Mother Nature is in Southern California and she's having a field day! It's like summer here. We're having one of the worst droughts in recorded history. Farmers are having to sell their cows. Farm hands are being laid off, as there are no crops to tend. The weather is beautiful, but it's creating lots of problems. Yellow was my mother's favorite color. I remember her saying, "You must have a little touch of yellow in every room in your house." As a tribute to her, I have tried as best I can to do just that. An apothecary jar full of fake lemons sits in my living room. A little red vase with some twigs full of small yellow blossoms sits on the coffee table in my family room. A funny little yellow picture frame is on my nightstand. Yes, yellow is cheery, and your tablescape just shows how true that is. Nice job. I hope the worst of the winter storms are over soon.

I bet it was an awesome sight!

From my Zone 7 perspective, I think you might well enjoy some very comfortable temps in your greenhouse on sunny days, even if they're quite cold. As pointed out above, as soon as the sun's rays are dimmed - whether by clouds or even bare tree branches, the cooling will be noticeable. Twin-wall polycarbonate glazing will have a slightly higher insulation value than glass, and you can (as I did for my greenhouse) insulate the north wall and install a draft barrier around the perimeter where the greenhouse meets the soil. Alas, I cannot find the log I kept our first winter with the greenhouse: inside/outside temperatures and weather conditions (sunny, cloudy, windy, calm, nighttime, etc.). Will keep looking as it might be helpful to you. January and February are the coldest months here, and can easily get down into the 20's in the daytime and teens and a few single digits at night. Even on a frigid day, with ice and snow, I'm comfortable in a tank top or t-shirt in my greenhouse. Although not diagnosed with SAD, winter was always a tough time for me, but being able to spend time out in the greenhouse, with the sights and scents of green, growing - even blooming - things, has made a big difference.

I'd do anything to get out of here for a vacation. Never been to Florida, much less the beach/ocean. I love seafood, the sun, and my birthstone is aquamarine, so it would seem like I would be a beach person, lol. I wish I had a greenhouse or a sun room. I'd practically live in it all winter long. A mostly rainy summer didn't help for the lack of sun (and when it was sunny, the humidity was unbearable). I hope your trip to the greenhouse yields in some new Hoyas and other plants. The Snow Queen is really kicking into gear. Freezing rain currently, which will change into plain rain later on once it gets warmer. Seeing the snow is pretty for a while, but one gets tired quickly of shoveling it, lol. Brad AKA Moonwolf