6x6 greenhouse new to me

Right.....Some time in the next week I should be getting a "new to me" 6x6 green house....now where do I start?

I have a spot for it and plants to go in it

Now the questions...

What's the best direction to have the door? Does it matter if it's to the sun?

Will bricks be ok for the base? There all there ready to go.

Is it best to dig the inside before putting it up?

Do you lot plant into the ground or have pots/grow bags?

I told you I'm new to this so any answers would be great, I feel aminurish on this one and I probably already know the answers but I'd rather get your opinions before I go ahead.

Thanks alot

 

"What's the best direction to have the door? Does it matter if it's to the sun?"

If you have a choice away from the prevailing wind; or towards the prevailing wind and have a lourvre at the far end (and open that, isntead o fthe door, until the weather gets so hot you hve to open everything!).

If you want to have a water butt to collect gutter-rain then easiest to have that at the back ('coz you can join the two gutters to one Butt), so that might influence your decision as the Butt-end won't be awfully pretty! If you do the water butt thing creating a slight fall, in the base, towards the butt will help :thumb:

"Will bricks be ok for the base? There all there ready to go."

I have two courses of bricks on a shallow concrete foundation. If you are going to grow crops (rather than have staging) consider the height for cropping - more foundations means more growing height, plus you can lower the soil height in the borders a bit. However, more base height means a higher step over to get in! I have a ramp both sides of the door so I can wheel a barrow in over the sill.

"Is it best to dig the inside before putting it up?"

If you are on clay, like me, then definitely! It will set solid otherwise! and its hot work working in the greenhouse during the day. Having dug mine out I now put half compost and half manure in each year, and then that goes onto where the Spuds where (Tomatoes and Supds sharing Pests and Diseases! / Rotation)

"Do you lot plant into the ground or have pots/grow bags?"

Up to you. You can water less frequently if Toms, Cues, Peppers, Aubeggines, Melons are in the soil, but you have to change the soil each year. Pots reduce cropping height by a foot or so (that was my motivation to plant in the soil), and grow bags are very hard to get the moisture content right. All IMHO !!

 

Last year i only had a 6x4 plastic greenhouse, now ive got my 6x6 glass house (cost a crate of john smiths) and its a lot better for growing in. Make sure it is perfectly level before you start with glass fitting, both front to back and side to side, if not the glass wont fit correctly and can fall out. Have loads of new z and w clips for fixing the glass, there about a quid a pack from wilcos, work on 8 w clips per segment, around 120 clips in total and around 40 z clips.Put the roof glass in first and it will hold it more square and give it rigidity so it wont flex all over the place. The door can normally be fitted on the front or back, all depends where you want it. Does it have the metal base with it? If so, secure this to the ground with tent pegs first then lay slabs on to the inner edge of it to hold it down or it will blow over in a strong wind.Nine 600mm square slabs fit just right inside it.Ive just got six slabs in mine down the middle and glass chippings to the sides to help with drainage, it seems to have kept the slugs out too, always a good thing. I have everything in pots, i dont like using grow bags but thats just my choice.Ill get a few pics up later on of how mine is now its full of plants.I have a thread somewhere on here of me setting mine up.

Found it, scroll down to the bottom of the page for the pics,

http://www.gardenerscorner.co.uk/forum/showthread.php/siteing-greenhouse-20868.html?t=20868