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greenhouse Green House Growing

stevedigs04

stevedigs04

Hello All,
 
I recently moved into a new house which has a very large garden and a shed converted into a green house (GH)!!!!  (im excited) 
 
To make more room in the garden for non-potable plants I decided to build shelves in the GH and grow my peppers in the GH in pots!!
 
That being said I have no idea how to grow plants fully inside year round (I have always just left the pots outside and let mother nature do her thing helping where needed).
 
I was hoping the awesome THP community could come to the rescue and answer some questions.
 
1. Is top watering an issue in the green house? (should I run electricity and have fans going to try and keep the top soil dry?)
 
2. How should I go about pollinating the flowers as this wont happen naturally inside?
 
3. Can it be TOO hot for peppers??? Do i have to strictly monitor temps and open the door if its too hot?
 
4. Which is the best soil to use for year round growth in pots? (I have them in MG moisture control now, EWWW i know it was a good deal at Costco and i bought before I read anything and they are just in red cups not their final homes)
 
5. Which nutes should I use (i have a rain barrel which i will be watering from) but as of right now don't plan on making compost tea or anything.
 
6. How often should I feed? ( i usually just follow the MG package)
 
7. Is there any good place to get fancier soil and such things in London Ontario?? I'm a Canadian tire shopper as of now.. they strongly support MG lol.
 
Any other tips or tricks for growing inside a greenhouse would be greatly appreciated!!!
 
-Steve
 
Fans is a good idea to give them the strenghth to support the peppers since they wont have exterior wind to strenghthen thier stalks and branches.
 
The peppers will self pollinate, no need to worry bout that.
 
I'm sure one of the organic biodynamic soil wizzards will be along soon with soil recomendations.
 
Oh and most peppers i've seen dont like temps over 95f in direct sun.
 
 (we gotta get ya off the MG its almost like using seeds from mansanto LOL.)
 
1. I top water all my plants and they're doing great. Most suggest having the plants in pots that have drainage (alas, mine aren't like that). It's definitely important to have air circulation to keep away mold and help strengthen the stems.
 
2. I use a different paintbrush for each type of pepper plant. All you need to do is brush the inside of each flower with the paintbrush. Personally, I kinda spin the brush back and forth. I find that helps pick up and distribute the pollen.
 
3. Yes, peppers do have their limits when it comes to high temperature, just as they do when it comes to low temperatures. You can search the topics on here (plenty of discussion about it).. or, I'm sure, someone will be able to give a response with accurate numbers. :)
 
.. For 4 through 7 I'll leave the answers to more knowledgeable folks :)
 
Hello, congratulations on getting a greenhouse! I'll give you some tips I picked up from growing in my greenhouse, excuse me if I repeat the advice already given.
 
1. Top watering is not an issue, fan is a great idea. Just be careful not to overwater. Err on the side of too dry rather than too wet.
 
2. To aid pollination, give the plants a shake every day after the blossoms open. It's not necessary, they will self-pollinate, but it's fun. You can do the brush method, but if you have lots of plants, that gets old very quickly.
 
3. It can be too hot and too cold for peppers. Too cold, growth will stall, flowers will drop, plants will die. Too hot, flowers become sterile, plants wither and die. Keep your temperatures between 20°C-28°C (68°F-83°F) to be in a safe zone.
 
4. I can't comment on best soil to buy, because we have different kinds here in South Africa. Buy whatever is available and affordable to you, you can always amend soil mixes if you notice problems. Eventually you can make your own growing medium, if the pepper bug bites hard. And start vermicomposting and brewing compost tea and so on ;)
 
5. Nutes will depend on how you want to grow (organically or not), but generally any fertilizer recommended for tomatoes will work fine for peppers. Again, I can't recommend brands, as we don't get the same ones here.
 
6. Start feeding a diluted nutrient solution once the plant has 1 or 2 sets of true leaves. I start with 1/10 strength. Feed once every two weeks, unless you notice signs of over or under feeding, in which case take necessary steps to correct the issue. Loads of information on that on this forum!
 
7. No clue about soils in Ontario, sorry.
 
Tips or tricks for growing inside a greenhouse:
  • Watch the temperatures. It can get surprisingly hot inside a closed greenhouse.
  • Check the light. If your plants don't get enough sunlight, you need to supplement with grow lights.
  • Get automatic vent openers if that's an option. Makes a huge difference if you don't have to worry about the vents. They work with gas canisters and temperature, so don't need electricity to operate.
  • Watch out for greenhouse pests. Man, once some bugs get a foothold, it's really difficult to get rid of them. I'm dealing with black aphids on two plants and I actually moved them outside now. Check your plants daily if possible, be vigilant! If you detect pests early enough, you can usually solve the problem with a spray of water, but if you leave it too long, you'll need to nuke your greenhouse and then leave the country.
  • Same goes for diseases. If you spot something odd, isolate the plant immediately. It might be nothing, but if it's something, you don't want it spreading if you can help it.
  • Plan your grow very carefully. You know how many seedlings you can fit into a greenhouse? Hundreds! You know how many full sized pepper plants you can fit into that same greenhouse? A greenhouse jungle sounds awesome in theory, but if you have to use a machete to get to the other side of the greenhouse, you're going to become annoyed.
  • Relax and have fun. You will very likely mess up and kill off some plants. You'll learn more from greenhouse disasters than you will from everything going perfectly all the time. Luckily peppers are hardy and even if they're dying, they will give you pods in a last-ditch attempt to ensure a future generation, so don't worry too much.
All the best!
 
- Mandie
 
hogleg said:
 (we gotta get ya off the MG its almost like using seeds from mansanto LOL.)
Click to expand...
 
I like this guy!
 
Not that I want to get in a flame war with some MG fans but I agree. MG works for a little while, until it salts up your soil and creates new problems and deficiencies.
 
Monsanto is the devil, watch Food Inc.
 
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