Topic: Using mini greenhouse

[pigeonseed]

Hi - I'm wondering about getting a mini greenhouse, but how early in the year do you think I could use it?

I think round April/May there's always too little room indoors, the tomatoes and flowers are potted up larger and larger, then the beans and squash need sowing...

Do any of you use mini greenhouses as early as April?

[elvis2003]

using ours already,inside the glass greenhouse for extra warmth to germinate seeds ;)

[pigeonseed]

Sadly I don't have a greenhouse. What's germinating in yours?

[Digeroo]

I run out of space on my window sill and start putting things out asap.  I cover the minigreen houses at night with a varying number of covers depending on how cold it is.  I also put bottles of water inside.  If things really get cold things go back into the kitchen.  But of a crush but it only happens occassionally. 

I did have a set of stacking boxes but they had not reacted well to the sunshine and are now very brittle. 

[lottie lou]

If you get az mini greenhouse make sure you weight it down well. 

[Morris]

Yes I second weighing it down - and it is worth buying a sturdier type if you can afford it.  I had a tragic incident many years ago when my chock-full mini-house (in a very sheltered spot) blew down in a stormy night.  All my lovely seedlings nearly ready to go out splatted over the paving. 

I have a greenhouse now but I still use a mini-one as well.  Inside the main one over winter and outside for hardening off and less tender plants in spring.

[pigeonseed]

So bottles of water - do they heat up in the daytime and give off heat at night? Would that work this early in the year, I wonder. Are you using your mini gh yet digeroo?

Definitely weighting down! It gets v windy here. Even in summer.

I know the ideal placefor i against a sunny wall. Sadly my daughter's wendy house is there  ::)

Thanks for the tips. I'm thinking of getting one. one with a plasticd floor i suppose, so you can weight it down inside.

[gp.girl]

I know the ideal place for it against a sunny wall. Sadly my daughter's wendy house is there  ::)

Evict her, it's a capitalist second home anyway  :)

OH suggests putting it next to the Wendyhouse and telling her its a conservatory (he's nicer)

Mine will be going up in late March  :)

[Morris]

Actually I'm not sure full sun is the best spot.  They over-heat easily and it's hard to get the ventilation right.  Mine gets a lot of indirect light reflecting off our light coloured gravel drive but doesn't get any direct sunlight and I find everything grows well and isn't leggy.  I had problems with wilting and scorch when I tried a sunny spot.

I know about conflict between family use of the garden and desire to grow veg!!!  I would dig up all the lawn given the chance but I am in the minority there - I keep slicing little bits off every year but they will rumble me in the end  ;)

[pigeonseed]

Yes I know what you mean Morris! Mine are very tolerant though. But I do like a nice flower garden as well, and so it's a mix of veg and flowers.

It's on a steep hill, and the wendy house is the only flat place. Otherwise if I move it (believe me I've thought about this) it will roll down the hill everytime she leans on it.

Which would be ok except it might crush my plants.  :o

Maybe at the top of the garden, somehow tied to the shed... Less sunny, but still not too shady.

[sunloving]

I have mine up all year round, currently have lots in there hardening off leeks, onions, sunflowers, and lots of hardy bedding.
Its great for over wintering slightly tender things and forcing early strawberries.

I agree about not in full sun everything gets fried, and i nail a wire around mine attached to shed or drainpipe to make sure they dont get blown over and def remeber to load from the bottom!

I find to that having lots of spare bits helps in that there are holes for four horizontals so fill these on your lower rungs. And always tap the plastic bits onto the metal uprights with a rock or hammer as this ensures a flat and not wobbly greenhouse!

In the high summer you can grow two pot toms in each one .
Brill things and you can get them cheap in wilkies come october sale.
Good luck with yours
x sunloving

[shirlton]

We use ours in the unheated GH but not yet cos its too cold

[1066]

Mine stays up all year round (except in Nov when it blew over cos I hadn't tied it in properly!  ::) )  I've overwintered salads and a few tender bits and bobs. It will go into full production mode shortly what with the zillion peas I have just sown, in it at the moment are some trays of poppies, and a few geraniums.
I would add that our garden is fairly sheltered from winds and frost so I've done well to keep the salads going over winter. I have a couple of pics from early Dec when we had all that snow, and everything still came through ok. In fact I bought another one last week from Wilcos on line for about £7, cheaper than ESK  ;)
I'd love a proper greenhouse up on the plot, myabe one day.......

[Susiebelle]

Digeroo - what's this about water? do you put hot water in the bottles?

[Dandytown]

I have a greenhouse but a self made one which is getting up to 26oC in the day.  I have everything in there now as the missus has banned pots of mud in the house.  My peppers are in there in a propagator and I hope they will be fine on the cold days.  I too would like a nice new big one

Could you build a greenhouse?  Mine was built from scrap wood, albeit a lot of it.  (see my site, it may be on there).  You can always tout around glaziers for old wooden frames, some complete with glass, that they are throwing away.

[Borlotti]

Agree with having to weight them down, but find mine very useful.  It is against a wall, and have just put a few peas in there today and it feels quite warm.  Have left it unzipped.  It is also very useful for growing cats.  Dulce is getting too fat to sit there.

[Emagggie]

 ;D ;D ;D ;D  love it!
I find the mini greenhouse very good for hardening off plants. Taking the plastic cover off or putting it on is easier than transporting trays twice a day.
I also tie mine round with elastic to keep the cover on. As for weighting it down, I put housebricks on the bottom wire shelf- it seems to do the trick.

[Robert_Brenchley]

Mine stand up against the shed wall, and they've never moved an inch. They'll be in use in a couple of days, but meanwhile I've got to put up new ones because I couldn't get covers for the old, they're the biggest size and nobody seems to make them now. It doesn't matter as I'll be using them as shelving for stuff which doesn't need sheltering.

[lisaparkin]

I bought a 4 shelf mini greenhouse thingy from Wilkos for £12 last weekend, and a fleece cover as it is still cold at night. 

I filled the shelves with trays of flower seeds, zipped it all up.......got up 2 days later, opened my curtains....and.....the d**n thing had blown over!!!! :'( :'(   

Compost and trays everywhere :'(

I was gutted to say the least, it never occured to me it might blow over. 

It is now tied to the fence ;D

[JudithM]

Digeroo please expand on use of water bottles. Like others I am interested to know if they are filled with hot water. How many are needed in the mini greehouse?