Suggestions to my homemade indoor greenhouse?

15 years ago

Hey everyone, this is my first post. I started growing Charentais melons a week ago from seeds. (I know, a little late) I put 12 seeds in an egg carton, one per spot, and put some soil mixture in that was pH balanced. I watered each one, put them in a ziplock bag, and then put the bag between a halogen desk light and a heat pad. After doing some research, I found out that halogen is really bad to use, and so now I use a 26w 6500K CFL. (I wanted 42w but Lowes was out)

As off today, they were out growing the ziplock bag I put them in as a temporary greenhouse. So, I put my engineering cap on and decided to build an indoor greenhouse that was cheap but effective.

To make it short and not explain my whole thinking process, I made the greenhouse with a clear shower curtain, Saran wrap, a metal shelving kit, packing tape, thermometer/hydrometer along with my heat pad and lamp. I built the the shelving kit, covered the top with Saran wrap, and then wrapped the rest of the kit in the shower curtain, holding it down with packing tape. I, then, put it in the garage on top of the heat pad, put a cup of hot water inside, installed the thermometer/hydrometer inside, and put the lamp on top. Once everything was humid, I put in my week old seedlings. So far, so good.

Here's some pictures of what it looks like:

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Comments? Suggestions? Anything?

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Comments (5)

oakhill (zone 9A, Calif.)
15 years ago
Not sure what your question is exactly, but 26 watts is not enough to grow any cucurbit. The plants should be moved to an area that gets full sun or the equivalent now, otherwise they will be etiolated (stretched) and basically non-productive.
mcnaryxc
Original Author
15 years ago
Ok, I only want to use a CFL on the seedlings. How many watts or lumens should I use?
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oakhill (zone 9A, Calif.)
15 years ago
A general recommendation for growing vegetable transplants is 200 watts of full spectrum light, placed 24 inches above the plants, to cover 10 sq. ft. Most CFL do not have the complete light spectrum needed for good plant growth.
davemichigan
15 years ago
and in zone 7 at this time, why don't you just move the seedlings outdoor?
mcnaryxc
Original Author
15 years ago
Ok, I'll look for a more powerful and brighter light bulb.

I'm going to be moving most of my seedlings outdoors as soon as they start growing their true leaves, but I guess I could start doing that now.

Sorry, I'm new at this. I watched an episode of Good Eats about melons which lead to me hearing about Charentais and how good they are. I researched, to find out, to enjoy them, my best bet would be to grow them. So, I've been scouring the internet for hours the past 3 weeks looking up how to grow these melons the right way, and seeing if I can get them to grow indoors.

See, I'm a college student, and currently, I'm staying at my father's house, which I can go outside and plant them. But, when I go back to college, I'm in a 250sqft studio to myself with no garden or anything. So, I want to be able to enjoy this fruit while I'm at school. That's why I made the greenhouse.

I probably should have explained this in my first post, but I want to be able to grow these indoor while I'm at school during its off season.