Shade & Hot House From The Start
 

So the beginning of myself getting back into horticulture more to the point orchid growing.

It all started as we needed a fence because we have had no neighbour to the south of our house for 27 years. Now someone is building. So a fence turned into a Shade & Hot house. Why not we said. We are only able to do about 30 mins of work on it per most days. Measurement by measurement, day after day and it slowly grows just like an orchid.

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Can see the foundations of the house next door plus our structure to date.

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Looking from the original angle with the scoffolding in place to start the shade cloth roof. Roof joists are at 1.2m or 4 foot centers. Another roof joist to go in to make the centers 600mm or 2 foot for wind strenght. The tree close , front is going to be built into the shade house area.

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The shade & hot house cloths plus the fittings. Hopefully we will start tomorrow.

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Nice you are building but to bad about the people building next door after 27 years. I'd be sick.

keep the progress pictures coming...so exciting!

Yes! Your two very different comments sum up our feelings about it all very well. Thank you very much to both of you. :)

My wife still get tears in her eyes about having neighbours and there was also tears when I said the tree in the shade house is going and my wife reaction very quickly changed my mind.

Growing scented orchids has become a very big thing for my wife. One of her friends sent her an email with different shaped orchid flowers of animals and birds which was very nice. All of this has cheered her up a great deal.

At 19 year old the 1st place that I took my wife was to an orchid nursery in full bloom. That is 38 years ago. It was just so special.

What a beautiful thing to do, to transform a difficult situation into something positive and meaningful to you and your wife. Inspirational.

can you mount some orchids to that tree????

Thank you for the very kind words.

Hummmm orchids on the tree.

Very interesting! Never gave it a thought.

That will be nice to share with my wife.

So as my adult boys helped us clear the area for post hole to be dug a nasty discovery was found that even shocked me.

A lot of ants and termites were found so I put out some wood and found 3 different termites. One is very aggressive wood eater, mid range and a very low trouble type.

Also two meat ants, one that is the very common large dull red colour and one I have never seen anywhere else and it is a very large ant with huge nippers with a large back end that is yellow and black strips. For many years I would watch them farm on the trees and thought they were nectar, sap eaters but I had it very wrong.

Plus a small black ant that breeds into huge numbers in a very short period of time and they look to be able to eat anything.

Also a medium sized green ant that has a nasty sting from its huge nippers.

All these ants were in large numbers and if nests were breached the ants would eat each other and eat the termites but nest breaches are not common for the ant and termite world. So.....

Before putting the weed matt down I knew that a full on residue insecticide drenching was needed desperately so the ants and termites could not nest in the pots or try to eat us!

As much as I am into the environment I have chosen the most deadly insecticide I can find the picture of it is below. Very sad but my orchids will win the ant and termite war! Will apply this 7 days before the weed matt goes down plus the outside of our home as well.

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Good luck

yeah - the orchids need to win! so it was good that you found this out before they did start to eat you! be careful!