Polytunnels for winter only

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This area is for Reference and discussion of plant hardiness, overwintering methods and tips, and planr protection.
bobbyd44

Re: Polytunnels for winter only

Post by bobbyd44 »

you thinking of making table like covers over the top of plants greg or three or four sided huts??
greg101

Re: Polytunnels for winter only

Post by greg101 »

Just a table top cover bobby I don't think it will need 4 sides unless someone else tells me different
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Dave Brown
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Re: Polytunnels for winter only

Post by Dave Brown »

Hi Greg, I would not bother with twinwall poly if it is open at the sides. The twinwall is a form of double glazing to keep heat in. Corrigated single roof plastic is probably cheaper.

In trerms of the plants, M. basjoo and canna will proably get frosted anyway if open sided, the Musella and TRex would possibly keep their leaves given the shelter from radiation frost :wink:

The rain shelter would make Washingtonia more of a possibilty
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Dave
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greg101

Re: Polytunnels for winter only

Post by greg101 »

Ok dave i might put it around the sides. When you say frosted do you mean dead? I think i may make temporary shelters for the washies, would they need to be on all the time over the winter or just when heavy frosts are expexted?
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Dave Brown
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Re: Polytunnels for winter only

Post by Dave Brown »

greg101 wrote:When you say frosted do you mean dead?
No, but the leaves will be killed off. Under my covered bit (effectively a sheltered unheated greenhouse in winter) basjoo has kept is's leaves when I had pots in there.
greg101 wrote:I think i may make temporary shelters for the washies, would they need to be on all the time over the winter or just when heavy frosts are expexted?
I have not protected mine other than draping fleece over when frost was forecast, when it was smaller. but a rainshelter erected all winter to keep the rain off, and like Melissa's Arid bed shelter, have fleece draped down the sides just for colder weather. :wink:
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marie06

Re: Polytunnels for winter only

Post by marie06 »

I've got one of the ebay tunnels. We put it up on a concrete pad at first, and weighed down the cover with concrete blocks. That almost took off over the village, so it is now where my greenhouse used to be, on grass. I concreted in 1 foot lengths of sink waste pipe where the frame legs would go, and dropped the legs into these and wired them down into holes I drilled in the pipe. I had to adjust the levels by filling the pipes with gravel. Then we dug a trench and buried the skirt. It's going nowhere now. But there is a lot of condensation in there in the morning, even with all the vents and door open 24/7. I'm going to line it with bubble wrap and see if that helps. I might also cover the bare soil with plastic sheet.

RS - £60 inc p&p is a good price, they were going for double that in spring.
SteveW

Re: Polytunnels for winter only

Post by SteveW »

I'll be putting mine up in a few weeks time,say mid october time.
All I do is put it up on the deck next to the shed and glasshouse.The trick to keeping it from being blown away is to batten down the cover between the supports making a framework that both holds the cover down and reinforces the framework.Just a bundle of cheap roofing battens enough.Get them from any diy outlet for under a tenner.
They come in real handy for building rainshelters too Greg :wink:
I bubblewrap my greenhouse too,adds a bit of extra insulation to keep the heat in.Its a bit trickier to fit than in a normal greenhouse as you have to cabletie the bubblewrap in place.But it doesn't take that long to do once you get the hang of it.Its well worth doing IMO,especially if you're not planning on heating them.
Can believe people are bidding over the B-I-N price Dave :roll: what numptys :lol:
marie06

Re: Polytunnels for winter only

Post by marie06 »

Steve - do you find the bubble wrap makes the condensation problem better? I was worried that moisture would get trapped between the cover and the bubblewrap, making fungal diseases more likely.
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rexwedge
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Re: Polytunnels for winter only

Post by rexwedge »

I have put a polytunnel on the deck for the last 5 years to house my large Agaves and Dasylirion. I weigh it down with those heavy bricks you get in storage rads and anything of weight in the garden. Ventilation is the key and opening the end doors/flaps creates a wind trap. Basically a rain shelter and impossible to heat but it works for tougher plants that don't like the wet.
Jean

Re: Polytunnels for winter only

Post by Jean »

Hi All,
I wondered if anyone has any experience of the HAXNICKS grower system "with polycover" (1m W x 3m L x 1m H), it's alot smaller than poly tunnels that some of you are looking at, but i need to find something that will fit on the deck right outside the lounge window . Or i'm open to anyother suggestions
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Dave Brown
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Re: Polytunnels for winter only

Post by Dave Brown »

Hi Jean,

What size is the deck :?:
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