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D'Andra · 02-29-2008, 11:35 PM

Hi D & T.

I was in kind of the same situation last year with seeds. The only place to germinate them without getting the rest of the house mad at me was in the garage. I know this sounds stupid and was probably dangerous but here's what I did.

I found a large sterilite plastic bin, took some heavy wire and fashioned a cage to fit inside the bin that stood about a foot above the top of the bin. I found some light plastic wrap that fit over the whole thing. Inside I put some bricks to keep the seed trays out of the water which I poured to a level just below the top of the bricks. Next I used an old aquarium heater that my koi didn't need and fastened it to the side of the bin. Placed the trays inside, tucked the plastic wrap inside the bin and set the heater (I don't remember what temp I used). I topped the whole Mini-greenhouse (major electrical hazard) off with a 4' Flourescent light fixture that I got at a building demolition. I did buy some plant grow light tubes for it but, for the most part is was just stuff laying around.

Building it was really easy and it worked great! I germinated 10/10 E. Ventricosum, 10/10 musa ornata, and 16/20 roystonea regia (palms).

Now to address you other situation.

I Too need a greenhouse. Out of the 20 bananas I germinated that time, 1 E. Ventricosum died for lack of water (bad location, but hey, I have 19 others right?), the other 19 were eaten by birds in a matter of hours after they found them! %^$@$!!!!. The ornata met the same fate save 4. I rescued the remaining 4 and put them in 2 inch pots. That was Nov. They've been inside since and looking really bad. 1 I'm sure is lost, 2 look like they will be gone soon, and the other I doubt will make it.

In my quest to rid the plants of the extreme temps of sitting in the window, the delicate balance of light and water, I decided it's time for me to get a greenhouse! Now since I'm pretty sure I can't find enough scrap things in the yard to build the size I need, I think I gotta buy one.
I've been looking for some time and I think I'm going to get a EZ-Build & Gro greenhouse/coldframe from growerssupply.com with end kits. Actually we have the tools to make the ends so we figure that we can get 2 of them 10'x20' for less than $1000. I need to have seperate ones because we grow tomatoes and tobacco and need to keep them seperated.

If anyone has any experience with growers supply please let me know how they are.

D & T. I hope this may help you out some.

02-29-2008, 11:35 PM	#9 (permalink)
D'Andra Senior Member D'Andra's Photo Gallery Location: Las Cruces, NM Find me on the map! Zone: 8 Join Date: Oct 2006 Posts: 224 BananaBucks : 4,331 Feedback: 0 / 0% Said "Thanks" 0 Times Was Thanked 9 Times in 7 Posts Said "Welcome to Bananas" 0 Times	Re: Will be looking in spring for... Hi D & T. I was in kind of the same situation last year with seeds. The only place to germinate them without getting the rest of the house mad at me was in the garage. I know this sounds stupid and was probably dangerous but here's what I did. I found a large sterilite plastic bin, took some heavy wire and fashioned a cage to fit inside the bin that stood about a foot above the top of the bin. I found some light plastic wrap that fit over the whole thing. Inside I put some bricks to keep the seed trays out of the water which I poured to a level just below the top of the bricks. Next I used an old aquarium heater that my koi didn't need and fastened it to the side of the bin. Placed the trays inside, tucked the plastic wrap inside the bin and set the heater (I don't remember what temp I used). I topped the whole Mini-greenhouse (major electrical hazard) off with a 4' Flourescent light fixture that I got at a building demolition. I did buy some plant grow light tubes for it but, for the most part is was just stuff laying around. Building it was really easy and it worked great! I germinated 10/10 E. Ventricosum, 10/10 musa ornata, and 16/20 roystonea regia (palms). Now to address you other situation. I Too need a greenhouse. Out of the 20 bananas I germinated that time, 1 E. Ventricosum died for lack of water (bad location, but hey, I have 19 others right?), the other 19 were eaten by birds in a matter of hours after they found them! %^$@$!!!!. The ornata met the same fate save 4. I rescued the remaining 4 and put them in 2 inch pots. That was Nov. They've been inside since and looking really bad. 1 I'm sure is lost, 2 look like they will be gone soon, and the other I doubt will make it. In my quest to rid the plants of the extreme temps of sitting in the window, the delicate balance of light and water, I decided it's time for me to get a greenhouse! Now since I'm pretty sure I can't find enough scrap things in the yard to build the size I need, I think I gotta buy one. I've been looking for some time and I think I'm going to get a EZ-Build & Gro greenhouse/coldframe from growerssupply.com with end kits. Actually we have the tools to make the ends so we figure that we can get 2 of them 10'x20' for less than $1000. I need to have seperate ones because we grow tomatoes and tobacco and need to keep them seperated. If anyone has any experience with growers supply please let me know how they are. D & T. I hope this may help you out some. __________________ D'.