JetSmooth
Well-Known Member
Anyone do any galvanized water trough growing?
Last year, a friend and I placted six rhizomes in his back yard (he likens himself a one-acre farmer) on a whim. He changed churches and moved and we lost touch. The plants did very little and I wasn't stressing about it.
Last summer, we put a new deck on our townhouse and I am now wrapping up a paver patio that extends about three feet beyond the deck. As Ive been working in the yard, I see one corner that gets a decent amount of sun. The houses on either sides of us have bump-outs and under our deck is pretty well shaded. But that one corner gets an okay amount of sun, I think.
My friend's house was bought by our pastor's father-in-law and I suspect he hasn't done anything to the back yard yet. So our hops may still be there if they didn't whither away. I'd like to go rescue them!
I don't want to plant in the ground because the neighborhood association has a service that mows and sprays and stuff. I was thinking of putting half-barrels on the corner of the patio (or just on the ground right off the patio) to raise the hops and keep them out of the lawn.
Then I thought about a big galvanized steel water trough. I'd likely drill a few holes in the bottom, fill it with pea gravel left over from the patio project, then growing medium (soil/manure?)
When it came time for the bines to grow, I'd just put a few lines up to the beams of the deck.
I don't expect much out of them this year i fI do this. But it might get me ahead for next year.
Here's a decent trough at TSC - http://www.tractorsupply.com/oval-galvanized-stock-tank-2-ft-w-x-4-ft-l-x-2-ft-h-100-gal-capacity-2177201
I figure I could plant two at maximum, one at each end about 8 inches in.
Am I crazy? Any danger from the galvanized steel? I guess I would have to monitor the pH to keep zinc from leeching out.
Last year, a friend and I placted six rhizomes in his back yard (he likens himself a one-acre farmer) on a whim. He changed churches and moved and we lost touch. The plants did very little and I wasn't stressing about it.
Last summer, we put a new deck on our townhouse and I am now wrapping up a paver patio that extends about three feet beyond the deck. As Ive been working in the yard, I see one corner that gets a decent amount of sun. The houses on either sides of us have bump-outs and under our deck is pretty well shaded. But that one corner gets an okay amount of sun, I think.
My friend's house was bought by our pastor's father-in-law and I suspect he hasn't done anything to the back yard yet. So our hops may still be there if they didn't whither away. I'd like to go rescue them!
I don't want to plant in the ground because the neighborhood association has a service that mows and sprays and stuff. I was thinking of putting half-barrels on the corner of the patio (or just on the ground right off the patio) to raise the hops and keep them out of the lawn.
Then I thought about a big galvanized steel water trough. I'd likely drill a few holes in the bottom, fill it with pea gravel left over from the patio project, then growing medium (soil/manure?)
When it came time for the bines to grow, I'd just put a few lines up to the beams of the deck.
I don't expect much out of them this year i fI do this. But it might get me ahead for next year.
Here's a decent trough at TSC - http://www.tractorsupply.com/oval-galvanized-stock-tank-2-ft-w-x-4-ft-l-x-2-ft-h-100-gal-capacity-2177201
I figure I could plant two at maximum, one at each end about 8 inches in.
Am I crazy? Any danger from the galvanized steel? I guess I would have to monitor the pH to keep zinc from leeching out.