When we first moved onto the property we are caretaking there was an old restaurant fridge (think loud, big, and heavy with sliding glass doors) in the tool shed that was used for fruit storage as the berries and orchard fruit came in during the growing season. It was in no way big enough but it worked well with the small abundance offered by a newer orchard and berry canes.
In the four years we’ve been here now we’ve seen one really good fruit year (that allowed us to sell at a farmers market in addition to putting up a ton of fruit), two years that gave us ~25-50 of potential yield and one year of so little there was no real storage needed at all save for some berries.
Two summers ago the old cooler finally crapped out and we just made do with the small harvests that came in by eating it fresh or freezing most if it immediately after giving our landlord his share as quickly after harvest as possible.
Fruit production in the high desert can be iffy based on our warm early spring weather which encourages flowering followed by the invariable late frost in early May that often kills most, if not everything back in the orchard.
That all being said, as the orchard and berry canes mature, they’re learning from experience, protecting each other from the elements, and producing more consistently. At the same time, we’re personally growing a larger Kitchen Garden as well as a few other crops (like green chile) which require cold storage before processing which all meant we needed to figure something out.
Enter the walk-in cooler our landlord had stashed in a storage unit for over a decade that just never made it’s way out here… until last summer 🙂
It took a few extra hands to get it up in the right place (it’s an awfully big puzzle to put together) and my dad helped with the installation of the air conditioner and CoolBot, but it worked like a charm for the next several months as we harvested and stored berries, apples, pears, and a wonderful green chile crop.
We then emptied it and unplugged it over the winter while us humans and the nature around us all went into hibernation.
But as winter began to shift and spring began whispering sweet inspirations we started thinking about seed starting, the lack of a greenhouse on the property, and the massive inconvenience of setting up grow lights inside our small home when inspiration struck!
Could we turn the walk in cooler into a Grow Room?
Well, it turns out, technology was on our side.
Just as the CoolBot technology overrides an air conditioner’s brain to keep a space cooler in hot temperatures, there are similar temperature control devices that are used with a space heater to keep a space warmer in colder temperatures.
Paired with the grow lights we invested in when we lived in the city, we had a plan!
Do what you can
With what you have
Where you are.
And now, we have a grow room with hundreds of seedlings making their way from the dark, depths of the soil into the light!
A few details:
- The thermostat is set so the heater only kicks on if the room dips below 57*F and shuts off at 63*F
- We placed two buckets of water in opposite corners to raise the humidity of the room
- The lights get turned on at 7am and off at 7pm (ish)
- On especially warm days, we crack or leave the door open for a while to allow the room to cool a bit and to allow for air flow
In an effort to lessen our plastic usage we’re also experimenting with a soil blocker this year instead of using trays with individual cells. Time will tell how this works out, but I’m excited about the potential positives. I’ll circle back on this detail later to report back.
And so there it is, our new cold storage turned grow room!
As simple as the additions are the farm, it feels like a whole new world has been opened to us!
Now I just need a proper wash stand…
All in good time 😉
How are you growing season plans, dreams, and schemes finding their way from imagination into reality these days? Do tell!
xoxo,
M
(((Affiliate links below to the tools we used in the conversion)))
It’s terrific that you can use the same unit for your cool storage and grow room. Beautiful plants and vegetables. Have a great weekend!
Natalie recently posted…Goodbye Winter, Hello Spring 2022
It was a real AHA! moment and I’m so grateful for it! Have a great week ahead, Natalie!
This is awesome!! I really like the idea of working with what you have. At the moment I am growing in containers at my balcony. Hopefully I will have a few acres of my own sooner than later, but for now I’ve become an expert in growing in small spaces. LOL. I like seeing how things are at your farm.
We started small, too, with just a few potted veggies. It’s such an amazing feeling to grow your own food though and we knew we were hooked fairly early on, it’s just taking us some time to find our Forever Farm. In the meantime, we’re grateful for the property we caretake now and are learning so much that we will be able to later implement on our own property. I have no doubt that if you keep your dream alive it’ll happen for you, too! In the meantime, it’s really amazing how much one can produce in a small space so it makes me really happy to see you growing your own right where you are!