New HOTHOUSE Beginnings

[@lesleyannhartman762]

Looking good Geoff 😊. Hope that the trip to Kew goes well and you get to see everything that you want to. Hope you and the family have a wonderful time 😄

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

Thanks Lesley! We had a brilliant time at &Kew today. The tropical glasshouse was just amazing and quite a tonic for the spirits after all the wind and rain recently. 😁

[@karanmyers5879]

Good morning from a chilly Oregon. 23 degrees Fahrenheit right now. I am so glad for you 🌷 Everything looks good and extra space is such a blessing. Have a good weekend Karan🌲

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

That’s a cold one! We’ve been ‘lucky’ so far this year as it hasn’t been so low here. Just lots and lots of rain and dull skies. Today was an exception with beautiful blue all day long and nothing lifts the spirits more, especially when combined with a walk round the rainforest section of Kew! 😀😀😀

[@fionagamble4827]

All the plants seem to be enjoying their new home. The Florida ghost might need some extra humidity whilst it’s rooting, you could pop a polythene bag over the pot.

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

Good idea Fiona I’ll pop a lid over it when I get back home from London. Saw some fabulous Anthuriums today as well as Philodendrons and orchids. I was in tropical heaven! 😁

[@MicksMasdevalliaorchids]

It's coming on Geoff, enjoy your trip away, see you on the next one.

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

Cheers Mick! Went today. Was superb. I could both live and work within the Princess of Wales conservatory if I had my time over again.

[@patriciasorchids3999]

Your new growing space is looking good. Bud development with Laelia anceps occurs sooner at cooler temperatures. This stops the spike from getting too long. I used to grow mine in the house (spikes were just over 3') but grow it cold now. The spikes were 12" and 14" long. A lot more manageable.

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

I’ll definitely try that. It’s so long it’s just getting in the way. I don’t know what to do with it! Will it go down to 12 degrees C?

[@patriciasorchids3999]

@@Grow_Up_Man55 When I grew it around 12C the spike was about 2 feet. I now grow it cool/cold. My thermostat is set at 9C and on really cold nights it will drop to 8C. This year one spike was 12" and the other was 14". I do have mine mounted as I find in the cold they won't tolerate wet roots but at 12C they should be fine in a pot.

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

@@patriciasorchids3999 That's brill - thanks Patricia! I'll move it to the greenhouse once these blooms are over. I haven't measured the spike but it's far too long to mess about with - just flopping all over the place! Must be around a meter and a half by now.

[@Tommyr]

Coming along real nice Geoff! Enjoy your trip!

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

Wait till you see it after the upgrade! 😁

[@canadianhaven]

I hope you enjoy your trip to London! A trip to Kew, WOW! That would be a trip of a life time for me. (With the Queen feeling poorly, I wouldn't go frightening the mouse under her chair. She'd likely not appreciate it much.)

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

We went today and it was fabulous! I could have spent all day wandering through the orchid exhibition in the rainforest area. I’ll do a montage video for those who might be interested. 😁

[@canadianhaven]

@@Grow_Up_Man55 So glad you had a fabulous time! A montage video is a great idea, looking forward to it! All the best, R.

[@kathymacomber5115]

We just got 6 inches of rain in 24 hours..Happy for you getting your “ hot “ house

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

Thanks Kathy. I wish it only rained overnight then was sunny through the day. I don’t ask for much…😂

[@kathymacomber5115]

I know.. I agree

[@edwardwiper1323]

Thats really looking nice Geoff both in the new hot house & the greenhouse,plants look to have loads of space for light & growth.Be very interested to see the results in spring when things have settled down.There is one thing you could help with the green racking with wire shelves where do you buy it,i had some the same given in grey but despite looking everywhere carnt find any.

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

There are loads just like these on eBay. Just search greenhouse shelving or greenhouse staging and you’ll see them. I paid about £25 for two sets. They’re really easy to put together and very adaptable. The only caveat with that is that although they look identical from different sellers they’re not necessarily so. I bought from two different sellers and they’re not compatible with each other.

[@mrsdrhux]

Now the hot house is where it’s happening for me as viewer. WOW, I collect tradescantia and yet I was distracted by so many plants in this video. Anthurium crystalinium (butchered the name probably) is stunning and you had a philodendron with similar marked vein leaves . So pretty. I was shuddering that you have a calathea (full stop haha) let alone next to a pink princess . On the Facebook group all about plants 90% of the help section is calathea drama not to mention they are spider mite central. And I know from the group a pink princess is an on trend pricey plant to be sat beside a calathea. ( I’m absolutely no expert though Geoff, and don’t own either , just an observation ) I find my Nanock very similar to my sweetness in terms of what it likes. And the only brown spots are from moisture or drips so if your sweetness is doing well , try having them together and keeping the care similar. The pink panther / lady is a pain in the back side for me. Just can’t seem to get it happy. It’s either limp and bits fall off or too dry or moist .. just too fragile for my heavy hand I think. And Tianna is stunning , mines a brown spot magnet and I cant make it happy. Have a wonderful trip to Kew and London. Look forward to your next instalment😊x

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

Thanks Joanne - I’m just getting into aroids and love all the leaf variation. After what I’ve seen today at Kew I think I might run out of room sooner than I thought. It’s funny with the nanouks as I’ve been running an experiment with them in the house but so far I’ve no answers to the spot problem. I may need to run it a bit longer!

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

My pink Panther seems to be liking conditions so far. It’s somewhat drier in the hothouse than it was in the greenhouse so it’ll be interesting to see how that affects things. I’m made a few upgrades since this video which I’ll show everyone after my Kew Gardens montage!

[@mrsdrhux]

@@Grow_Up_Man55 I’m going to move mine to the bathroom as it’s really warm , south east light from the window and more humid than the rest of the house. all the cuttings and things that aren’t happy seem to end up there and do well . It’s just a space issue as the window sill isn’t huge xx

[@mrsdrhux]

@@Grow_Up_Man55 look forward to your findings and if you ever need space . I’d snap your arm off to buy some of your red gem cuttings . (Mentioned it before and would love to swap or buy some if your ever looking for a new trad, I may have it ) x

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

@@mrsdrhux I have Trad. zebrina Red Jewel - if that's the one you mean? I don't have Red Gem. I've recently found out that Red Jewel is just Tradescantia zebrina 'Burgundy' treated with PGRs. Once they wear off it reverts to Tradescantia zebrina 'Burgundy' - so I guess that's what I have now. You're more than welcome to cuttings from any of my Trads. Let me know which you'd like cuttings from and maybe we can do a trade - if you have any I don't. If you don't that's OK - I'd still be happy to send you some for free.

[@SemihydroponicswithSma]

If that av is from me, is supposed to have the leaves like that. 😊 Everything looks awesome in the hot house😍

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

It sure is from you! Glad it’s supposed to look like that. Looking forward to seeing what all the blooms look like on these AVs. 😁🤞

[@SemihydroponicswithSma]

@@Grow_Up_Man55 I am sure you will have blooms this year 😊

[@peteruk8925]

Hi Geoff enjoying your video's, just wanted to ask how you going to keep up the humidity in your 'hot house' ? It seems that you have wooden floors so won't be able to damp down on floor with water, or ruin your flooring! Especially with higher humidity needed now spring etc on it's way soon.

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

Glad to hear you're enjoying them, Peter. Over the last 2 to 3 years I've found the humidity in the greenhouse rarely drops below 75%. If we're in the middle of summer, and going through a hot spell (as you know, a very rare occurrence) even then, I find it generally stays above 50%, which is fine for the vast majority of plants. Even more rarely, we get easterly weather systems - and that's the only time when humidity can drop too low for my plants. Those times are generally short-lived - maybe a week in a year (remember the Beast from the East?). I have a hydro-fogger I can use as a back-up if that happens. As far as the Hothouse goes, it's shaded for pretty much 95% of the day, but I guess we'll see what happens this spring and summer - I just have to keep a close eye on it and adjust as is necessary. I expect I'll still need a bit of shading at some point - if only for a few hours. I also expect I'll be opening and closing those double doors rather more than I'd like!

[@loganjeffrey4136]

Can u do a video on indoor jasmine

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

I don’t actually grow them…yet! But if I ever do I’m sure I’ll make a video.

[@filipasilva9531]

Can you believe I water my tradescantia bubblegum with a syringe so it won't get as pots 😁

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

Haha! Can’t say I blame you! I’ve been trying to bottom water…when I remember. 🤷‍♂️

[@filipasilva9531]

@@Grow_Up_Man55 I'm crazy about Tradescantias, I only have Bubblegum and Zebrina. Your collection is just amazing, I'm a little apprehensive to buy online because of damage. I got my bubblegum in December, came completely cooked because of the cold even with a ice pack, I chopped it all up and saved a tiny bit. It's thriving ☺️

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

I get everything online as there is no other option. I’ve seen zebrina for sale but that’s about it. They’re pretty cheap anyway here so it’s always worth a gamble.

[@Grow_Up_Man55]

@@filipasilva9531 Glad to hear it's perked up for you. They're tougher than they look.