Sorting Out the Power Supply as the North Wind Blows

The edge on the north wind provided ample confirmation of the forecasted lows in the mid-twenties over the next few days.  The temperature drop nudged the necessity of rain barrel storage out of the "later" category into the "sooner."  Since the rain gauge, upon our return home, had indicated two inches worth of precipitation I knew the barrels would be full.  Filling every available container I could find and stowing them in the greenhouse, I emptied what remained of the water harvest and shifted the empty barrels inside the barn.  The remainder of the preparations would require more thinking.

Grow lights were already hung inside the greenhouse, and a cord to supply the power already run.  But the heater I had purchased would need longer hours than the lights if the existing winter hardy lettuce plants, the more recently transplanted lettuce plugs and the mustard, arugula and spinach seeds I had just planted -- perhaps foolishly -- were going to stand a chance.  The seeds, admittedly, are an experiment.  It's doubtful that I can coax their sprouts over the next 30-45 days, but I have been anxious to test the possibilities.  The herb plugs are scheduled to arrive later this week, and they -- with the existing lettuce -- will stand more of a chance as winter increasingly settles in. 

With two separate timers in hand, I considered the tangle of wires and their divergent needs for power.  The lights I want to come on at dusk and remain on until about 10 pm; the heater, I assumed, would initially need several hours additional.  Not knowing exactly how the greenhouse will hold its heat through the darkness, I naively hoped for the best.  Eventually, I connected the photo cell timer to the main power supply, set with the broader time span needed by the heater.  The simpler timer I connected inside the greenhouse to serve all three of the light fixtures.  At that point, I crossed my fingers and hoped for the best.

Epilogue:

The "system" worked like a charm.  The greenhouse veritably glowed through its hours of extended daylight.  The heater kept the edge off the interior temperature at least until I went to bed, and had shut itself off by morning.  The only problem was that the space needed more heating than that.  The waking temperature inside the greenhouse was below freezing.  Tonight, when the low is expected to be even lower, we will not have the luxury of abbreviated hours.  The heater will have to run all night.  As for the lettuce?  It couldn't look more beautiful.  No word yet on the seeds.