Planket, Planket, Who Needs a Blanket?
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What a winter we are having! This is the first winter for our new garden beds, and it has kept us busy. Students are realizing how important it is for farmers and gardeners to pay attention to the weather and temperatures. This past fall, plans were discussed about how we could protect our garden from freezing temperatures. At first, we planned to use pvc pipes to build a rectangular prism. We would set the pvc prisms in the beds and cover them with the plankets. This would allow our plants to be covered by the plankets without the plankets touching or crushing the plants.
Before we could get them built, an ice storm was predicted. Students used plankets to cover the beds. Bricks were placed all around the bed to keep the plankets from flying away.
As predicted, we received plenty of ice, and we noticed how the ice weighed down the plankets and crushed some of our plants.
Students predicted the same thing would happen to the planket at the top of the rectangular prism. Depending on the amount of ice and the possibility of high wind, the structure may not be stable enough for protection.
If at first you don't succeed, try, try again. So back to the drawing board.
After much discussion about types of roofs and what we had available for us to use, we decided to build a triangular prism so the elements would fall down the sides and not weigh the planket down.
Good idea until we realized that we did not purchase pvc pipes with 3 connectors and our funds were limited. We also thought about how we would store the structures. If we left them in the beds, we weren't sure if we would like the look of it. So, we decided to use 2"x4"x10' boards to make a structure that would allow us to drape the plankets over the beds and protect the vegetables. The wood would be permanent and blend in with the beds. They would also serve as a structure for any climbing plants or vines we might plant.
Large clamps were purchased to hold the planket along the top and at both ends.
Feb. 25th The cabbages survived and are some are ready for picking.
Now we are prepared for those freezing temperatures and our veggies can grow in comfort!