If you have never experienced the wonder of anticipation of picking your own vine-ripened tomato or any number of delicious, nutritious garden vegetables….then you need to consider engaging in this rewarding endeavor. Where ever you live, as long as you have an available location that receives 6 or more hours of sunlight a day, then you have the potential to raise some of your favorite vegetables and herbs.
Whether a backyard ‘green-thumber’, or a bottom-line conscientious commercial manager, owning and operating a properly functional greenhouse throughout the year depends on one’s ability to maintain temperature parameters specific to what you are growing. In the winter, you must keep the temperature from falling below a certain level….typically achieved by providing some type of supplemental heating system.
With today’s demand for increased food production and heightened awareness for the responsible use of our limited resources, ‘Plastic Mulch‘ is proving to be a justifiable addition to the cost of commercial vegetable production around the world. Plastic mulch is extruded from clear polyethylene resin into sheets of film of varying widths and lengths. Generally, the thickness is 1.0 to 1.1 mil (1 mil = 1/1000 inch) although thinner materials are available in high density polyethylene. Because of the inherent physical properties of black and other colored plastic mulches, it modifies the micro-climate around plants, enhancing growth, yield, and quality of horticultural crops. Over many years of experimentation and use since the late 1950’s – plastic mulches have proven to be a boost to agricultural productivity.
If you live where there is little or no open ground for a conventional row or raised bed garden opportunity, then you may want to consider growing in planter boxes or large containers. All you need is a sunny spot that receives 4 – 5 or more hours of sunlight a day and you should be able to grow many of your favorite vegetables and herbs.
Nutritious fresh lettuce can be grown in a greenhouse all year-round. Most lettuce varieties prefers cool weather and may develop spindly growth in conditions with a higher temperature range. The time from planting to harvesting ranges anywhere from 5-6 weeks out to 15 weeks, depending on the variety of lettuce that is grown. Each growing season has particular varieties of lettuces that are better suited to each season. In winter, the varieties are the slowest to grow but tend to be hardy and can survive a light frost. Warmer weather varieties will more than likely require some form of ventilation to keep leaf temperatures cool. Following are some basic steps to help you successfully grow lettuce all year long in a greenhouse. A)Germinate lettuce by sowing the seeds ¼ to ½ inch deep in a fine germination soil mix. Provide sun or artificial light and maintain a cool temperature setting of approx. 60 to 65 degrees to ensure a high percentage rate of germination.
You’re on the right track if you’ve been thinking about starting a garden to grow your own vegetables for family and friends, but lack the yard space and are overwhelmed by bugs and vermin, and by extremes of unpredictable weather conditions. If faced with these challenges, you may want to consider an investment in a quality environmentally controlled Gothic Arch Greenhouse and a hydroponic or aquaponic food production system to ensure a sustainable year around supply of fresh nutritious vegetables and fish.
Successful strawberry production can be easily done using hydroponics (the science of growing plants in soil-less material) in the controlled environment of a Gothic Arch Greenhouse…providing you with berries year-round…protected from birds and other animals. Growing berries with hydroponics can be challenging, yet rewarding as it can be adapted to almost any growing environment. The ideal environment to protect from weather would be inside a quality build Gothic Arch Greenhouse with the use of artificial lighting during the winter months.
We recommend starting with leafy greens like lettuces and herbs. Bibb, romaine and leaf lettuces do particularly well, as does watercress, basil, chives, mint and many other herbs.
The Aquaponic System has been successfully used for growing food fish, ornamentals and bait fish. A table is appended to the end of this Manual to give you an idea of the water quality tolerances of various fish species. When planning this part, pay closest attention to the temperature needs of the fish and make sure the Aquaponic System will be operated within the necessary range. For the plants’ sake, it will be good to aim for stocking enough in the tank to eventually reach a minimum of 25 lbs of fish.
Grow your own organic vegetables all year with the help of a quality greenhouse. The greenhouse is an enclosed structure that allows the gardener to grow crops in a controlled environment. This means that the right nutrients and proper sunlight are provided all year round without having to worry about pests or cold weather. One technique that has proven very effective when using greenhouses is hydroponics. This is done by using nutrient-enriched water instead of soil to grow the crops.
