Monday, March 15, 2010

Frugality reality

Preparing for the colder months I started work on a new hothouse today. If we can keep the soil warm and the frost off the leaves our vegies will keep growing through the winter. I sharpened the tips of eight vertical garden stakes and fitted some leftover polypipe over them to make four arches. I then went through the wood pile looking for any length of 4.8m timber and found a piece of decking board, which I ripped into four individual pieces. I then attached the quartered lengths horizontally with tek screws, which bit into the polypipe really tightly. I asked the builders next door if I could have the clear plastic sheets they have lying about to cover material as it arrives. The answer was "shortly". Cool. I'll wait. The frosts are still a few weeks off.

I thought I'd also include my bike in this shot and show off the new crate that I fixed to it yesterday. I got the crate at the local markets for a few dollars. The hothouse so far hasn't cost us anything as the materials have been reclaimed from here and there over the years. Like the cellar I'm building for next-to-nix, we're really trying to make this transition with as little capital as possible. Although the main house, with double-glazed windows and solar panels was a major capital outlay, something we often question especially at a time of interest rate rises. Eeeeck!

1 comment:

Serge said...

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