cbrshadow23
Shohin
I thought I'd share my latest obsession: A big greenhouse in my yard to house Frank Yee Cork Bark P. Afra's year round.
I relocated my family from Northern California to Chicago last August and decided that I'd build a greenhouse to try to replicate the ideal weather that we had in California. At least ideal for my favorite species: Cork Bark Dwarf Jade. For anyone not familiar with the story behind this species, they were started by Frank Yee in southern california in the 1970's when he applied DDT to standard dwarf jades which caused them to mutate. More on that story in the link below if anyone is interested.
www.baikoenbonsai.com
On to my project.. I worked out a deal with Frank Yee's family to purchase a large number of their trees. From then on I knew I needed a place to house so many trees, and they wouldn't survive our cold winters. That's when I started researching greenhouses. I needed it to be well insulated, I'd need electricity, natural gas, water and drainage, and plenty of space for big benches. I ended up buying a 14'x17' greenhouse kit with 10mm triple wall polycarbonate panels and super thick extrusions that would be able to put up with high winds, snow load, etc. The polycarbonate panels allow lots of light through but still insulate very well.
Here's the corner where I planned to put the greenhouse before construction started.
My wife got nervous during this next part - digging out the foundation. The skid steer really tore up the yard, but that's all fixable. Next time I won't use a skid steer in the rain! Live and learn..
Fast forward a bit.. I added 6" of pea gravel, 2" insulated foam board, then 6" of concrete. That was hard work!
Notice there's a drain in the center.
Next step, after village permits/inspections, was to build the greenhouse! The kit that I bought wasn't cheap, and that showed during assembly. The greenhouse went together perfectly and the instructions were fantastic. The greenhouse anchors to the foundation, the extrusions were super sturdy, and the poly panels look really nice in person.
Next I spent a few days building benches. I wanted something that looked good but also needed to optomize for the most plant space possible. I decided on 48" deep benches all the way around the greenhouse, plus a rolling bench in the middle. That made for about 160 sqft of bench space, which I decided was about right.
I use a controller to automate the exhaust fan based on temperature/humidity, and to controll the circulation fans in the greenhouse.
Next, it's time to fly to California to pick up the trees! I flew to LAX, rented a 16' box truck and drove to the Yee family garden. After a really nice visit I selected and then loaded 400 trees into the truck. I bought any tree that had visible corking, then started the 30 hour trip back to Illinois.
Yesterday I arrived back in Illinois and moved the trees from the truck to the greenhouse benches. The greenhouse isn't complete yet, and I need to get the trees organized, but I'm super happy with where this project is at right now. I'll likely sell some trees in the near term as I sort them, but my main goal is to propogate these trees and continue to promote this cultivar.
I'll post more updates if anyone seems interested. I still need to install a natural gas heater, add grow lights for the dark winter, and a few other odds and ends.
I relocated my family from Northern California to Chicago last August and decided that I'd build a greenhouse to try to replicate the ideal weather that we had in California. At least ideal for my favorite species: Cork Bark Dwarf Jade. For anyone not familiar with the story behind this species, they were started by Frank Yee in southern california in the 1970's when he applied DDT to standard dwarf jades which caused them to mutate. More on that story in the link below if anyone is interested.
Frank Yee the Keeper of Cork Bark Jade
Frank Yee is probably known as the Gate Keeper of Cork Bark Jade. Jade succulents or Elephant Food succulent or Portulacaria afra ‘Cork Bark’. Portulacaria afra "Cork Bark" has all the qualities of a good bonsai. Rough bark, good branch structures, good leave structure, able to live in a shallow...
On to my project.. I worked out a deal with Frank Yee's family to purchase a large number of their trees. From then on I knew I needed a place to house so many trees, and they wouldn't survive our cold winters. That's when I started researching greenhouses. I needed it to be well insulated, I'd need electricity, natural gas, water and drainage, and plenty of space for big benches. I ended up buying a 14'x17' greenhouse kit with 10mm triple wall polycarbonate panels and super thick extrusions that would be able to put up with high winds, snow load, etc. The polycarbonate panels allow lots of light through but still insulate very well.
Here's the corner where I planned to put the greenhouse before construction started.
My wife got nervous during this next part - digging out the foundation. The skid steer really tore up the yard, but that's all fixable. Next time I won't use a skid steer in the rain! Live and learn..
Fast forward a bit.. I added 6" of pea gravel, 2" insulated foam board, then 6" of concrete. That was hard work!
Notice there's a drain in the center.
Next step, after village permits/inspections, was to build the greenhouse! The kit that I bought wasn't cheap, and that showed during assembly. The greenhouse went together perfectly and the instructions were fantastic. The greenhouse anchors to the foundation, the extrusions were super sturdy, and the poly panels look really nice in person.
Next I spent a few days building benches. I wanted something that looked good but also needed to optomize for the most plant space possible. I decided on 48" deep benches all the way around the greenhouse, plus a rolling bench in the middle. That made for about 160 sqft of bench space, which I decided was about right.
I use a controller to automate the exhaust fan based on temperature/humidity, and to controll the circulation fans in the greenhouse.
Next, it's time to fly to California to pick up the trees! I flew to LAX, rented a 16' box truck and drove to the Yee family garden. After a really nice visit I selected and then loaded 400 trees into the truck. I bought any tree that had visible corking, then started the 30 hour trip back to Illinois.
Yesterday I arrived back in Illinois and moved the trees from the truck to the greenhouse benches. The greenhouse isn't complete yet, and I need to get the trees organized, but I'm super happy with where this project is at right now. I'll likely sell some trees in the near term as I sort them, but my main goal is to propogate these trees and continue to promote this cultivar.
I'll post more updates if anyone seems interested. I still need to install a natural gas heater, add grow lights for the dark winter, and a few other odds and ends.
