Joanne Member
Number of posts : 13 Registration date : 2009-01-27
| Subject: Garden Goddess Greenhouse Tue Jan 27, 2009 2:30 pm | |
| I and some others visited the winter greenhouse, run by Carol Ford and Chuck Waibel in Milan, Minnesota on a very cold, cloudy day last December. I took a lot of pics; it's probably easier to link you to my blog posting that talks about our visit, rather than post some of the pictures here. http://14acres.blogspot.com/2008/12/cool.html. In addition to the info I give, here are some more bits. They started this project after completing the Land Stewardship Project's Farm Beginnings Program. They came up with a business plan and submitted a loan request to several different banks. They received a loan for $18,000 which built the greenhouse from the ground up. They deliver 17 shareboxes to members around the area from October to March. They supplement the winter boxes with root veges they grow in their garden during the summer. A share costs about $425. Their greenhouse is heated mostly by passive and direct solar heat; they designed the greenhouse to capture as much of the sun's energy as possible and store it for gradual release. They spent about $50-$75 a year in propane for a small supplmental heater, for long stretches of cloudy days. Let me know if you have any other questions. You can also do a Google search and read various articles that have been written about them. All in all, they have a very cool (or warm) operation going, and are excited to share their experiences and enthusiasm with other local foodites. | |
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Kathy D Member
Number of posts : 18 Registration date : 2009-01-23
| Subject: Re: Garden Goddess Greenhouse Fri Feb 13, 2009 12:02 pm | |
| Joanne, Thank you for posting this information. I'll ask the Garden Goddess herself to join our conversation! Happy Friday everyone! Kathy | |
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