Modesto, Central Valley, CA...

Great idea, I love it !

Well, I did it! I just ordered the Scarecrow Motion Activated Sprinkler...should arrive by the end of next week. I can hardly wait to set it up and see what happens! Oooooohhhh, I've got the giggliest giggles going on right now just thinking of what might happen!!!

I'm really hoping there will be some way to attach a timer to the battery so we can have it turn on and off at dusk and dawn. Maybe I'll have to invest in a water timer and attach that to the hose that will attach to the Scarecrow. Hmmm, this could get complicated! OK all you engineers out there...help me out here and I promise I'll post pics of the funnies that are sure to happen in the garden!

Yesterday morning we started building our greenhouse! Finally!! We had sunshine (almost blinded us!) all day and the temp got up to 59...Yahooie!

Our neighbor and fellow gardener Ralph helped out all day and I'll tell you ... even with the VERY detailed instructions for building this 6' x 8' Snap & Grow kit from Home Depot...it still took us until 4pm to get the frames put together and some of the window panels in place. Well, almost 2 hours was sorting and inventorying the jillions of parts! Then we had neighbors stopping by off and on asking if we were building a "dog house" for Al!!

After the inventory we realized we had a broken part so I called the maker of the greenhouse (Palram in PA) to discuss the broken part and a few missing screws (which they are shipping immediately, FREE!) and Frank, the really nice guy on the phone said to take it one step at a time, don't skip steps, working on it kinda like building with Legos. I know how to do that...with 3 small grandsons I know all about those Legos!

I'll post pics this evening after we complete (?) the greenhouse today. Well, as complete as we can until we receive the replacement part.

This is soooo exciting!

Here are the pics of day one of Greenhouse Construction...
The first couple of hours we spent doing inventory. The boxes are filled with all the jillion parts!


The work finally begins. That rubber mallet was pretty handy!


Some of the parts were hard to find, even with our carefully sorted baggies!


This is hard work! One of those parts fell and hit me in the face...ouch!


Two hours later...you can see the shadows on the ground...we're tired!


Seems the ground is not level and tweaking the frame. Grrrrr...


We decided to quit for the day. It was 4:30pm and we had started just before 10am with one very short lunch break. We were all getting a bit grouchy and it was time to stop and regroup in the morning. Some of the panels are in place, others just refuse to slide in the grooves. By shimming under the bottom frame we can make them work. The key is to work on a level surface!

Friday, 03 Feb 2011...here we go again!
Because the side walls of the Greenhouse are so short, and we have some tall gardeners, we decided to make a foundation. After a short discussion Ralph said he knew of some blocks available. A quick check with Management and we were on our way!

Ralph used his fun golf cart (many of the residents here in our park have these to use in the park instead of wasting gas in our cars) and he and Al made a few trips collecting the blocks needed for the foundation.


Ralph's golf cart, with the cute fuzzy dice, got a work out hauling these blocks!


...and so did Al and Ralph!


So the foundation begins...


...and of course the existing pad is not level!


Stress sets in as the concrete sets up! This is very rapid drying stuff!


Al is still worried but it's 5pm and time to stop for the day, a very long day!


That was the end of the second day. This morning Al and Ralph are out there making frames to hold the blocks and concrete in place. The foundation will be fine, I have no doubt about that...but what a hassle working on stuff that other people did wrong in the first place! Why in the world the previous owners of this lot would have poured pads for sheds that were that far off...we just don't know!

A few more details about that block foundation. Al and Ralph made a trip to Home Depot for the concrete, some rebar, and some L-bolts. They drilled into the existing pad and pounded some short pieces of the re-bar into those holes which were inside the openings of the blocks...this pinned the blocks in place. The guys then poured some concrete into the holes to keep everything together. At about every 6th opening in the blocks a bolt was held in place as the guys poured concrete into that hole too. This L-bolt will be used to come up through the 2x6 wood plank that will cover the tops of the blocks. This will keep stuff from falling into the holes and block much of the air coming in through the blocks. The wood will be our anchor when the bottom frame of the greenhouse is attached. Yes, a whole lot more complicated method than just setting the greenhouse frame on the ground, but this will prevent any lifting with winds, and allow for our taller gardeners to work easily.
More to follow!

I'm tired from just reading this!!! WHEW.

Hello there! I'm new to SFG and am starting my garden this year. I have grown a garden before...just not a Square foot one. I was thrilled to find a local square foot gardener. Your plots look wonderful and Wohoo! on the green house!!!

I wanted to ask, is it to early to start my seeds? Or am I too late on some. I did plant some potatoes last week.

I have started the following:

tomatoes
bell peppers
turnips
beets
Romaine lettuce
carrots
broccoli

Is there another really good veggie I should try? I'm open to try new and unusual veggies.

Thanks for any help!
Susan

Hey Susan!
Take a look at the list I posted in another thread...you'll see a link to a great site where you can find tons of stuff to plant in our area. Great to have another "local" gardener". Here's the link
https://squarefoot.forumotion.com/t4965-what-to-plant-in-northern-california-and-central-valley-areas

Also, if you're in the Modesto area please feel free to come on by and see our gorgeous Apollo Garden! The greenhouse is almost finished and the gardeners are anxious to start using it. PM me for the exact address.

FarmerValerie wrote:I'm tired from just reading this!!! WHEW.

...yeah, we're tired tonight too. Al and I were putting the last panels in the greenhouse as some of our neighbors walked by and commented on how much time we spend out there in the garden. Yes we do!! We love it, but yes, we're sure tired by the time the sun goes down!

How many more days until ????

Thanks for that link! What a wonderful resource. Can you believe our weather today? I've been sitting outside most of the day. Until...of course... the ball game started. I don't watch football but, I do like all the dumb commercials...HAHAHA

mrsfish94 wrote: Can you believe our weather today?

I LOVE the weather we're having but it looks like a new set of storms coming in next week...at least we'll get the rain we need!

Right after we set the greenhouse down on the foundation and bolted it to the planks, the wind started. We had really tough gusts through the night and at one point I kept insisting Al go out and check. He's such a sweetheart...after midnight, in his pj's and slippers he went out to check...yep, it was still standing and OK. Whew! I had visions of the panels blown over the fence to the neighbor's yard.

Now to get the shelves built and installed and we can start seedlings!

I am so glad your green house didn't fall over...LOL!!! That would be very disappointing.

I have been out in the garden today. I have a 16 foot by 7 foot flower bed that I'm turning into my SFG. It's going to have (3) 4X4 planters and (3) 2X4 planters. I got half done today...and plan to finish the rest tomorrow. I want to get it done before the rain comes. I'm using pavers to separate the areas. When I'm done I'll post before and after photos.

As for seedlings, they are on a folding table in my living room. I take the trays outside during the day and bring them in at night. I have beet seedlings, a few turnips, one Romaine lettuce and a few of my tomatoes are coming up.

Do you think it's too late for broccoli?

I am so exhausted. I hand tilled the rest of the flower bed and put down the pavers. My legs and hands hurt.

As promised here are my before and afters.


Before



After


What do you think?

Looks gorgeous. Can't wait to see the boxes.

Thanks!!!

I wasn't going to make raised boxes. I was just going to plant straight in the ground. I know boxes are better. But, the light hits the back wall of our house and really warms up our soil. (it's completely south facing) Especially, in the summer.

I figured I've give this a try...If it doesn't work...I'll make raised boxes next year.

mrsfish94 wrote:Thanks!!!

I wasn't going to make raised boxes. I was just going to plant straight in the ground. I know boxes are better. But, the light hits the back wall of our house and really warms up our soil. (it's completely south facing) Especially, in the summer.

I figured I've give this a try...If it doesn't work...I'll make raised boxes next year.

Are you going to use mel's mix or any other improved soil? One of the beauties of the raised bed and MM is the wonderful looseness of it. The main thing is once the soil is loose not to walk on it but you seem to have that covered. Good luck.

Oh yes! I did add an organic soil amendment before I tilled the ground. I plan on adding something more to the top before I add my seedlings/seeds. Something to keep it from drying out so fast because of all the reflected heat.

I used a weed block on my garden last year and it kept my garden soil moist. But I can't really use that with SFG. Or can I?

What is your opinion?

WOW, those look great.

This is an amazing thread! I am so excited about what you have been able to do there, what you have in store for the future, and what I am going to try to accomplish in my little yard along with you this year! Now, if only the snow would go away...

It's raining...it's windy... I just planted my Heirloom Tomatoes...and I pray they are going to make it.

I'm ready for our spring!

Think TUESDAY! We're supposed to have sunshine on Tuesday...but rain all tonight and all day Monday. Yuck. Al planted some of his tomatoes in our backyard a few days ago. Poor little things...but he placed some lawn chairs over the little guys, then some protective covering to help protect from that howling wind we had yesterday and all last night. So far, so good! One day of sun coming up, then four more days of rain predicted. Geesh...when do we get back into Spring weather???

Here is the rest of the progress of building our greenhouse. I left off describing the L bolts that would hold the wood planks in place. This is how they look:


We coated the wood planks with a water seal to protect as much as we can:


Al is determined to get that foundation as level as possible!


The holes for the L bolts were carefully marked by placing the wood plank over the top of the bolts-in-blocks and hit sharply with a hammer to make a mark where the holes should be drilled. Did I say "carefully" and "should be"?? Yeah, Al did a great job and they all came out exactly right!


The metal base that attaches the greenhouse frame to our foundation was then bolted in place...we used more bolts than probably necessary, but hey, this thing is not supposed to fly away, right??!


We recruited a couple of extra guys to lift and carry the greenhouse to the foundation. Yes, this is how the instructions say to do it...build it first, then set it down on the foundation. We placed 8' long boards under the front edge and the back edge of the bottom of the greenhouse frame, then each guy was to lift at the same time and walk it over to the foundation. Didn't happen that way, one guy lifted early and nearly tweaked the whole thing while two of us were loudly (screeching?!) telling him to lower it!! It worked out OK, no apparent damage, whew!


This is from the inside of our greenhouse, looking out at the garden and our helpers. Beautiful day today...remember last month when we had beautiful clear days of sun in the 70s??


Al and I worked on that darned door for several hours before getting the hinges set just right so both parts of the door would close properly. The top of the door is separate so you can open it for ventilation. Nice touch, but so tricky to get it just right!!


Finished...finally!! Actually it only took a few days but that was because we added the cinder block foundation, bolts, and concrete that had to dry. Putting together the greenhouse itself was fairly easy, just follow the pictures and ta da! Done!! This picture was taken at 5:56pm on February 7,2011. The sun is still coming through the lattice wall behind the greenhouse, still lots of light, and that was BEFORE daylight saving time!


Al built some great shelving units for inside the greenhouse and one of the units is partially complete. All the rain we've had since those beautiful days last month have kept us from finishing the whole project. We had jinormous wind gusts a couple of nights ago and I was sure the greenhouse would have some damage...nope, it's just fine! Guess using all those extra bolts to anchor it down was a really good thing. And of course this is a great product! We highly recommend this particular greenhouse and the engineers who designed it. I'd love to meet the person who figured out how all those tiny parts would fit together and do what they do!! Amazing.

Now, the downside of our lovely greenhouse...things got just too humid inside for the new seedlings, even with the door and window left open! Al's little bitty toms and peppers almost died from the humidity! Do we need a fan?? Once he took them out and kept them in our house they were OK. Now he's transplanted most of the little guys into larger containers. Some are already planted in our backyard. Carolyn Phillips, you'd be proud of what Al has built for his toms...you are a great inspiration! When the rain stops...maybe next week??? ...we'll plant our SFG boxes in the Apollo Garden, and more in our backyard...but that's another story!!
Think Spring! Think SUN!!

Your greenhouse looks wonderful!!! I wish I would have had that on Thursday afternoon...when we got hailed on...LOL!!! It hailed so much, it looked like snow.
My husband looked at some pictures that I took and asked ...are you sure it wasn't snow? HAHA I had to laugh at the comment.

I had already planted my tomatoes (which you already knew) I had beans (bush&pole) emerging. They all made it..thank goodness!

I just have to say...Yay! Sun and 80 degree weather is coming this week!!! I am so excited!

We didn't have that much hail, some, and it came down hard...but the RAIN!! At one point it looked like fog, we just couldn't see down the street. Al's toms in the ground were protected but he had some in small pots that were rushed back into the house. Today was pretty nice...and tomorrow is gonna be better. Hey, I think we might finally have some Spring!! And this is what Al is doing...

Al has been hard at work in our Apollo Garden, harvesting the crops that grew all winter, replenishing the soil in the garden boxes, sharing the harvest with several neighbors, and creating new and interesting meals.
Now for the REALLY hard part...what to plant and where!?!


He finally has it figured out, well, mostly. Some things get planted and then moved, sorta like moving furniture in the house...he just can't decide on a few of the plants! And seeds that start in one square may just get scooped up and redeposited elsewhere...hey, this isn't an absolute science ya know!



As you can see, most of us are trying to be a bit pro-active this year in combating those darned cutworms that we battled at the end of summer. We've already had a bad infestation of Harlequin bugs. The hoops have bird netting on them at the moment in hopes of keeping the larger moths out at night, not to mention the neighborhood cats! The taller square covers have tulle netting that are actually keeping the aphids out. Well, at least the fat little guys! I watched one the other night as he tried for quite some time to squeeze through the opening. I left after about 20 minutes and the next morning found him still stuck, and now dead. The netting worked! If the little aphids can't get through them hopefully the larger flying things can't either. Not sure what we'll do about needing pollination from the bees.
:scratch:

More updates coming. Also, we're planning to add several more garden boxes along the outside edges of the garden area. A few more neighbors want to get in on our Apollo Garden! Yahooie!! With our 70+ degree weather, who can blame them??