Best Greenhouse Covering For Extreme Weather

Why We Choose Polycarbonate for Hail, Wind, Snow and Cold Temperatures

Impact Resistance 200 Times Greater Than Glass

People claim the weather is unpredictable these days, especially in the Rocky Mountains.

I call shenanigans. It is predictable; in its unpredictability. It will hail, it will snow, it will get windy and that’s where polycarbonate as a greenhouse covering comes in.

When a rainstorm takes a turn and starts to unleash hail disguised as golf balls, you want to know that your greenhouse and the fruits of your labor inside will be adequately protected.

A local CSA program shut down here a few years ago after they lost their entire crop to an early summer hail storm. I also remember when the Archuleta County Fair, held at the end of July/beginning of August, was bombarded by several inches of hail within a matter of minutes.

It comes fast, hard, seemingly out of nowhere, and can devastate a garden or greenhouse.

Thankfully polycarbonate is strong.

I mean, it’s really strong stuff. It’s merits go beyond its strength, but when it comes to creating a strong protective greenhouse covering, polycarbonate is virtually unbreakable.

A&C Plastics describes multiwall polycarbonate as virtually unbreakable, with strength more than 200 times that of glass and 10 times that of plexiglass.

I don’t know what the world record is for hail, ok, I just looked it up.

“The largest officially recognized hailstone on record to have been ‘captured’ in the U.S. was that which fell near Vivian, South Dakota last summer (2010) on July 23rd. It measured 8.0” in diameter, 18 ½” in circumference, and weighed in at 1.9375 pounds. Mr. Lee Scott, who collected, the monster stone originally planned to make daiquiris out of the hailstone but fortunately thought better and placed it in a freezer before turning it over to the National Weather Service for certification.” www.wunderground.com

The hailstone collected in Vivian, South Dakota, in 2010 weighed 1.9375 pounds. We all know the damage that even an average hail storm can bring.

Its impact resistance makes it a strong greenhouse covering for protecting your garden from hail.

That’s why, in my humble opinion, the polycarbonate we use in our Growing Dome® Kits is The Best Greenhouse Covering for Unpredictable Weather

From John & Barbara Eychaner in Banner, Wyoming:

“No damage to Growing Dome solar greenhouse after hailstorm. In mid-afternoon on May 26, 2013 we had quite a hail storm. I was not home but my husband was. Some of the hailstones were close to softball-baseball size which, of course, did lots of damage. We have had to have our house roof completely replaced, the three skylights on the house and the rain gutter. We have to say the rain gutter damaged on the house was plastic/fiber glass. There were large holes in that. We also have a good sized steel pole building with again the fiber glass along the peak for light purposes. There are several large holes in that. This will all be replaced. But, Praise the Lord! There was NO hail damage to our geodesic 22 foot Growing Dome greenhouse from Growing Spaces. We frankly were surprised. We highly recommend the Growing Spaces to anyone interested in a solar greenhouse.”

You know the saying. The one credited to Samuel Clemens. And I know it’s not just Pagosa Springs that claims this humorous and sometimes frustrating trait.

“If you don’t like the weather… wait 5 minutes.”

But in that 5 minutes alone, don’t let the power of a Rocky Mountain hailstorm destroy your dream garden!