Starting the greenhouse

Standing by while the house is being built is a very anxious time. We have a ton of faith in our builder, Rick Robson of Robson Custom Homes. Yet, it all takes time, and we can't wait to be out there!

For me, it's sometimes just best to keep my mind on other things - like plans for a barn and chicken coop, learning about alpacas and fiber, going to horticulture conferences and reading about perennial propagation. For Brent, it's good to have a different project to act on. 

Brent has started a BIG project that has me very excited - the greenhouse! 

This will be a roughly 16'X16' space on the south side of the old cinderblock garage. The two spaces (garage and greenhouse) will be connected by a small doorway that already exists in the middle of the south wall of the garage. The peak of the greenhouse roof will run south (perpendicular to) and level with the garage roof.

Here's my guy "Backhoe Brent" digging the trench for a foundation:

Brent sitting in the trench for the west side of greenhouse.

 He has finished the trench for the west wall. The dirt from the trench is piled to the left in these photos.

finished trench for west wall
and line marking the south wall of greenhouse

As much as possible Brent is building the structure with salvaged materials. The lumber he and our sons salvaged from the old house. He purchased a few large windows on Craigslist from a remodel and we have one salvaged sliding glass door from the old house. As the walls take shape, the remaining spaces will be filled by other various windows we salvaged from the old house. The big purchase for this project will be the transparent panels for the roof. We are hoping we can keep that price under $500.

We feel pretty good about using recycled materials for the majority of the project. And I can't wait to see it! This will be my sunny home away from home :-)