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[tonitime AT juno.com]

Greetings, the List!
    Being new here, thought i would mention that i am a bit of an
obsessive gardener ;-)   A stroke of  good fortune hit, as a friend who
is a mushroom farmer offered to give us our first 48' hoophouse!
I am thrilled, as i need season extension back here in zone 6ish.  We
moved from the Sacramento area of CA to a place with 90 days less growing
season :o  I was thinking of using a portion of that for hotbeds such as
our other thread talked about.
   Since it has alot of space, i was toying with the idea of using one
end for a cold-season henhouse.  Have any of you ever done suchin a hoop
or greenhouse?  It seems like a great way to keep spring grubs out of the
growing area (and fertilize a bit) by Spring to let them loose in there. 
I am imagining the beds with cover crops that i can open to the chickens
in sections.  Any wisdom/advice on such a plan appreciated.  Come summer,
i would hope to have one or two chicken tractors made that the darlings
can hang out in fallow areas of the ever- growing amount of berm-style
planting beds outside.  We can't free-range poultry because of diligent
dogs that keep most wildlife out of the kitchen gardens!  The Aussie will
chase the buzzards, crows, and great blue herons deep into the woods, as
tho she had a hope ;-)  THAT is good - we're the only farm without deer
or other critter detruction way out in our hollar.
Best regards,
Toni in KY