Mini greenhouses!

I tried something a bit different with my tomato plants this year. I was wanting some plastic milk bottles to make miniature green houses so that I could give my tomato plants an early start. Since we get milk from a local farmer friend in glass bottles, I asked my sweet sister-in-laws and mom-in-law to collect their plastic bottles for me earlier this spring. 

A couple of weeks before the last frost date, we planted the seedlings that we grew (ourselves!!) under fluorescents (first time EVER! And they turned out awesome!).  I had my handy boys cut the bottoms of the milk bottles off and placed them over each of the tomato plants. We put our tomato cages around them to keep the chickens from scratching too much and knocking the bottles off. Then we shoved hay around the outside partly for weather protection and partly just to hold them in place. And here they are...

They look pretty comfy, huh? We kept the lids on for a bit until the weather got warmer during the day. I think I put the lids back on for one of the first cool nights, took them off the next day, then I just left them off and didn't do anything with them. 

Grace, my garden helped is dressed for summer. Who knew it was still going to be such a chilly spring still. A couple weeks after planting (a lil before the last frost date), we cut around the top of each milk bottle to give them room to grow. I didn't want to take them completely off for a little more sheltering for the young plants and also because I didn't want my chickens to scratch them up as they have a tendency to do. One week later, here's how they're doing...

They look great. I think I'll be doing it again next year!