cold too soon. Tennessee is having an Indian summer-temps in the 70s-loving it!

    Dave, I got mine at Lowes or Home Depot. It is a big help on the north side of my greenhouse. Make sure you put the foil inside toward where the warmth is. Any bit of insulation helps and even the bubble wrap on your windows would make a difference. It was not difficult to install the foam insulation but difficult to transport-very big and light pieces. I need to look for those temp gauges that will alert me but just haven't had the time. I love the rain barrel inside. Makes for watering so much easier and neater. I'm hoping the passive thingy is working too.

    GSS, One thing I noticed with the rain barrel is tons of condensation on the outside when the temps are different so I'm hoping that means it warms a bit. But not as much as I would've thought. Thanks for the note of encouragement on it. The bubble wrap inside the coldframes would be a good idea for those icy nights.

    ACIL, Greetings from Tennessee! You always leave the nicest comments! I do indeed feel very blessed and happy each day. Thanks for reminding me.

    Rosey, Here in my part of Tennessee our temps are rather mild as far as winters go. Generally the greenhouse will need heat only on cloudy days and nights for the months of Nov, Dec, Jan, and maybe part of Feb then we are warm enough that only a brooder light or seed heat mats will work. We have such a short winter and then we might even have mild days and nights thrown in like this week. I think heating will not be too cost prohibitive but if it gets that way the plants will relocate to the garage. I plan to figure out my costs and will most likely post on it, though I've slowed down on posting. I'd be concerned with the heat if the heater ran all the time but even on the coldest nights it is cycling with a good amount of time between cycles. A relief indeed. I think heating a greenhouse in the mountains would not be a feasible thing for me so I don't blame your husband for saying no. Perhaps you have a nice sunroom that can store plants? That would be the next best thing I think.

    Dawn, You just need to move yourself to the 99% and let your body know no more dang issues! Get well soonest!

    Carla, We are nearly there! Yahoo! I finally got the last of the perennials planted now if I could only take care of the pass a long bulbs....

    Yum Mom, That's your camellia no doubt about it. Christine has a tree, Brian has a garden, now I need only work on Liz and Jimmy for their areas. Hmmmm...


    Lola, The pineapple sage should be hardy down there. It sometimes comes back up here but I do cuttings just in case. It is a sweet easy care tender. I know you can't wait for your camellia to bloom. They are such lovely plants.

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  17. Looks like you have your wintering plants all snug as a bug in a rug! Bubble Wrap, how cleaver is that for insulation!

    I have been MIA from the garden so not sure what has gone on temp wise in our neck of the woods. I think a light freeze as the Fern is still standing tall on the tree stump but the banana is brown and will be cut down today. Sigh.... but I got the baby nanner out of the ground and into the house before my latest TN trip.

    I had the task of scrapping ice off my car windows on Saturday morning just before we left TN. Burrrrrrr, it was cold up there! We stopped in Atlanta for the night and not as cold but our temp was reading 35 for the low on Sunday when we returned home. Way too early for this kind of cold in GA....

    I am enjoying some “me time” with my fur girls before our next trek...

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  18. Pretty cool greenhouse Tina. I bet putting the bubblewrap was kind of funny....how many pops?? I have yet to get the Diamond Frost....really like how it looks. Maybe next summer in the front containers....?
    I thought C. Jean May was a double? We had one in the Learning Garden in VA. Pretty whatever its name is.

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  19. I envy your greenhouse, what a great way to overwinter those tender perennials. Thanks for the info on the 'Slightly Strawberry' Mallow. So pretty! :)

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  20. I'm always so jealous of anyone that can grow camellias. Some year I will live where I can have them! Yours are beautiful.

    I have to say, I was very interested in the greenhouse part of the post ~ I want one (desperately) so learning about the various issues beforehand is helpful. I overwinter my tender plants in the basement but it would be SO nice to not have to haul them down the stairs. I hope the bubble wrap does the trick all winter. Space heaters worry me a little because I've heard of fires being started with them?? Does that concern you at all? I'm sure you've researched all the angles and have it all covered.
    ps I don't blame you for being bummed about losing the pineapple sage ~ you have a gorgeous stand of it.

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  21. Janet, There were a few pops mainly due to the darn sticky tape catching the bubble wrap and pulling it apart. It was difficult! I was not happy about it either. It was also hard not to give into the temptation to pop a few myself-but I held off. The teenaged son did not know about the bubble wrap and still doesn't-I don't need him popping them:)

    Racquel, I'm so looking forward to using my little bargain greenhouse. And you know those PW can't be beat. Did you know 'Limelight' is a Proven Winner?

    Kathleen, I was so worried the first cold night that I would get up every few hours to check and make sure the greenhouse hadn't burned down. Each time I looked I'd see the red light and the way the panels go it looked like fire! Ha! Fortunately I could see it enough to see it was not fire. Whew! After that first night I'm not so worried. The flooring is brick and the heater is far enough away from flammables that the heat will not melt anything and I'm pretty sure nothing will spontaneously combust. So far so good but yes, I think I'll still worry a bit. That pineapple sage was so happy there I tell you. I kind of hope it comes back then again maybe not so as it sure took up a lot of prime real estate. That's a bad gardener huh? I really should lessen my plant load or prioritize more I think.

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  22. I'd miss that stand of Pineapple Sage too, it was gorgeous!

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  23. Wow! Awesome!! These are good days to go to a local greenhouse to see some blooms. Now A days, There are blooms starting to show outside, but we still have a few weeks more of winter. Thanks for brightening up bloom day with the greenhouse blooms!

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  24. Hi Tina, I'm amazed at how much colour you still have in your garden! I've wrapped my greenhouse up in bubblewrap too, but won't be heating it. I've swathed various pots of lovelies in more bubblewrap and fleece, and have my fingers crossed... Its my first year with a greenhouse too. Passive solar heating is a great idea, but I am too jealous of space in my 6'x6'.

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  25. Sweetbay, Thanks!

    Gardening Advice, You must be in Australia? I bet you are most excited about spring and summer coming!

    Janet, You must let me know how your plants do. I hope they do fine. I remember your bubble wrap and was happy to see it. I like mine a lot. My greenhouse is 6 x 8. Small indeed but I look at it this way-it'll keep me honest in that I can't get too many tender plants-think less work. Ha! This we all need.

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  26. Skeeter, I missed you for some reason-so sorry! My mind is in the garden working on some projects and all the other stuff going on. Wonder why all of sudden it seems busy? But nice! I'm glad you had a good visit and safe trips! Good deal on getting your banana tucked away safely!

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  27. Great idea for the bubblewrap. The plants are going to be quite toasty. A heater really helps, but here they use them during the worst of the weather. I would love a greenhouse, but do have access to two of them for use, the problem is driving to them in winter. That would make me lose all enthusiasm for the plants care.

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  28. Wow your garden looks fabulous. Tina I love that you can overwinter, slightly tender plants in your greenhouse with a bit of extra insulation and a space heater.

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  29. How exciting to have that greenhouse this winter!! I hope you have great success with all of your plants. I love the pineapple sage. I think I will try to take some cuttings from mine and keep them on the garage window sill.
    I don't have any fall blooming camellias, I'll just enjoy yours.

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  30. I was thinking that the bubble wrap went on the outside as I have heard of it being used before. Glad I read your post. When we have a nice warm day I will put the bubble wrap in mine. Hubby brought home one day a huge roll of bubble wrap that he had found so I will make good use of it. I have a gutter on my greenhouse where it goes to the inside into a barrel. Hubby also put these big lights inside that are hooked up to a solar sensor (electric one) so it will automatically come on at night. So far it has stayed pretty toasty in there. I hope that my camellias bloom this year. Another find by my hubby where they were bulldozing an area.

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  31. Ulrike, I have no idea if the bubble wrap is supposed to go in or out but I like it better inside where the wind cannot get it and take it away. It really helps. How wonderful your husband found some and some camellias.

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  32. Someday I dream of having a greenhouse! I had a beautiful pineapple sage blooming too, but the very first frost zapped it before I could even take cuttings. I didn't know it was that sensitive! Next year I'll know better. But despite the five or six frosts we've had, I still have a lot of things blooming. Amazing!

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  33. Hi Tina, your opening and closing camellias are breathtaking. And goodness gracious - bubblewrap! I never would have thought of it, great idea. I love your comment that bubblewrap is the next duct tape. Your greenhouse is obviously successful and I enjoyed reading about it.

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  34. I was very interested in the info about your greenhouse since I hope to set one up one day. Love your creative solution to the heating dilemma with the space heater and the bubble wrap.

    Love all the blooms too -- the oxalis, camellias, all of it!

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  35. It must be wonderful to have a greenhouse. I love the oxalis and the pink camellias.

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  36. Ah Tina I am so jealous!! We've built a little lean-to with scrap lumber and plastic sheeting to protect my tender plants. Oh how I would love to have an honest to goodness greenhouse! You lucky duck!! Oh yes, and btw, your garden is lovely ;-)

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