So Excited.... First Ever Greenhouse!

Discussion in 'Greenhouse Growing' started by Irmemac, Jun 20, 2017.

  1. Irmemac

    Irmemac Total Gardener

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    IMG_2058.JPG Hi Lori, perfect timing with your post! Thank you for asking. Ground was broken yesterday for laying slabs to put it on. I dug at least (or most!) 5% of that :snorky: and my very obliging better half dug the rest. Hardcore, sand and slabs are arriving this week. My greenhouse won't be erected until after my birthday at the end of July, but that hasn't stopped me dreaming and planning....!

    I'm keeping the left third without slabs to have a ground level bed to plant in, and will put staging/potting bench on right hand side, and probably grow bags along back. The cost of the greenhouse and slab base is high enough that everything else will have to wait, so my initial plan for the greenhouse is to put in a garden chair so I can sit in it on wet days like today and hatch plans! :hapfeet:

    Next year I'd like to grow tomatoes, peppers and strawberries, as well as trying to grow some flowers for hanging baskets/containers from seed.

    I'll post progress though, as we proceed with the build, and ask a thousand and one questions of all the lovely people here.

    First question though - have been allowed to take the instruction booklet out of the box. It looks incredibly complicated! Any tips, or is it less complex than it looks if we follow the instructions?
     
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    • Spacemunkey

      Spacemunkey Gardener

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      You'll love having a greenhouse, it's amazing to watch a seed germinate and grow and produce fruit. I wish I'd done it years ago
       
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      • CanadianLori

        CanadianLori Total Gardener

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        It is something like 35 pages of instructions and may seem daunting but if you lay out all of the parts numerically and use a magnetic bowl for the nuts and bolts, you will find the assembly goes smoothly. :)
         
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        • Irmemac

          Irmemac Total Gardener

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          Thank you - good advice! It has poured with rain here all day yesterday and today, so progress hasn't really been made, but sorting out the components could be a rainy day job. Not sure I'm allowed to have that much involvement with my present though yet!
           
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          • CanadianLori

            CanadianLori Total Gardener

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            hmmm. @Irmemac - I would think that the best birthday present would be to have it all set up for your special day - then you could spend it putting little green friends in there?
             
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            • Irmemac

              Irmemac Total Gardener

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              Yes, yes, yes! I'm so glad someone else sees my point of view. That would be the perfect birthday. My mum has requested I grow lettuce ASAP, and I am so excited that I have bought a packet of cress so I can grow something instantly. Sad, I know....
              All you have to do is convince my better half :wallbanging:

              To be fair, we will be away for the week leading up to my birthday, and we often get high winds around here in July, so I would worry. Also, what if I could not tear myself away from it!
               
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              • Irmemac

                Irmemac Total Gardener

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                Last slab just laid! Greenhouse base and strip of hardstanding for general garden 'stuff' just missing a greenhouse! Only 12 more sleeps! Once the base is put together we will lift out a couple of slabs so I can plant directly into the soil, but only a small area until I find my green feet!
                 

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                • CanadianLori

                  CanadianLori Total Gardener

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                  You can easily groe lettuce in a container and then put it in a cooler part of the greenhouse.

                  I never planned on growing anything in ground in my greenhouses. A greenhouse is for protecting delicate plants and seedlings, extending the growing season at both ends. Very few people use a hobby greenhouse for in ground growing over here. Pots make everything easy to shift as needs change.

                  I grow super hot peppers in mine throughout the summer. :)
                   
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                  • Irmemac

                    Irmemac Total Gardener

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                    Sounds like your greenhouse gets good use, Lori. I'd never heard of growing directly into the ground in a greenhouse but it was recommended on here. Thanks for info about lettuce. My mum has been complaining about flavourless supermarket lettuce for years, so I'd better grow her some!
                     
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                    • CanadianLori

                      CanadianLori Total Gardener

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                      It is my understanding that usually only very large greenhouses and polytunnels utilize inground growing methods because they accommodate traditional "rows" for growing veggies, etc.

                      In the spring, I am growing on several levels. The floor, the shelves and then hanging pots. Later in the fall, some potted plants come back inside (once sprayed for unwanted hitch hikers) so that I can extend the harvest. I use as much square footage of this valuable real estate both horizontally and vertically.

                      To each their own of course, but I think you will find that committing to a stationary growing area within your greenhouse right away might limit your flexibility over the years. I end up moving pots around quite a bit as plants grow or spread and this enables me to achieve good air circulation.

                      An additional bonus of growing in pots is that I can also bake and reuse my dirt. This gives me the opportunity to start fresh every year.

                      I do have raised gardens, cold frames and of course flower beds and I must admit that I wish growing in these was as adjustable as my pots.

                      Whatever you do, I know you will be delighted with your greenhouse :)
                       
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                      • Irmemac

                        Irmemac Total Gardener

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                        Just back from holiday, and too wet to put up new greenhouse this weekend. Had to content myself with building a new potting bench for it which was a birthday present. Hope to post pictures of the greenhouse through the week, if the weather forecast improves. The potting bench is a Christow, was a doddle to build and is very sturdy and secure. Very happy with it, and cannot wait to have a greenhouse to put it in!
                         

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                        • Irmemac

                          Irmemac Total Gardener

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                          Well, it's finally up! Spent two days grabbing dry periods to work, but by today I had given up on that and we worked in the rain. Still to be secured to the base, but that's the only outstanding essential, apart from attaching a hose to drain rainwater from the guttering to a bucket.

                          It was relatively straightforward to assemble, closely following the pictorial instructions, but it took two of us to decipher some of them. Thanks to a recent birthday and family and friends hearing me yap on about the greenhouse in recent months, I find myself fairly well equipped. I cannot wait to move things in!
                           

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                          • CarolineL

                            CarolineL Total Gardener

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                            Well done @Irmemac! So exciting to have all that empty space to play with!
                             
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                            • Irmemac

                              Irmemac Total Gardener

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                              Thank you! Can't wait!
                               
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                              • martin-f

                                martin-f Plant Hardiness Zone 8b

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                                It looks lovely nice work :blue thumb:
                                 
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