December Greenhouse Update

 All of my over-wintering plants have been in the greenhouse now since late October, though it's only really been cold for about a month. And even then, overall it's been pretty mild for this time of year, minus a few nights that were January-like. 

Most of the plants are happy. They do just fine with temperatures dipping into the mid-30s in here at night as long as there's no frost and things warm up during the day. My three large tropical plants - lemon verbena, patchouli and jasmine are struggling. They just need warmer temperatures. I lifted them off the cold floor, which helped, but we'll see how they do when real winter hits.  I had a couple of smaller tropical plants out here in little pots that were brought inside the house because the cold night temperatures were killing them. I also transplanted a piece of patchouli into a small pot and brought that indoors - if it survives I can use it to replant the patchouli in the spring (its a plant grown from cuttings) if it can't survive the greenhouse. 

And while a few plants hate the cold nights, other plants are thriving. My brown turkey fig tree is sprouting new leaves. The lavender, rosemary, lemon grass, mint and eucalyptus are growing. The snapdragons, geraniums, even succulents are blooming. The peppers are hibernating, which looks like they are half dead, but from everything I've read this is exactly how they should look right now and will hopefully come back in the spring.

Keeping the greenhouse warm is a struggle and a learning curve. It's protected on 3 sides from the wind and the side that isn't is a Southern exposure. On sunny days it can be 20-30 degrees warmer in there than outdoor temperatures. But cold cloudy days require the space heater to be turned on, especially overnight. The watering cans full of water help keep the humidity up and act as heat sinks - they warm up in the sun during the day and stay warmer at night, keeping the temperature warmer in here overnight. 

As the temperatures get colder, I'll probably add another larger heat sink (a big black bucket probably makes sense) and I've read that bubble wrap is an awesome insulator for winter as well. The space heater makes a big difference, but we haven't had a polar vortex yet either so I want to be ready for that. I've ordered some