Still winter

I wanted to take a picture of my garden yesterday, to let you see that more than half of it was under water. It was getting late so I decided to wait until morning and this is what I saw when I looked out the window- more snow! I am trying to ignore it and focus instead on sunnier days and warmer temperatures. To that end, I visited my friend Dan, who graciously offered to give me his 10 x 10 plastic covered greenhouse. It is fairly substantial, held together by metal pipes and covered with opaque plastic. It is surprisingly roomy inside and plenty big enough to start my seeds. My idea was to dismantle it today, transport it home, and reconnect it close to the hedge, just outside the family room door. However, I may wait until the snow has melted. I have a couple of options for heating it, including using portable electric radiators or gas. Dan has offered to run a gas line from the house, but I'm not sure if this is the best option. The greenhouse is more utilitarian than decorative and will look like a big white tent in my back yard. It will certainly raise some eyebrows in the neighborhood, but it is a temporary structure and will only be up for a couple of months. I will dismantle it in June. After setting up the greenhouse and figuring out how to heat it, I will need to set up benches and tables to put the seed trays on. Ideally, the tables will have screen tops for drainage so the trays are not sitting in water. I will also need to purchase a thermometer so that I can keep a close eye on the temperature. One of the more difficult tasks in starting seeds in a greenhouse is regulating the temperature which can fluctuate wildly in a couple of hours depending on the type of day. I plan to start my first seeds early in the week of March 15th. Hopefully by then I'll be all set and ready to go.