Has anyone else ever thought they came up with a totally unique idea? Then when you looked at the internet you realized you were about the five millionth person to have the same idea.

I was mulling over some ideas on how to corral my asparagus plants a little bit so they didn't block my vegetable garden path. I started to think about PVC pipe.

After a little bit of research I was pretty amazed at all the things people make with PVC pipe. That brought me to another project I'd had on my list- starting seeds indoors. I usually either direct seed into the garden or buy transplants. I've wanted to set up some shelves with grow lights and heat mats, but just hadn't gotten very far. Either the shelves I'd found were too expensive, or not the right size, or whatever.

So when I found a post on T's flowers that used PVC pipe with a really nice schematic I figured what the heck. I could tweak the size a little bit to fit my space and I'd see how it worked. Then if I ever decided to get a real one I'd know what worked for me.

I'm pretty happy with how it turned out. The pipe, T connectors, PVC cement, and paint ended up costing about $75. I sized it to fit some shoe trays I found on Gardener's Supply. The lights are regular shop lights from Home Depot with really bright fluorescent lights.

It's kind of involved for a DIY project, but if you have the time, a way to make straight cuts in the PVC, and some good sized clamps it's very doable.

I hope the picture comes out OK. I couldn't figure out how to resize it to post. Next up will be my DIY heat mats. Stay posted :-)

Lisa