Maine 4-Season Greenhouse Grow

[Blew Hiller]

Good stuff Blew! You plants will thank you!! Looking forward to seeing you put that Green house to use again!

I trust your opinion, so it was worth the extra effort. There were a few lessons I took to heart from my first summer grow last year: bigger pots, better soil, more pruning, trellising, and better genetics (thanks @SeedsMan and @Van Stank),

I am very pleased I had the foresight to prep my VC in 2017 for this summer. The mixer was a game changer...my soil is so damn silky and luxurious...I'm like a freak up in the GH running it through my fingers! I got the tomato cages all ready and I am itching to get them in their final pots.

Sunny and 55F here today...plants are Loving It.

 

[Pjs420]

Yes, I built it after researching options/designs online. I pulled a lot of the techniques from CO GH design that went back to the 70's (and earlier). It was basically the first major structure I ever built...did it with a handsaw and a power drill! The panels are polycarbonate (triple wall) and I got them discounted through an Ag cooperative program. I highly recommend it if you are in harsh winter weather areas. I sleep fine when the wind and snow are howling...they are string and add strength to the structure (unlike 6mm poly). Ventilation is key, so don't underestimate that aspect either.

awesome! Thank you for the tips! Let the research begin!

 

[Blew Hiller]

awesome! Thank you for the tips! Let the research begin!

Feel free to ask anything. I built a larger, 16x48', second one of the same design at my farm.... unfortunately I also had a USDA Ag contract and I didn't foresee them "reminding" me that cannabis, though legal in Maine, was still a Fed offense. I am free and clear of all that last day of this year so I am thinking of moving into that with some 65-gallons next summer! One nice thing about polycarbonate and stick frame is that you can secure it fairly well. Someone can use a pocket knife to get into my high tunnel, so that is another thing that helps me sleep around harvest time. I also recommend some type of crushed rock floor...you can get things as wet as you want and it will 1) drain and 2) not become a muddy mess.

One last thought on the angle of the polycarbonate. On my first GH (12x24') I followed the rules and had a 60° angle for my 45°Latitude. I changed that to a 50° angle on my second for two reasons:

1) Nothing grows Dec/Jan/Feb with the sun @ 22-28° for a sparse 7-9 hours!
2) More headroom.

If you look at my 12x24 GH it has a 2' front panel knee wall. On my 16x48 I made it a 4 foot knee wall and it gave me a lot more headspace (and growing space inside...even with the sharper angle of the poly).

My 16x48'

Active Solar Greenhouse 16x48

• Blew Hiller
• Feb 23, 2017

This is our custom built active solar greenhouse in Maine @ 44\'N.amp;nbsp; We use a single fan...

Active Solar Greenhouse 16x48

• Blew Hiller
• Feb 23, 2017

This is our custom built active solar greenhouse in Maine @ 44\'N.amp;nbsp; We use a single fan...

 

[Pjs420]

wow! That sure is a thing of beauty! To be honest i havent got that far in my planning yet, but that is all amazing info to use moving forward. i got obsessed with greenhouses after watching a guy on instagram growing in his nextgen greenhouse. (google; jay plantspeaker instagram) you might want to take a peak if youre going to use that beautiful structure for plants next year... He uses 200s and is a master trellis-er (dont think thats a word lol). Cannabis trees! Forget plants lol

Wish i could have bought a farm, but land is so bloody expensive in my area you literally need to be a millionaire, which i am not... So baby steps...

 

[Derbybud]

Already is...got 3x autos in their last 2-3 weeks

Nice

 

[Blew Hiller]

So baby steps...

I looked at his IG...cool. His dogs look menacing! He uses a modified high tunnel with 6mm poly plastic. Affordable but nothing as durable as polycarbonate. A good hail storm would shred that thing.

But yeah, he grows trees! I am working towards that...baby steps!

 

[Blew Hiller]

12x VC bins with amendments (60 ft3 Vermiculite, 80ft3 Perlite, 35 lbs (hydrated) coir, 20ft3 Pro-Mix, 10lb greensand, 10lb Azomite) yielded approx 325 gallons soil.

This was a correct estimate as I (almost completely) filled 2x 45-gallon, 6x 30-gallon, and 8x 10-gallon fabric pots.

So with 40x VC bins in 2018 that gives me....more options.

 

[Pjs420]

I looked at his IG...cool. His dogs look menacing! He uses a modified high tunnel with 6mm poly plastic. Affordable but nothing as durable as polycarbonate. A good hail storm would shred that thing.

But yeah, he grows trees! I am working towards that...baby steps!

definitely are menacing looking! They were adorable as pups though, hes got a massive english mastiff as well... Old school cali grower "sleeping in hammocks in oak trees with Ak's while the dogs roamed loose" paraphrased lol but ill never forget that post

i agree with the polycarbonate, one of the originals collapsed on him last year cause he forgot to turn the heater on. i believe on the new one he has a double layer of polyplastic and keeps it inflated like a bubble, he explained in a post few weeks back when i was creeping...

Hes in the oregon high desert and gets a reasonable amount of snow (from a canadians perspective lol) he runs heaters/fans as needed through the winter.. I do not want to have to do this, too much expense in my eyes. Thats why i was curious what you had used for yours, seemed much more solid and attachable to a steel frame. We have been getting stupidly heavy ice storms here every spring the last few years so i want something that can withstand a good load. Snow is easy to clear off... Ice. Well it just hurts lol

 

[Itibitiguy]

I'm also taking baby steps to a farm this year and then greenhouse are a must.... blew love your GH, really nice... I've got a few veggies spending there second night in my GH

 

[Blew Hiller]

I agree with the polycarbonate, one of the originals collapsed on him last year cause he forgot to turn the heater on. i believe on the new one he has a double layer of polyplastic and keeps it inflated like a bubble, he explained in a post few weeks back when i was creeping...

Hes in the oregon high desert and gets a reasonable amount of snow (from a canadians perspective lol) he runs heaters/fans as needed through the winter.. I do not want to have to do this, too much expense in my eyes. Thats why i was curious what you had used for yours, seemed much more solid and attachable to a steel frame. We have been getting stupidly heavy ice storms here every spring the last few years so i want something that can withstand a good load. Snow is easy to clear off... Ice. Well it just hurts lol

I have a double layer inflated high tunnel...still no comparison to polycarbonate. This was my first winter with it and we got several feet of snow. Unless the snow is blowing it will accumulate and then crush your metal (1 5/16" gala steel) frame. I was out there more than once with a large broom pulling it off. The polycarbonate just sheds it...and if not, you bang on it from the inside!

 

[Van Stank]

I trust your opinion, so it was worth the extra effort. There were a few lessons I took to heart from my first summer grow last year: bigger pots, better soil, more pruning, trellising, and better genetics (thanks @SeedsMan and @Van Stank),

I am very pleased I had the foresight to prep my VC in 2017 for this summer. The mixer was a game changer...my soil is so damn silky and luxurious...I'm like a freak up in the GH running it through my fingers! I got the tomato cages all ready and I am itching to get them in their final pots.

Sunny and 55F here today...plants are Loving It.

Too funny, I just mixed up my next batch of Stank Soil this afternoon....when I had it done and everything was in it and mixed up well I was doing the same thing....running my fingers through it....."Ohhh'ing and Ahhhh'ing" the whole time. I freaking love the feel of good dirt.

 

[Blew Hiller]

I'm also taking baby steps to a farm this year and then greenhouse are a must.... blew love your GH, really nice... I've got a few veggies spending there second night in my GH

They have spent the last few nights out there and they are looking strong! This morning @ 5am was 35F outside, and 46F in the GH...it would have been closer to 55F but I have the lower vents open full time now. My new ventilation is so overdue...I would get serious spikes in daytime temps...too high...and today was full sun and the max temp was 72F...that is ideal for cannabis...

 

[Blew Hiller]

Too funny, I just mixed up my next batch of Stank Soil this afternoon....when I had it done and everything was in it and mixed up well I was doing the same thing....running my fingers through it....."Ohhh'ing and Ahhhh'ing" the whole time. I freaking love the feel of good dirt.

The first rule of Soil Club is...

 

[Van Stank]

Here's to a green house full of green! And maybe some purple.

Just a quick worm update.... I got my second tote up and running. The first had its last worm food (shrimp shells) added for the summer. Someone mentioned molasses for VC? Just curious about your thoughts. Figured it's just extra microbes and stuff?

And I have a friend looking to start some totes down the road. So I offered to seed a tote for them.

So thanks for starting this great little new obsession. It's been a lot of fun and I have some big plans for these worms. Hope your weeks going well.

I just mixed some more scraps into our first box and was amazed at how many worms we had in that box. Gonna dig out a couple dozen more this week and throw into another bin. Worms for the win baby!!

 

[Blew Hiller]

I just mixed some more scraps into our first box and was amazed at how many worms we had in that box. Gonna dig out a couple dozen more this week and throw into another bin. Worms for the win baby!!

It can escalate quickly....in a good way.

You also had the advantage of worms AND eggs...usually when they sell them on the inter web they just sift out the worms and deliver them in fresh dirt.

 

[Blew Hiller]

I just mixed some more scraps into our first box and was amazed at how many worms we had in that box. Gonna dig out a couple dozen more this week and throw into another bin. Worms for the win baby!!

A tip: When you seed another bin, just grab a handful of everything from the current bin: food, media, worms, all of it. The eggs are almost too small to see and pulling out worms by themselves won't populate a new bin as quickly.

 

[Van Stank]

Yeah that will be the plan! I will hopefully have enough soil to start another bin after I harvest the Stankberry and the Nuke in a couple weeks. I have 5 gallons from the male Stank I chopped, so that will be 17 gallons and I can add a few more gallon of soil from the outdoor garden so more than enough for another bin. That will give me 60 gallons working in various stages in the 3 bins. I think I can make that work for starters.

 

[Blew Hiller]

I am in a similar situation as I used every last bit of soil, so I have nothing to give clones away or add more photos if I need to this summer. I setup 8x more VC bins at my smaller GH (total of 40x now!) and the plan is that I chould use them in 3 months, which is end of July...I have a bag or two of store bought laying around somewhere...I'll just amend them for the clone giveaways. Waiting on the Glacial and Basalt is a test of patience! I wanted to get the autos rolling, but figured since they were germing in their pots it would be easier to just wait and mix in the final amendments. Stanks are looking very strong. I think they are going into their big pots next week...any longer I will have to wrestle them in the tomato cages.

 

[StoneOtter]

The first rule of Soil Club is...

Don't bit your fingernails?

 

[Van Stank]

I like to keep a 5 gallon bucket for emergency.....just in case! I pushed it way too close this time though....but I do have a bag of Kind Soil just in case. Looks like I will probably need to use it. I have three clones I need to up pot at some point this week (will put them in 1 gallon pots to try and conserve) and we have the Hindu Kush that needs up potting to 2 gallon pots. I also have the White Widow that will be going in a 8 or 10 gallon pot at some point in the next week. So thats about 13-15 gallons I need and I only have about 10 LOL. Time to get creative LOL.