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jimnpa

My Basement Growing Area

Here are some pics of my bulbs in my basement growing area. I use a combination of HID Metal Halide and CFL lighting. I use heating mats under all the "grow cart" shelves. The bottom heat really gives the new bulbs a kickstart in their development. I spend WAY too much time here watching, notating my records, rotating pots and generally goofing off, enjoying the sights.

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Jim

Comments (64)

  • joshy46013
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    It was 65 degrees here today, thankfully because I haven't had time to plant all my spring bulbs :)

    Cindee, a hot toddy? YUM!!!!!! :)

    To me, growing inside is key, no bugs to spread around virus, I can control ALL the watering and temps, no worryies of something digging up my bulbs and I can enjoy anytime of the year! I would rather have a greenhouse but I don't think I would ever plant most of my Hippies in the ground, to me it's just too risky ;)

  • bluebonsai101
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Sounds like Josh is rationalizing to me ;o) Trust me, I would like to have a GH and then not bother with the whole pots thing at all.....just put the vast majority of my plants directly in the ground and lay around in my hammock and take it all in.....maybe a nice waterfall to create the proper ambiance while I rest my eyes :o) Dan

  • cindeea
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    How about a new Pergola??? Hubby spent this past weekend building and I refinished my potting bench. So Excited!
    {{gwi:438429}}From New pergola

    Plenty of room now for Amaryllis babies to grow, and Hoya, Cacti, and Orchids hanging out..and lots of rich soil to plant a Winter Veggie Garden...OUTSIDE!!!
    (you can click on ling to go to see the whole album)

    Here is a link that might be useful: New Pergola in Paradise

  • e36yellowm3
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Cindee, that's beautiful - what a great project! I especially like that fancy potting bench. Your hoyas and hippi babies look very happy, and I can see why they are.

    Alana

  • ryan820
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I agree with Alana (and I know I can because she's awesome) that that is a beautiful set up, Cindee!!! Color me green!!!!! I mean sure I'm envious but mostly because I like green.

    I'm super fortunate to have some land here in Colorado but no green house yet. I soooooo want one but heating it in the Winter would be tricky-- cooling it in the summer next to impossible without some set up.

    Anyway, I don't mind this set up being in the basement-- kind of an oasis for him. When I grew my orchids in my old apartment, I grew them under lights. You never saw them unless I was flushing the hydroton or they were in flower-- people thought I was (am still) weird-- but I loved it!!!

    DR

  • dondeldux z6b South Shore Massachusetts
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Cindee, Your Pergola and potting bench are sensational...You can color me green too...We all have to adapt to what our particular climate has to offer and whether or not we have an extra room in our home or basement that can be devoted entirely to plants... Most of us enjoy our hobby basically alone, even though our plants fill all the windows, dining room tables and every available surface that gets light... now and them we can get friends or our significant other to humor us but basically it's our own personal hobby. And you can get insects in the house too, aphids, mealy bugs, fungus gnats an occasional moth, or grasshopper, you name it. Even darling Lady Bugs in the fall around here. I'd be in 7th heaven if I could plant my bulbs in the ground and leave them there!! Just my thoughts, as my dream is for a real greenhouse or a solarium added right on to the house!! A solarium would be better so I wouldn't have to go out in the snow to get to my babies...

    Donna

  • cindeea
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Thank you ALL, it is a wonderful new garden world for sure!

  • Marie Tulin
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I'm visiting for the first time from perennials. What a great forum!
    My first thought was "what beauty!" My second thought was "why are the blooming ones in the basement still?" My third thought was "who would enjoy these, and wouldn't it be nice if there was a way to share them in bloom and get them back later?"
    I do have the image of lovely golden-haired Rapunzel in the tower. I see so many people who have so little beauty in their lives, that a surfeit in the basement gives me pause.

    It is a great set up, and the photos and the forum have opened my eyes to a world of flowers that I hardly knew had so much variety.
    Thanks!

  • beachplant
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I put blooming plants in the media room then back into the garden when the blooms are done. Some of my hippis are in pots, most in the ground. We actually have very few plants in the house, though lately I've become obsessed with diffenbachias and have 8 or so in the media room.

    I too admire all the work northen gardeners do. I would just move south myself. I like wearing shorts in January. Though we have too much winter for me. I did love living in Hawaii.
    Cindee, love the potting bench! Mine is covered with plants so I use an actual bench for repotting.
    Tally HO!

  • cindeea
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Tally, my hubby is laughing at me because I have been using the top of the trash can to repot...sos I don't get dirt on my 'like-new' bench! He built a nifty trap door for my sunken potting soil bin. I will take a pic this afternoon as the Poly dries.

  • cindeea
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago
  • Noni Morrison
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    It is such fun, seeing how our amaryllis buddies grow their flowers and what they mean to each of us. I have to share my northern winter amaryllis story with you all...or I guess it is still a late fall story but let me tell you, it feels like winter!

    We got slammed by an unusual storm for this time of year, first high winds, then arctic air coming down from Alaska. We knew it was coming but this was worse then most storms I remember and the 1st time I have had a greenhouse to support through it!

    OK, so we knew that it was going to get cold and that there were strong winds behind it. But we have not been hit by this duel pattern together before. My 8 by 20 foot greenhouse has been purring along with passive solar heat and just started using the electric heater at nights to keep it in the 50's. MOnday night we were hit by freakish cold winds that took down the power lines all over a wide area of the Pacific northwest along with sub freezing temperatures that had dropped to 14 degrees F by last night. It snowed rather lightly all afternoon while the weathermen kept insisting there was not enough moisture in the clouds to add up to much snow. What it gave us was 4" of snow over glare ice that did not melt under the polar sun!

    Went out to start up the propane heater I had ready in the greenhouse Tues morning, as the power had gone off in the night. Only to find....the Greenhouse door was frozen shut! The sky was now crystal clear and the temperature dropping all day. Hubby fiddled with the door several times but could not get it to break loose. He could see that the lock was filled with ice from an overhead condensation drip. Finally, the passive solar build up from the clear sky sun melted it from the inside by afternoon, and we were able to get in and light the propane heater. At that time the indoor thermometer read 52 degrees inside. But the forcast was for it to go way down during the night. At my suggestion, hubby removed the lock and we taped over the hole and leaned a cinder block against the door to hold it shut. He also set up an indoor outdoor remote thermometer. And reassured me that we had enough propane in the 5 gallon canister.

    So this morning, when I got up, the greenhouse thermometer read 57 degrees inside the greenhouse while it was 14F degrees outside. I was happy, even though we were starting our 3rd day with no electricity, cooking over a single propane burner on the porch, and sitting around our gas fireplace. An hour later it read 42 degrees and when I looked at it a bit later it read 35! Yes, it had used up all the "plenty" of fuel! Furthermore, he had not showed me how to change the tank...and after telling me there was more propane in the garage I found out they were all little cylinders for the cooking burner, and no way to attach the heater to them! MY kind neighborloaned me his cooking fuel canister while I braved the 6 miles into town on icy roads, and found one place I could refill my bottle, another where they had 1 5 gal canister left to sell (Which I bought as a back up) and where we bought our food for Thanksgiving in hopes that we could cook it!

    Passed the power company trucks a mile from our house on the way home, and joy of joys the power was on when we got there at 2:30 this afternoon! Phone still is out, but hey, we have internet! MY greenouse electric heater is on and reading 46. I will turn it up real soon...trying to find the right setting on it.

    As the November dusk settles over the land, the amaryllis look pretty good. THe begonia looks dead, the tropicals look limp, but the veggies and perennials look fine. We shall see...we shall see.

    So in the name of the plants that suffered and died, give thanks to your power companies and have a blessed day of THanksgiving with those you love!

    Noni, aka LIzalily

  • bluebonsai101
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Let me say that potting bench looks too good to pot on....I'd be afraid to get it dirty!!

    Wow, the GH story is scary for anyone with a GH in the north....I have heard so many disaster stories like this....I'd love a GH, but I'd be worried constantly about something like that. I'm glad to hear that many of your plants are fine and I hope you have a fantastic Thanksgiving with your hubby, the rest of your family and friends and of course, your plants :o) Dan

  • anna_in_quebec
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    This forum is just full of people showing off! One with his basement, another with her potting bench!

    Just teasing - just green with envy! ;)

  • beachplant
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I don't have a basement, a pergola and my potting bench is covered with plants LOL!

    I wouldn't want to get that potting bench dirty either.

    Noni how horrible, you're handling it pretty good. Stay warm! Let me know if I can send you some tropicals when it warms up this spring.
    Tally HO!

  • Noni Morrison
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    It was so cold that my cart loads of dug dahlias and potted plants in the garage froze solid! NO heat in there. I guess it is good that the dahlias can be re-ordered this early in the season but I thought I would have some lovely ones to share...my most favorite ones.

    Temperature back above freezing, and plants safe. I now will always keep a back up 5 gal cannister of propane in the greenhouse besides the one in use. We are fine as long as we have electricity, and usually our wild wind storms do not occur when it is freezing, but with climate change, it is hard to prepare ahead. Problem is that we live in a forested area with steep slopes off the edge of the island, so sometimes things just slide away taking the power poles with them, and most often it is forests blown into matchsticks, taking the wires down with them. THat is why it is called Wash the Evergreen State. ...Douglass fir branches covering us with a canopy of green branches!

    Today I am so thankful for the friendly neighbor who loaned me propane, and for my good friends here who sympathized with our plight, and that I think the amaryllis will recover!

  • cindeea
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    My Dear Noni, God Bless you with WARTH, ELECTRICITY and a FAT TURKEY for dinner!! You tell a wonderful story, you should write childrens books as you have a way with words. Your story kept me captivated to the end.

    About the potting bench......it is already 6-8 years old! This is the 2nd refinish I have done on it and really lathered on the Polyeurethane this time. The Florida Sun and Rain can do a number on it in no time. Still, I was planting and repotting a bit this afternoon, but could NOT go in to start the Turkey Gravy and finish up making the cranberry fluff until I completely swept the dirt from the table and shelf and wiped it down with a damp cloth!!! God, you'd think it was an antique or something!! LOL Give me a couple months, the bench will be trashed again, I promise you!

    AND jimnpa-I totally miss having a basement like yours living in Florida has it's trade offs...I am sorry we railroaded your original post...I think you have a magnificient way with your amaryllis! I would still love to bunk with them!

    I'd love to see others set ups, benches, work areas.

  • haxuan
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Cindee... that potting bench looks real coooooool! I want one. But well, maybe I better not have one because... I won't use it anyway... because I don't want to stain it :-)

    You will love potting up, potting on, and re-potting all your plants, though.

    Thanks for sharing.

    Xuan

  • brigarif Khan
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    We are all nuts,
    Your problum 14F, Mine 125F and still we are crazy about growing it. Jims basement reminds me of Harem of a Khalif.
    Arif

  • Noni Morrison
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Arif, What a hoot! I think you are right but have never seen one so am not sure!

  • bluebonsai101
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    So, here is what you call a far less organized indoor set-up...also a bit more crammed in as you can see!! There are two 400W MH lamps, two 105W CFL bulbs (equivalent to 400W bulb in your house) and a set-up with eight T5 lamps:

    This is the whole area.....you can see the large Urginea and you may also notice a Scadoxus blooming a Worsleya with a bloom spike emerging and just general clutter!!

    {{gwi:438435}}

    Here are a few other shots showing just how big of a mess I can make:

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    Lots of Brunsvigia, Boophane, Gethyllis and other smaller plants in here including a few caudiciforms:

    {{gwi:438441}}

    I'd like to say that some day I would be more organized, but honestly no chance of that in my lifetime I'm afraid.

    I have another 40-50 pots of Haemanthus, Rauhia, etc in a different part of the basement just under standard shop lights and then maybe 50 or so pots upstairs in windows....a big improvement over previous years :o) Dan

  • cindeea
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Dan, honey, You may see it as disorganized and crammed, but to any plant lover it is pleasing eye candy. I don't know if it is just me but I actually look at each of your plants, one-at-a-time. Take in how and what you grow and form an opinion(very good one) about the grower. Anyone who can have such a diverse collection and also loves cats....yep the litter bucket did not escape me(mother of 2 old felines myself). We all do what we can to keep our addiction alive! I just wish you all in the north could have one season of outdoor Florida growing. WOW what an experience it is and then we get 6 weeks of unexpected frost and it dashes all our hard work and good intentions. What we do is curse, stomp our feet, even cry...and then start over next season. NEVER apologize for the way you love and grow things...EVER! I think it looks GREAT! It is a part of what makes YOU the bluebonsai we enjoy!

  • dondeldux z6b South Shore Massachusetts
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I am doing the same thing, looking at each plant one at a time, even though I don't know what most of them are, they all look very healthy and happy...great job and if I ever posted a picture of our garage, half work shop and half potting shed, you'd all feel really really neat..

    Donna

  • bluebonsai101
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Thanks Cindee and Donna.....it is all sort of crammed in there, but I, like everyone here, enjoy going down there and watering and puttzing around checking on all my babies to see what new growth there might be, etc. It is a rather eclectic mix of things I must admit, but it is the variety that makes it exciting for me.

    Yep, we have 2 cats in the household (nice catch)....a good ol' tabby and a black and white terror!! We also have 2 tortoises, a Hermann's and a Russian that are actually in a cage running along the opposite wall from my plant set-up so I can go down and feed them and check on the plants every day :o) Dan

  • brigarif Khan
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    AH THE LONGING OF AN ENCAGED FREE SOUL FOR THE MOTHER NATURE.

  • kitty747
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    To each and everyone who posted on this thread, I have so thoroughly enjoyed all of your comments, stories, and ideas. I feel as though I have just come into your homes and visited. As for living in the North in the winter, it's a constant worry if the electric and heat will stay on, if the winds are not too strong, and come about April, if things will cook in the greenhouse. But I do like living in NW NJ. Our license plates say "The Garden State" for good reason. We're close to NYC and to the Philadelphia Flower Show in March. Me happy :-) Kitty

  • anna_in_quebec
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    You said it, Cindee - I drink in photos such as these - look at each plant, their pots and everything else - eye candy indeed! I have a modest setup in the basement too, just a few shoplights on pulleys (discovered those last year). Do metal halide take a significant amount more electricity than fluorescents?? Are they very expensive?

  • ryan820
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Well-said Cindee, Donna et al. I completely agree with you all.

    Dan your collection is impressive. All I can see you missing is perhaps a monkey swinging on a vine. Keep collecting, I'm sure one will sneak in.

    Funny story, but true-- when I still lived back in Pennsylvania on the family farm I was already collecting plants and one of my tropicals came with an animal!!!! I had a humidifier running in the Winter time and this lizard appeared by the machine, as if to say he was thirsty! It was when I made arrangements for that lizard to keep living there that I realized I could either see this as a problem, or a blessing.

    Many years later, I still feel very blessed. LOL

    My hat off to all you basement growers!!! Its amazing the culture you can give in such a control environment. I never used MH lights but you can ask Alana and Phoenix Ryan about my year living in an apartment-- oy! I had-- still have-- a metro cart like the ones you see in restaurants and I fixed many many lights to it to grow all of my plants. The hippies never did very well in those conditions but my orchids flourished.

    I count my blessings every day that I now live in a home with a solarium. Not only is it a heating source for our home but it also is the home of many happy plants. The house is older and needs some help but we're working hard on that. But for now, the plants love it. I'll take photos to share.

    Denver Ryan

  • joshy46013
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I would love to see your solarium :) You seem to have the most interesting growing conditions, it's so intriguing!!! I love to learn how each one of us grow our babies, right now I'm using just standard CFL daylight bulbs with many clip on lamps, my plants all see to really like this, they're green as can be ;)

    Here is a picture or two of mine from just the Hippeastrum and seedlings room :) *It's quite a mess, I can't wait till I get a greenhouse!*

    {{gwi:438444}}

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    Each stand has three tiers, I have 4 stands.

  • cindeea
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Oh heck Josh, I hate to say this but mine, seedlings to mature bulbs grow on my potting bench, under my pergola, by the pool, on the patio, in my circle bed in the front yard, by the mailbox, in my Frangipani planters, in my Josephs coat climbing rose planter, under the tonato plants...well...wherever I can find room for them...and with that, it is getting into the 30s tonight in Florida...THAT ain't right!

    ((((Kitty))) nice to see you! (((Ryan)))Lizards rock!

  • ryan820
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    OK here's a peek into my grow space. My solarium/sunroom is on the west side of the house so it enjoys ample sun from the south and to the west as the day wanes.

    {{gwi:438451}}

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    Having seen others' grow spaces, mine looks sparse!!! But I feel like I have a bazillion plants. Many are in dormancy, too. Except the orchids, which are all part of the plants you see here. Many are in spike-- today I found my 21st spike. Royal Velvet is in there somewhere too-- next up to bloom. I only have five seedlings of my own growing-- several more I got from Alana. The only seedling I've grown myself is a Fortune x Tosca cross. Hopeful it'll be a beauty.

    Here is my Orchid ICU-- a seedling I bought recently but the cold weather here nixed the roots during shipping-- new roots are growing but its slow going. I use a meat thermometer to measure the moss temp-- the warmer the better for phal roots!! To the left of the ICU is another phal tha had no roots but is now flourishing. And of course, the others are hippie seedlings-- Fortune x Tosca.

    {{gwi:438458}}

    My recovering seedling...
    {{gwi:438460}}

    Denver Ryan

  • bluebonsai101
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Josh, some nice looking blooms there!!!!

    Ryan, your grow room is just wonderful......I would just love to have something like that....the back of our house faces due north and is one story up......I'd love to enclose that with a grow room, but in all honesty it would get virtually no sun during the winter and would have to be insulated like crazy below to avoid massive heating issues!! I have never tried an orchid, but my wife would actually like those :o)

    Anna, yes MH bulbs require more electricity by far.....you can calculate the cost by multiplying the Watts of the bulb times the # of hours used per day to get KW hours (400W would be 0.4 kW times 12 hrs per day is 4.8 kW per day times 30 days per month is 144 kW per month times how much you pay per kW on your electricity (maybe 15-20 cents per kW or so).....so with that cost and those hours on and that wattage would be maybe $24-29 per month to run during the winter. Honestly, what you would maybe want to consider is one of the T5 set-ups like I have.....these are newer and the cost has dropped considerably compared to a few years ago......the 8 bulb set-up I have in my pic puts out the same amount of light as a 400W HID bulb, but costs much less to run.....can't remember the amount on that one to be honest.

    More indoor pics anyone :o) Dan

  • cindeea
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Josh, forgive me dear, I neglected to tell you your set up is SUPER! What medium do you use with your seedlings? they look so GREEN!

    DenRyan...wow What a Beautiful people and plant growing space! More on your orchids please!! I am so stoked to finally have my new pergola and a Proper Orchid hanging place!!! Is the solarium glassed in or can you remove/open the window spaces in warm weather?

  • joshy46013
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Thanks guys! Cindee, I use 1 part long fiber sphagnum moss and 1 part perlite, I fertilize every watering! I noticed that makes a big difference to fertilize at every watering.

    Cindee, did you get my email :)?

  • ryan820
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Josh its hard to believe you weren't a hybrid fan a few short months ago.

    Plant addiction is interesting to watch. Thank GOD we addict ourselves to things that bring joy to the world instead of hurt. Josh could easily be in rehab by now ;o)

    Thanks Dan and Cindee. This house was God-sent. Carrie and I were living in an apartment with our new baby and we were itching to move on. It only took the worst financial disaster since the Great Depression to get us this house. HA! Lucky we both kept our good jobs and the fact that the original and only owners of this place were eager to get rid of it because they moved to be closer to their children in CA. All of this got us into this house and we love it. It has so many issues but none of them are terrible-- just needs some TLC. The solarium was an enormous score. I hadn't planned on looking for a house that had one but enough people in Colorado appreciate the ample sun we get and have been building them more and more. This one already had a solarium and it's been great.

    Cindee the windows don't budge, except for four smaller ones near the bottom of walls. When open, they let a fair amount of air flow through. This room also has two external doors that can be opened but screened so there is more fresh air. And of course the door to the main part of the house. All combined, especially on a windy day, this place airs out fast!

    The room itself needs some help, though. I believe it has settled a bit much on the south side and the underside is not enclosed. We plan on releveling it this summer and closing the underside so air can't move through, nor can animals hide.

    Cindee re the orchids-- mostly phals-- only a few others...catts, a brassia and one dendo. The brassia is growing like a weed but I think it may have an infection-- so I need to give it some meds. The catts do ok but its the dendo and phals that thrive here. Everybody grows in hydroton and because of the climate control I have, I've been able to get every single mature phal to spike this year-- some multiple times.

    Here's my latest bloom:

    {{gwi:438462}}

    Possibly the cutest little bloom ever. The color isn't true in the photo though-- its an art shade (orange/red/purple color) and is really beautiful. Its Dtps Tying Shin Smart and I scored it off the Lowe's clearance for a buck.

  • dondeldux z6b South Shore Massachusetts
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Well, Guys, I'm really feeling sorry for myself right about now..! Ryan, your solarium is just what the doctor ordered, it's what I really want, more that a greenhouse, so that I wouldn't have to tromp through the snow in the winter to get to my flowers.

    Josh, you're setup looks really great also, you are so lucky to have a "spare room" to turn into your garden heaven, all your plants look so vibrant and healthy, I congratulate you.. you're doing a great job...and your seedling all look great too....

    And one thing I definitly notice, the guys are much more orderly and organized and generally neater than the gals, no offence girls, I guess it must just be me as I have plants on every available surface in this house that gets some sun. Luckily we do have lots of sunny windows, but oh what I wouldn't give for a solarium...all my plants, my computer and all the mess that goes with it and all our horticultural books all in one room...I don't think I could stand it the rest of the house would seem so empty!
    I really love seeing how the rest of you guys house your collections, it makes me feel like I know you all better...! Thanks everybody for sharing your inner and outer sanctuaries with all of us...

    Donna

  • cindeea
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hey Donna, ya ever notice Mother Nature doesn't use plant shelves or plant markers...she's a beautifully messy creature AND female!

    Ryan I Love love love that orchid. I must take some shots of my 2 Phal bloomers under the pergola for you. I still am enamoured by your sensational photo eye for the details. My one and only trip to CO left me thinking everyone has plants and flowers. There is something very close to nature in everyone there. That was the time I met Lee Majors and we danced, he was getting over his breakup with Farrah, he tried to steal my table at a lodge in Aspen...that was WAY TOO MANY YEARS AGO...he was only a 'fair' dancer BTW!! lol

    Josh, we need to talk again. Which e-mail?

  • quail
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Well, you are all blessed with wonderful areas to grow your hippies in. I have a small collection with limited growing space. Some of mine grow in containers in the greenhouse window in my kitchen. Others grow in containers that sit outside on a round metal table. During this last summer, this table was in the yard in partial shade. Now, it is on my upstairs deck close to the building to protect the hippies as the nights have been in the 30s. At some point in the spring, the table will move back to the yard as I think the deck will get too hot for the hippies.
    And I'll continue to figure out more places where I can put my hippies so I can expand my collection... :)
    Michelle

  • Edie
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Wow. Thanks everyone for a big dose of eye candy. I think all of your growing setups are beautiful. And such lovely plants in them. *wipes drool*

    I share a one bedroom city apartment with my boyfriend and my green menagerie. "Clutter" describes the space aptly. But I won't give up my green pets. It snowed on Halloween this year. The ancient Celtic division of the year, with winter starting around Halloween and ending in May, fits upstate NY's weather pattern nicely.

  • haxuan
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I'm the "odd one"; I must hide some of my plants from the sun! Here's my growing area in the shade-house where I keep mostly seedlings and shade-requiring plants.

    {{gwi:438464}}

    {{gwi:438466}}

    {{gwi:438468}}

    Xuan

  • dondeldux z6b South Shore Massachusetts
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Wow! Just beautiful Xuan...and let us know when you finally receive your RC order! Hopefully it will be soon..!

  • Noni Morrison
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Xuan, exactly what I want for my amaryllis in Summer, but without the shade, just the insect protection! What a lovely space that is!

  • joshy46013
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    For some reason I grow all my Hippeastrum in shade, do most of you grow them in full sun?

  • dondeldux z6b South Shore Massachusetts
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Really?? You grow them in shade?? And, you get repeat blooms the next year?? Mine are out in the hot sun all summer long and late in the season I move them to follow the sun...and in the house, I try to give them as much sun (at least a couple of hours a day) as possible. What say the rest of you...? Even my Papilios get at least 1/2 day of full sun, and by the way, I have 2 buds emerging on 2 Papilios bought from different vendors. One that bloomed last year and the other a first time bloomer..! How great it that!!

    Donna

  • ryan820
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Xuan I love your space!!!! It looks well-protected but also breezy and open. Well done!

    Josh I grow mine in full sun too and at 6500' thats a lot of sun-- but the plants thrive in it. I don't know what others do or what the books say (Read's book?) but my plants-- especially the pap- get over 12 hours of direct sun at the height of the Summer. The trick is keeping them well watered and fed-- given that they won't hold back.

    Of course, I have to ease my plants into outdoor growing. The change in sun intensity from inside to outside is exceptional for these plants and then add in the fact that I live in a high-wind area, it takes me a while to slowly move my plants into the full sun areas. Once there, they usually shed many of their winter leaves and replace them with very thick summer ones that with-stand the Spring winds. Of course, if we get a hail storm, they lose all of their leaves, but on advice from mental health professionals, I don't think about that possibility any longer. LOL

  • radarcontactlost
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    I thought I would throw my hat into the ring and show my little greenhouse and growing setup. Its a hodge podge of things, but the hippis are in the back. Sorry about the quality, iphone camera sure is convenient but not the best.

    {{gwi:438470}}

  • bluebonsai101
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Hi Xuan, fantastic environment you have there...I am envious of being able to grow things outside all year long!!

    I have my Hippis in shade....not because they want that, but because I am too lazy to adapt them over the summer! The rest of my Amaryllids get full sun, and I mean full sun.....easily 12 hours in June and July when the sun is out from 6 a.m. to 9:30 p.m. However, my Hippis get watered only by the rain unless it has been at least 2 weeks without rain and then they get watered......my Hippis are my abused plants I hate to admit on this forum :o) Dan

  • haxuan
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Donna: I got my RC shipment last weekend; they were good bulbs :-)

    (I posted about that right after receiving the order.)

    Thanks very much for your kind thoughts.

    Xuan

  • bluebonsai101
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Radar, nice growing space you have there!! Am I seeing some Amorphophallus in there and maybe even Am. titanum?

    OK, more growing areas anyone :o) Dan

  • radarcontactlost
    13 years ago
    last modified: 9 years ago

    Dan,

    Thanks, yeah there are lots of amorphs in there. Most of my collection has gone dormant now, thankfully. It would be impossible to fit them all into that little greenhouse. The ones in the middle are A. Titanums, good eyes. The big one is also finally going dormant, its been up for 18 months or so.

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