Harry , there are some important things to know when deciding on the shade cloth to be used on your new shade house.
1) Do not always take the manufacturers recommendation!!! Check around your immediate area and take note of what other folks are using successfully.
2)In the Port Elizabeth area ,cooling is a bigger problem than heating . White shade cloth tends to trap more heat under the shade cloth than black shade cloth !
I have 4 Shade houses, they all face to the four points of the compass all are covered with 60% white . The plants in my South,East and West facing houses grow and flower very well. However the North facing house is far too hot in the summer months
So I have had to install 30% curtains which I draw in the summer and open in the winter ,when the plants need more light. I have also noticed that the plants receiving higher light also need a higher nitrogen feed than the others. So if I could I would rather go back to the 60% black shade cloth which I used successfully for years.
Growing white yellow or green Cymbidiums under white also stains the outside of the petals ,so I have to provide additional protection for these plants.
Des
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