Hi I'm Erin and this is Our Wyoming Life
Gardening in Wyoming can be tough.
We are a zone 4 with high elevation and a wind problem.
Average last frost date is May 22nd.
This year Erin is hoping for her first vegetable harvest on April 27th.
This might work or it might not but we will definitely learn something along the way.
Maybe we need to wish Erin some good luck!
Today I am in the high tunnel checking on the soil prep for the lettuce seedlings that
will be transplanted in about 2 weeks.
This is a 30 foot wide by 72 foot long unheated, single layer of plastic high tunnel from farmtek
It is a hoop design with hoops every 4 feet.
They are 12 foot high in the center.
Last summer I grew 205 tomato plants, 160 pepper plants, a handful of tomatillos and
a row of cucumbers that produced almost 1000 pounds of big beautiful cucumbers.
This year we are taking our first step into cold weather growing.
That’s where the lettuce seedlings we planted come into the play.
Every year our farmers market has an early market in conjunction with the Master Gardener
Garden and Landscape Educational Expo.
This year that date is April 29th.
I hope to bring the lettuce we’ve started as well as radishes and spinach to that market.
Then our regular season market starts mid July.
In order to grow lettuce well before our last frost date I am currently warming the soil.
Under the clear plastic is a 3 ft wide strip that we have already tilled.
This is where the cold weather crops will go.
During the summer season this is a walkway with tomatoes on either side.
Harvest of cold crops will be on April 27th.
If the weather looks ok we will plant the tomato and pepper seedlings
on April 15th.
Most cold hardy crops can be planted when soil temps are consistently above 44 or 45
degrees.
Clear plastic is the fastest way to warm your garden soil.
It acts like a mini greenhouse on the ground and allows the suns rays to penetrate through
through.
If you do this outside you will have to secure your plastic from the wind somehow.
You can staple it in with ground stakes or use bricks.
Soil temp under the plastic looks to be 45 degrees.
We’re ready to transplant.
Now we just need the lettuce to grow a little bit bigger.
When we get closer to our harvest date we will direct sow the spinach and radish seeds.
Their date to maturity is shorter then our Salanova head lettuce.
We will leave the plastic on the soil until we plant.
Once planted we will use temporary hoops and row covers to protect the cold crops from
a hard frost.
We will also fill used gallon jugs with water and place them throughout the rows.
The water in the jugs will heat during the day and release their heat throughout the
night.
This is a cheap low tech way to add an extra couple degrees to our row.
Our seedlings are progressing great.
They all have developed their first set of true leaves.
You can see them here.
Some are working on their second set.
The first leaves the we see emerge are the cotyledon leaves.
They will eventually turn brown and die as the seedling grows.
Couple more weeks and the lettuce will go the tunnel.
So they are doing great.
Thank you for watch our introduction into cold weather growing.
We hope you enjoyed this episode of Our Wyoming Life.
If you have any questions please comment and I will do my best to answer your questions
to the best of my knowledge.
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