I well I did it. I pulled down my precious polycarbonate greenhouse. Having said that – it wasn’t so precious lately. If it wasn’t for the duct tape and the emergency repair bolts then I think I would have had it down in an hour! I’m sure that was all that was holding it together!
It was a good feeling pulling it down and the longer I spent on it the more I knew I was doing the right thing. The polycarbonate had turned quite yellow in the sun and was really fragile. Some panels had an entire layer that had perished away. Others were so soft they were more like those pink wafers you have in your ice cream. One panel was so far gone I could blow holes in it.
It was also quite the bug hotel. There were all manner of insect, slug, snail, spider, ant and beetle hanging out in there. The grooves in the panels made a perfect home for lots of things – some beneficial and some not so nice. But they shouldn’t live in the interior of the panels – blocking the light and making it all dirty. There was an entire ant colony living up in the roof ridge and when I loosened the bolts they all scurried about carrying eggs to goodness knows where, but it didn’t take long for them all to disappear.
The most concerning however were the slugs and snails in there. Not the kind of thing you want to provide convenient hiding places for! The snails were curled up in the channels and the slugs were in the panels. I shudder at the thought of an entire season of seedlings being lost overnight had I put this greenhouse into service one more time! Having said that I don’t think it would have stood up for one more season…. And the anxiety of worrying about it collapsing at the slightest puff of wind…. Oh my goodness. It doesn’t bear thinking about! Hooray for new strong greenhouses!
Come again soon – I have to clear the site and get it ready – I want to have plants in it by the end of the week.
Sarah the Gardener : o )
Out with the old, in with the new!
Hi There. It is really exciting times!
Cheers Sarah : o )
Glad to see you made a good decision. Your plants will love you for it.
Hi Lucinda. I didn’t realise exactly how bad the old greenhouse was. I guess you turn a blind eye when it is all you have.
Cheers Sarah : o )
Lovely post Sarah even though I am still waiting for the sides of my greenhouse glass to go in I have some in mind we post to blog later
Hi Linda. Building greenhouses isn’t as straight forward as I thought. How have you anchored yours to the ground?
Cheers Sarah : o )
Clever girl, it looks great 🙂
Hi Wendy. Thanks… It is taking quite a lot of effort… I have ‘builders bruises’, blisters and achy muscles, but it will be so worth it in the end.
Cheers Sarah : o )
Such ambition to have the new one up and seedlings in in just a few days!
Hi Jenn. It is a huge ambition. Especially in unpredictable spring weather, but my eye is still on the end goal. I need to have it up because the seedlings on the window sill need it up!
Cheers Sarah : o )
Such visible progress can feel so good!
Hi There. That is the cool thing about this project. Each stage results in dramatic change. I can’t wait for it to be finished!
Cheers Sarah : o )