Cohousing-L Mailing List: Re: greenhouse

[Joanie Connors (jvcphd]

I don't have a cohousing greenhouse story, but a community greenhouse story.

A group of folks here pooled their money and built a greenhouse on
donated land. They managed to get it built with volunteer labor, so
their expenses were less than $5,000.

The main problems they had were overheating during the day and bugs.
Once aphids got into some plants in the greenhouse, all their plants
had aphids. Being organically oriented, they tried cleaning and some
green pesticides, but it didn't work because the aphids were able to
hide in cracks and in the soil.

To avoid overheating, you have to have people who come and open the
vents every day, or you have to have expensive automatic venting
systems.

They dissolved right before I joined due to a lack of commitment to,
and training in consensus. A subgroup took over and kicked the others
out.

On Fri, Apr 10, 2009 at 11:23 AM, Kay Argyle <Kay.Argyle [at] utah.edu> wrote:
>
> I'd be interested in hearing from anyone who has experience with a
> greenhouse, either as a community or personally. (I searched the list
> archive - nada. I'll be looking on gardening discussion boards for some of
> my questions.)
>
>
>
> Our community has tossed around the question of what we can do for greater
> sustainability, and now there is an added concern about self-sufficiency in
> bad economic times. There has always been "wouldn't it be nice" talk about a
> greenhouse, but a few community members have now progressed to "we should".
> I'm not convinced this is a good, practical use of our funds, particularly
> in bad economic times, and am concerned about making sure we are realistic
> in our approach. (By the way, as one of the more serious gardeners in the
> community, I'm probably one of the people most likely to use it.)
>
>
>
> Some questions to get started --
>
> Cost, size, construction? How is it heated, vented, watered, etc.?
>
> What maintenance issues have you had? What cultivation issues?
>
> Has the greenhouse made a difference in what you can grow, or how much, or
> how easily?
>
> What have you found a greenhouse does well, and what not?
>
> What would you do differently if you were getting one now? What
> misconceptions did actual experience with a greenhouse cure you of?
>
> Was it a good purchase? Would you do it again?
>
>
>
> Considerations for a community garden --
>
> If it is a community rather than privately owned greenhouse, how is it
> managed?
>
> Did you have members with previous experience of greenhouses, hoop houses,
> cold frames, etc.; a lot of avid gardeners; or people with farming
> backgrounds? How important is knowledge and degree of motivation to a
> greenhouse's success?
>
> Have people continued using it after the "new toy" aspect wore off?
>
>
>
> Any other advice?
>
>
>
> Kay
>
> Wasatch Commons
>