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rayinpenn

A word of caution Greenhouse Fever...

rayinpenn
12 years ago

My gardening addiction (greenhouse fever) a warning.

Last year I put a few seed starting trays in my sunken budget cold frame. (You know plastic drop clothes for panes). I was busy on the road with work so the the kids and wife watered it and monitored for me. When I finally got back to it everything had germinated and was huge. Of course as the eternal pessimist I had put too many seeds per cell. I hate to thin it feels sinful. But wow amazing. Did I mention I hate buying overpriced veggie trays from the garden center. I didn't know for sure but it was then that I believe I contracted greenhouse fever. I just don't remember if the eye twitching started then.

So I built a mini PVC greenhouse 4 by 8 maybe 3.5 feet high. I grew lettuce (Black Seeded Simpson) in the fall under it -the crop was fantastic. I posted pictures on the web and got ooh and ah's. So a couple of days Ago Carolyn tells me that a Neighbor we hadn't met previously stopped by to compliment the mini greenhouse. It was the second one. I am sure thats when winter dormant GH fever was awakened. My eye was twitching a mile a minute.

So we immediately planted lettuce, broccoli and cauliflower in the mini GH. The fever hit stage 2 on Friday night. I was delirious searching the web for guess what: greenhouses.

So I started the Saturday (yesterday) by having Carolyn (the wife) searching the AARP magazine for a harbor freight 20% coupon. Once located we set off to HF with the intention of buying their 6 by 8 greenhouse. I thought for $250 I could be cured. As I drove the negative reviews about the HF greenhouses continued to float around my feverish head, I had doubts: snow load, wind, blown out panes, bad doors, calking-so I asked Carolyn "Does BJ's ever have coupons?" They have the Easy Grow 6 by 8 greenhouses as online items. She said yes but we have to look online. So I treated her to some Dunkin Donuts (I spoil her terribly!) and then we hit the Lowe's for some deer fencing and headed back home.

She checked for BJ's coupons and said there wasn't any. However she did a search and found WayFair stocked an 8 by 8 for $1309 free shipping (yes, yes little bigger) By now the greenhouse fever had me fully in its grips I said yes, yes please buy it and handed her my credit card. Carolyn placed the order and I could feel the fever leave my body. Well five minutes later she types in 'Wayfair coupons' into google and finds a 10% coupon expiring in a few days. She calls them and bam $130 savings.. Sweet!

Now I am deliberately avoiding greenhouse advertisements since dare I say it there are bigger and better GH's out there. I think I have the greenhouse fever licked.

I do have another concern thought, once I grew lettuce last year I couldn't even look at iceberg. So this year I already have three varieties going and when my wife mentioned how she really liked the romaine I grew. I swear my eye started to twitch a little..LETTUCE FEVER? Do you how many varieties there are?

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