>>1315046>terracotta watering spikesI rally like that idea. They are just like the ollas only you are not in danger of breaking them while digging if you forget about them. I think the only problem might be algae. How fast are they normally? I have a ton of wine bottles and glass 2 liter soda bottles that may work.
>>1315112If you add a second layer of plastic to the polytunnels and have an air space of 1/4" to 2" max between them it will extend the season up to a month or more. Each layer of plastic is like going into 1 zone warmer. As for what to plant, check this out:
https://www.gardenate.com/?zone=14Remember you can use 5-gallon sized containers to overwinter things like peppers.
I'm in a Zone 5a also. The only time I don't garden is like November and December. All the rest of the time, I'm starting stuff indoors under lights, planting in polytunnels, doing general outdoor maintenance for the gardens, harvesting, planting late season crops, covering with polytunnels again, harvesting, planting overwintering crops (garlic,) cleaning up, break for maybe two months then get back at it all over again. I'm constantly modifying things and removing or adding old/new stuff from my line up.
>>1315118>How long does it usually take for tomatoes to actually yieldWith polytunnels, you may be able to get a crop, but not a whole lot. One winter I had two layers of plastic and a small space heater with fan and thermostat. I had ripe tomatoes in January from September/October volunteer plants.
>>1315127That sounds pretty dire actually. they may make a comeback if their roots are okay. You may look into vacation watering wick systems. Like this,
https://scissorsandsage.com/2015/04/20/diy-self-watering-system-for-houseplants/>>1315152You are correct. There was something about that on some news channel or perhaps NPR. I don't recall the source, but it was the plastic tubing in the milking machines. Once that was removed, it was fine.
