Snow Damage on the plot

[Jeanbean]

Oh dear, a bit of forward thinking might have saved our large walk in brassica cage from being flatten. Mary's OH made us a splendid half rounded brassica cage which we covered with debris neting to keep the cabbage whites out. We had a very successful growing season so decided to plant winter caulifowers and cabbages. Her OH went over plot today to check and all of the sites's brasiica cages of similar spec are raised to the ground :(. In hindsight we should have made the top cover of debris netting so we could have removed it for the winter. But here in S Essex we don't usually see this amount of snow in a decade let alone a few days. Ah well back to the drawing board. Anyone else had the same thing happen?

[Jeanbean]

[saddad]

I've just been for a walk round... some of my net cages are down and in some places the nets have torn... but nothing that can't be replaced...  :-X

[Ellen K]

Also walked round our site yesterday - same here but fixable.

The only footprints in the snow were mine and the foxes so I agonised about clearing the snow off someone else's polytunnel.  Decided against it as there are already tears in the cover and I might have made one worse.  But maybe I should have - the Beechgrove gardeners lost polytunnels last winter from snow.  And the covers aren't cheap.

[Chrispy]

Last year I had hoops with netting, the snow crushed the lot, but when the snow cleared the hoops and netting just spring up again with no damage.

This year I have basicly the same, except the hoops ane now attached to a wooden frame so I can just pick up and move them.

Just been to have a look, the snow has just gone through then net, not settled on top, same net so must be different type of snow.

[Froglegs]

No snow damage but the pigeons have had a go at me PSB plants.

[kt.]

I have a few broken sheets of glass from my greenhouses due to the weight of snow.

[Chrispy]

No snow damage but the pigeons have had a go at me PSB plants.

Same here....

[Amazingrotavator(Derby)]

Oh dear, a bit of forward thinking might have saved our large walk in brassica cage from being flatten. Mary's OH made us a splendid half rounded brassica cage which we covered with debris neting to keep the cabbage whites out. We had a very successful growing season so decided to plant winter caulifowers and cabbages. Her OH went over plot today to check and all of the sites's brasiica cages of similar spec are raised to the ground :(. In hindsight we should have made the top cover of debris netting so we could have removed it for the winter. But here in S Essex we don't usually see this amount of snow in a decade let alone a few days. Ah well back to the drawing board. Anyone else had the same thing happen?

I have the same problem.Going to make the cage out of 2x1 timber in spring.The water pipe will not take the weight of snow.

[saddad]

Sorry to see that... can you have a wider mesh for the roof... that's what they advise for fruit cages in Winter...  :-X

[Amazingrotavator(Derby)]

It wasn't the net that caused it. It was the pipe buckleing under the weight. Will be alright with a timber frame.

[saddad]

But with a wider mesh on the roof the snow won't collect. So there won't be the weight problem...  as I understand it....  :-\

[Jeanbean]

Sorry to see your cage Amazing rotovator. I haven't actually seen ours yet. Mary's OH went over. I am taking a look today, but I think it was caused by the same problem. Although we didn't use the blue water pipe, we used a white piping that Mick 'found' somewhere. It wa a bit more brittle than the blue pipe. I don't think a wider mesh will be any good Saddad as the cabbage whites are contortionists and work their way through the mesh. That was our problem last year. We are going to recontruct with a longer upright before the curve and re-net in three. The side first and then the top, overlapping it and making it removable. We will take the top net off once the cabbage whites have gone. We don't overwinter much in the way of brassicas so hopefully the pigeons won't pose a problem

[PeterVV]

My fleece over my broad beans didnt stand a chance and when I dug it out, ripped when I tried to pull the ice off it that was under the snow. No sign of my onions and garlic , they were well and truly  buried!

[Dandytown]

Sorry to hear of your losses, I too am bereaving the loss of my cage.  But I agree with Saddad, time to dust our selves off and on to the next project.

I didrn't quite have it it me to photograph the damage that the snow caused.  I used scaffolding netting and had planned to remove the roof before winter but never got round to it.  My mistake!

The snow pulled the roof down and along with it a support bar which tore the sides.  I can reuse most of the netting on another rproject but do not have enought to cover the original frame. 

As I haven't worked outr how to post a picture here is a link toa photograph of the cage when built


http://www.bigpumpkins.com/Diary/DiaryViewOne.asp?eid=135026

[pumkinlover]

Sorry to hear of your cage damage dandytown, but thank you so much for the link!!- more hours on the laptop!