I have a very special plant that I want to help through the winter months. In our zone 9a region, often a sheet or frost blanket helps to keep frost from damaging our tender outdoor plants, but sometimes those special tropical plants need a little extra attention and extra warmth. A cloth covering helps, but it is often not enough. The next layer of protection could be an overturned trash can, an upside-down pot or bucket, or as in this case, a cardboard box.
This box was initially too short for the height of the plant that I wanted to protect, so I taped up the end flaps to extend it.
This is the special part: On the inside, I used bubble wrap and styrofoam left over from holiday gift packing. I am not a packrat, but I know valuable gardening stuff when I see it, so I saved it.
This bubble wrap happened to be lined with silver mylar, giving it an even higher insulation value.
I lined the box with the material and taped it down to give it all the benefits of holding in heat/keeping cold out. I used painter's tape here, but if you want to go all the way, try using aluminum tape all around the seams to further insulate the box.
In addition to the cloth cover and box, this special plant will be wrapped up in an old-fashioned, non-LED strand of Christmas lights.
These attempts to help a tropical plant survive temperatures many degrees lower than recommended might help keep it alive. I know it can't hurt it!
Keep warm, My Plant Loving Friends!
Thread Title | Last Reply | Replies |
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insulated plant box by ndantonio2 | Jan 26, 2015 11:32 AM | 1 |
An easy thermometer by coboro | Jan 17, 2015 1:24 PM | 0 |
great idea by drdawg | Jan 14, 2015 1:33 PM | 0 |
grow box by plantcollector | Jan 14, 2015 10:52 AM | 0 |
Good idea ! by quietyard | Jan 13, 2015 9:22 PM | 0 |