Brugmansia House

[kHT]

We are half way there in setting it up!!

[kHT]

Here is the completed plastic framed house!! We have some minor taping but I ran out of duct tape. I need to redo the inside PVC light stand as it sways to much. After we finished I went out front and look what was blooming!!
Hunter was in bloom again for the fourth flush!! I really don't want to cut him back.

[LucyGoose]

Awwwww on the Hunter seedling.......that last picture is so pretty!

[VThosta/daylilylover]

Pretty bloom!
Don't know where you are zone-wise so I'm wondering if your greenhouse will keep the plants from freezing over the winter or just warmer? Will you have it heated? Looks like a lot of cubic feet in there!

[kHT]

Thanks Goose, Hunter is becoming one of our favorites!

VThosta/daylilylover, that house is 11' X 11' which we place two heaters in there with thermos. so they will run when needed. This one will house all the brugs, eppies and a few of the hardier Passiloras. Last year we kept them at 40 and well that wasn't enough. So this year it's 50, the other smaller house we keep at 60ish and that will house the tropical of tropicals. They both will be so full there will only be a small path to walk in them.

[eastwood2007]

What kind of heaters do you use, Karma? What are your outside low temps for the winter? What is your first frost date? Last frost date?

[kHT]

eastwood2007, we are on the valley floor across the bridge from Portland. Last frost is April 15th and we can get frost by mid Nov., it really depends on the Elnino or what's her name? We have had snow and icy for a solid 3 weeks but when that happens, well they close the city down. In the history books out here they have seen the Columbia River iced over enough that folks could walk across it?

I use 2 1500 watt maxi heaters to heat this one, they are digital and can be set for high & low temps. Plus we run a fan out there 24/7 so the air circulates.

[eastwood2007]

I use 1500 watt electric heaters...sometimes I have to use 3 of them. DH is going to put a propane heater in this year??? Haven't tried that before, but I always had good success with the electrics... Our last frost date is May 10 and average first frost is Oct 20 although it is much warmer than usual this year...my greenhouse is already to go, but I don't have anything in it yet...like yours, it gets packed full!

[kHT]

We are set for winter! This year due to the upward prices of electcity we are only keeping the old house right above freezing.
We have moved all the babies to the brug house where we will keep them around 55. We are seeing snow in the mountains, so this
got finished just in time!

[govgirl75]

What happens to them in the winter? Do the tarps let enough light in? Do they lose all their leaves?
I would love to overwinter mine. Maybe next year.

[kHT]

We just maintain them the best we can, stripping the leaves off weekly, making sure no critters attack them, pollinate those blooms we get and keeping them warm. It's great to be able to just go out and sit with the babies when it's cold. With that stated, here is a peek into both of them so you can see what they look like inside. I have all the plants inside that are going to be brought in so I just need to rearrange and put up an added screen due to Brugs and Dats don't mix well in close range. I still have garden work to attend to but that will have to wait now until the MRI shows what we are dealing with here.

[govgirl75]

Thanks for the pix and instructions. I see more than Brugs and Dats in there. You have a problem parting with those summer babies, too.
I see the little heater. Are the lights the grow light kind? Do you run them during the day?
Good luck with the MRI. Hope everything turns out OK.
Glo

[kHT]

We run two small heaters in the Brug house just in case and the light is just a shop light that runs all day. I have a couple units in there also so I don't have to go out and check
on everything. In the older GH we have double plastic walls and only one heater with our starter box that has a heat cable in it. Right now the orchids are on it but they
will be booted in Jan when we start seeds. A lot of our summer babies have seen many summers and I really enjoy them when they get big!

[kHT]

It's that time of year to get this up and running! I thought you would enjoy the photos of how this goes up and yes I'm doing this
all on my own!! Will have the walls finished today.

[kHT]

Last year we expanded our Brug House by around 2 feet and put new plastic
on it. Well with our extreme heat this past season the plastic just crumbled.
So we ordered 10mil plastic which stated would be clear, the box even started
clear but when we opened it, it wasn't be we decided to just bite the bullet and
use it. So far so good and it's nice to have some room!! We also added a camera
inside this year to keep an eye on things.

[Chris_W]

The white plastic works pretty good. That's what we used when we covered things at our old place, and when you have a lot of heat I think it helps some.

[kHT]

Thanks Chris for the information, so far so good. I put a camera in there this year and it really helps to
keep an eye on stuff.