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Hinckley MN

I'm curious as to what methods growers use to warm their soil in the spring. I make raised beds, build low tunnels with floating row cover, use gallon jugs of water, and soil heating cables. any other techniques out there?

1/22/2012 6:13:07 PM

Mount Vision, NY

I use black plastic mulch and hoop houses. I'm interested in other ways so I'm looking forward to getting some ideas from this post.

1/22/2012 7:12:50 PM

Www.extremepumpkinstore.com

Hoop houses, soil cables and heat lamps

1/22/2012 9:55:31 PM

Hinckley MN

does anyone use thermocube plugs to regulate the heat lamps?

1/22/2012 11:20:16 PM

Www.extremepumpkinstore.com

Ben, that is really cool! Never seen them before. usually when the temps are in the 40's or 50's at night in early spring, I have the lamps on all night, the temps near the seedling remain around 65-70° and the soil temps are 74°, they grow really well.

1/23/2012 1:41:28 AM

Mount Vision, NY

I used heat lamps on our nights that were below 45 degrees, which means most of them in May. I've used thermocubes with heat tapes for plumbing, but they are a little outside the range I'd feel safe with for early season pumpkins. Great idea otherwise.

1/23/2012 6:16:49 AM

South Hero, VT

Don Young puts mini greenhouses over his plants at night inside his regular greenhouses.

I may use electric heaters inside the greenhouses at nite this year, due to one plant getting a burnt leaf from a heat lamp last year.

I found out last year early heating of soil(early April) helps corn seed maggots change into flies faster.

1/23/2012 7:49:58 PM

Hinckley MN

I'm heating one of my berry greenhouses with kerosene ready heaters connected to Thermocubes. It is really more frost protection than anything else, but that is all the berries need. I will have 2 tables with garden transplants and pumpkin starts on heat mats or soil cables. I grow my pumpkins in 7 gallon grow bags to a larger size before transplanting. Planting a 3ft long vine in a plastic bag larger than a 5 gallon bucket is a bit tricky, though.

3/10/2012 12:29:38 PM