Greenhouse kits often contain everything you need to get started. You can choose from a greenhouse kit for a ready-to-assemble greenhouse, or a complete gardening kit with tools, seeds, and potting soil included. These complete greenhouse kits are ideal when families, educators, or small children will be gardening.
 
The ready-to-assemble greenhouse kits come with the construction supplies, hardware, and tools you will need to erect your own greenhouse. You can choose from a large variety of styles, shapes, and sizes to fit your individual gardening needs.
 
Mini Home Greenhouses

Home greenhouses, or indoor greenhouses, are ideal for people with limited outdoor growing space. These types of greenhouses can be placed in a closet or basement, a windowsill, or even on a outside porch. The type of home greenhouse you select is often most dependent upon the amount of space you have available for your greenhouse.
 
If indoor space is not a limiting factor in your selection, you can choose your home greenhouse according to the types and numbers of crops you wish to grow. If you only want to grow a few herbs for cooking, a simple countertop greenhouse will do. However, if you want to fill you basement with greenhouse kits and grow light to produce an entire veggie, flower, and fruit selection, then you may want to select a larger home greenhouse or multiple shelving-type home greenhouses.
 
Portable Garden Greenhouse

The garden greenhouse is one of the easiest ways to begin a greenhouse gardening hobby.  These types of greenhouses include pop up greenhouses, portable greenhouses, and even cold frame greenhouses that make outdoor gardening easier. These greenhouses can be placed over plants in your outdoor garden, or can be used to get a head start on or extend the growing season.

Finding the right greenhouse for you is one of the biggest decisions of beginning your greenhouse gardening hobby, but it’s also one the most exciting. Once you  decide on a type of greenhouse, you can get serious about getting down to the dirty and fun aspects of indoor gardening.

The biggest advantage for a greenhouse is to be able to plant seeds while it is still cold so that the sprouting plants can be planted in the soil come spring. There is an ongoing debate over whether or not mini greenhouses are worth having over a traditional commercial greenhouse. Let’s take a look at the pros and cons of the mini greenhouse.

Pros of the Mini Greenhouse:
• Since a mini greenhouse is a smaller size than a commercial unit (commercial units range 200+ sq ft) one person can maintain it. The average home gardener does not want to hire someone to help with greenhouse upkeep so the smaller size comes in handy.
• A small back yard or a balcony is no place for a full sized greenhouse, but a mini greenhouse would fit perfectly in the little space. The compact size allows for convenient placement wherever there is space, or, in this case, lack there of.
• Avid hobby gardeners know that having a greenhouse is a huge benefit, especially during the cooler months. Instead of spending all of their money on a full sized greenhouse, which will have unused space, a mini greenhouse can be purchased or built for considerably less.

Cons of the Mini Greenhouse:
• The biggest con of a mini greenhouse vs a commercial greenhouse is lack of space. You don’t have as much space to move around while working in a mini greenhouse and if want to expand your greenhouse operation, you have to buy another mini greenhouse.

Even though having all the growing space of a commercial greenhouse would be wonderful, many gardeners still opt for the mini greenhouses for two reasons; space limitations and cost of upkeep. While many people would like to have a commercial greenhouse it is just not practical when a smaller one will provide the same effects at a more reasonable price and a more manageable operation.

Reduce in the Greenhouse
Reducing energy consumption in the greenhouse begins in the construction stage. Energy conservation techniques for building can be extended to the greenhouse with a few minor alterations. If your greenhouse plan does not include a mechanical ventilation system, but relies on manually opening panels when the temperature rises, you will want to seal up any cracks, gaps and crevices you can find. Creating a sealed greenhouse environment (but not airtight – you do need constant fresh air) will make it easier to hold in the sun’s natural heat in the winter and lower your heating costs. Conversely, if you employ a heating/air conditioning unit or an electric fan for ventilation, sealing up any large gaps in the greenhouse will make your heating and cooling efforts more efficient.

Insulation is a major source of energy savings in a standard building construction project. To save money on heating, look at the R factor of various greenhouse covering materials and select one that will help hold the heat in your greenhouse. Also consider the framing. Metal frames conduct heat out of the greenhouse and cold into the greenhouse while plastic and wood frames do not. If possible, avoid metal frames.

Reuse in the Greenhouse
Reusing items in the greenhouse not only saves money, but it helps the environment. Pots, seedling inserts and trays are all things that can be used over and over again. Just wash them with a bleach/water solution to kill any harmful bacteria that might be lingering. 

Recycle in the Greenhouse
Recycling in the greenhouse is best seen through the practice of composting. An energy conscious greenhouse gardener contributes to a compost pile year round, not only for the sake of recycling yard waste, food scraps and other consumable organic products, but for the terrifically rich and fertile yields of the compost pile itself. Plants treated with compost material grow larger, stronger and healthier than plants treated with artificial fertilizers and chemicals. When planning your greenhouse construction, you can include a nearby composting area to incorporate your recycling habits into the overall greenhouse plan.

Greenhouse gardeners can also recycle glass panels, gardening tools, soil, and beneficial insects.

Being energy conscious in the greenhouse is a natural choice and is easy to implement with a little forethought and effort. Reduce, reuse and recycle is the greenhouse gardener’s motto.

For more information on saving energy in the greenhouse, the California Farm Bureau Federation has provided a list of energy saving tips for the greenhouse at: http://www.cfbf.com/issues/energy/green.cfm.

Solexx greenhouses are constructed from a material that looks very much like a transluscent corrugated cardboard. This scratch resistant, lightweight material is ideal for greenhouse gardening. It helps hold in heat and admits up to 75% of highly diffused UV rays. Solexx greenhouses come a variety of greenhouse kits, and can include different types of glazing for differing climate zones.

Advantages of Solexx Greenhouses are numerous.
1. Strength. Solexx greenhouses have a definite advantage in the strength category. The Solexx greenhouse kits often combine PVC and composite materials with steel fittings to provide the framework for the greenhouse. This combination is extremely strong, and can withstand harsh winds and rains. The panels are shatter proof and even withstand heavy snow loads.

2. Durability. The Solexx material is processed with UV protection throughout the material; it is not a special coating like on other greenhouse coverings.  Most Solexx greenhouses show only minimal UV breakdown after 20 years of use! And unlike glass panels, you don’t need to fear neighborhood baseballs and fallen branches. Your Solexx greenhouse will withstand all the normal knocks life has to offer.

3. Less condensation. The PVC frame provides less condensation and overall moisture retention than a traditional metal frame. The composite framing does not conduct the cold into the greenhouse like metal frames do. This leads to a healthier, easy to maintain greenhouse.

4. Clean. Unlike other materials, Solexx panels will not host growing molds. They are easy to clean and scratch resistant, requiring only a mild detergent soap and water.

5. Cost. Solexx greenhouse kits and panels are affordable. Many first time greenhouse gardeners choose a Solexx greenhouse kit and are very satisfied with their purchase.

6. Diffuse Lighting. Solexx panels provide optimal lighting conditions for your greenhouse plants. The specialized construction provides even diffusion of light without sun burning your plants. You will experience greater growing results with a Solexx panel than you would with glass or plastic panels.

7. Easy to Assemble. Should you opt for a Solexx greenhouse kit, you can plan for an easy assembly period. All Solexx kits contain color coded directions and parts to make your construction as easy as possible.

Solexx greenhouse kits are popular for a reason, they provide a wealth of benefits and advantages over other greenhouse building materials. If you are looking for an affordable, durable, energy- efficient greenhouse, then Solexx is the material for you.

Step One: Heating and Ventilation

Regular greenhouse care keeps your plants healthy and your greenhouse in good repair. During the winter months, you should pay special attention to your heating and ventilation system. Proper heating is essential for keeping your plants from freezing during the winter, and a good ventilation system will help prevent moisture buildup and fungus growth. Check your heating elements, wiring and thermostat for bad wires and dust buildup. Clean all filters and remove any debris or leaves from around the heating unit. You can also use a portable air compressor to give your heater a thorough cleaning in a jiffy. Check your heater’s safety functions to ensure they are still functioning from last year.

Step Two: Infestations

As the weather grows colder, rodents and other pests seek out shelter. These pests will often nest in heating units or chew through delicate wires and insulation. If you find evidence of rodent squatters in your greenhouse, clean out the nesting material and disinfect the area thoroughly. Rodents can carry a multitude of diseases, and proper precautions need to be taken. For more information about how to control rodent infestations, visit the Centers for Disease Control’s website at: http://www.cdc.gov/rodents/.

Any lingering insects in the greenhouse can be treated with a natural insecticide or removed by hand. You can also sterilize your potting soil now. Baking it in an oven at no more than 180 degrees, in a foil-covered pan, for 30 minutes should kill off any harmful bacteria and insect larvae. Provide plenty of ventilation during the process.

Step Three: Insulation
Insulating your greenhouse is especially important during the winter months. Materials such as glass and other forms of plastic will need a thorough cleaning to allow maximum light penetration and a an added layer of insulation to help retain precious heat. You can add bubble wrap or Visquine for additional insulation in the coldest months. (This is also a great time to clean and disinfect your greenhouse panels.)

These three steps can help you break up the monotony of your winter greenhouse care and maintenance. While there are still many tasks to add to your winter checklist, you will be well on your way to happy gardening during the cold winter months.

Although glass is the least energy-efficient of greenhouse coverings, some people just want the look of glass when they are shopping for a greenhouse. Custom glass greenhouses are what many greenhouse gardener’s picture when they think of having a greenhouse. Heavy leaded glass surrounded by wrought iron or intricate custom framework adds immeasurable beauty and grace to a functioning greenhouse filed with vibrant plants and flowers. However, hiring a custom glass greenhouse designer costs a fortune, and purchasing a vintage glass greenhouse can be nearly as expensive as a college education.

If you have a deep desire for that custom glass or vintage glass greenhouse feel, despair not! There are a few ways to get that designer look  in the greenhouse.

Design Your Own
Designing and building your own greenhouse is one of the best ways to get a custom greenhouse for less. Your only limitations are your building skills, your imagination, and your budget. Many ready-made greenhouse plans and designs can be easily adapted to accommodate your vision for your custom greenhouse. We have seen many people use old glass windows to put together an eclectic greenhouse design.

Scale It Down
If your budget allows a little splurging, but you can’t afford an entire greenhouse remodel, consider adding on a small addition or remodeling a portion of your existing greenhouse to create a custom space. A little compromise can transform your entire growing space into a dream greenhouse.

Adding Vintage Glass
Purchasing a vintage glass greenhouse can be quite pricey. However, you can opt for a one-wall remodel and add vintage glass to a single wall or ceiling portion for a vintage corner greenhouse within your existing greenhouse design. Even a single large vintage glass panel can become the showcase of your greenhouse remodel. Just be sure to reinforce your greenhouse frame to support the heavier vintage glass panels to avoid breaking your panels and your heart.

Fake It
If you can’t afford a custom design or vintage glass, why not fake it? Many greenhouse gardeners choose to add decorative stained glass to give their greenhouses designer appeal. Stained glass art featuring pale green and blue shades (similar to vintage glass panels) are the perfect way to add a custom vintage feel to your greenhouse space. Arts and crafts stores, individual artisans, flea markets, antique stores, and even estate auctions are often treasure troves for finding vintage glass and stained glass panels.

Create It
For the craftier greenhouse gardener, stained glass kits are available from a hobby store or online. With these kits, you can select the size, shape and colors used in your custom glass creations. Stained glass classes are also a great way to obtain custom pieces that will hold not only beauty, but sentimental value as well.

Getting that custom glass or vintage greenhouse look doesn’t have to cost you a fortune. With a little imagination and ingenuity, you can own the one-of-a-kind greenhouse creation of your dreams by shopping around, compromising, and creating your own custom greenhouse glass.

Indoor Gardening
Indoor gardening can take place in a traditional outdoor greenhouse, a window greenhouse, or in your basement. Greenhouses come in a variety of shapes, sizes, and materials…making greenhouses a good fit for nearly any space.

Indoor gardening calls for a special set of indoor gardening supplies.

Winter Nursery Supplies Checklist
Winter nursery supplies differ from summer nursery supplies in many ways. Winter sunlight hours are reduced, and temperatures plummet, making sunlight and warmth two of the most difficult variables to control when growing plants during the winter.  Winter gardening supplies you may need are:

• Grow lights
• Heating system
• Winter work gloves
• Plastic sheeting for protection against strong winds and cooler temperatures
• Timers for grow lights
• Benches and shelving to keep plants up and away from the frigid ground
• Gentle ventilation to inhibit heat loss but encourage air movement
• Cold frames
• Portable or pop-up greenhouses
• Extra thermometers to spot check temperatures near planting areas
• Irrigation supplies to make up reduced water consumption in cooler temperatures
• Guide books for growing winter plants

Specific gardening supplies vary from gardener to gardener, but this list will provide a framework for creating your own winter nursery supplies checklist.

Winter Gardening Tips
Even if you don’t have access to a greenhouse, you can extend your gardening hobby well into the winter months with the use of cold frames and pop-up or portable greenhouses.  These items can be placed directly over plants in your backyard garden, extending your growing season beyond the first frost and even into the weeks of early snowfall.

Experimenting with winter gardening is nearly risk free since your plants would ordinarily die with the coming of the first frost. Trial and error tests that result in the death of a plant are only knowledge gleaning experiences since even a few extra days of extended growing are better than nothing.

Most plants will continue to grow as long as air temperatures remain above 40 degrees Fahrenheit and the soil remains unfrozen. Frequent temperature checks of your cold frames and portable greenhouses will help you better monitor the growing conditions of your winter nursery. A little common sense troubleshooting and imagination will help you become a successful winter gardener.

Winter nursery supplies and gardening supplies can easily be adapted to help you enjoy your love of gardening all year long.

How Hothouse Gardening Works
Hothouse gardening works by the scientific principle commonly referred to as the greenhouse effect. The glass or plastic covering of the greenhouse allows sunlight rays to penetrate the covering, but only certain rays of sunlight are allowed to escape back through the glass or plastic. Long wavelength infrared rays of sunlight are trapped within the hothouse, creating a warmer environment within the hothouse structure.

The temperature in the hothouse is controlled either by a climate control system or, as is more common, a ventilation system. Louvered windows and vents in the ceiling or sides of the hothouse allow heat to escape when the temperature rises. In addition, some hothouse gardeners choose to place shade cloths over the greenhouse during the hottest parts of the day to inhibit sunlight and the resulting warm temperatures. Ventilation also allows fresh air to circulate into the hothouse, which further lowers the temperature.

Timed watering devices, such as sprinklers or misters, administer water to the hothouse plants, creating a moist environment. This humidity is trapped in the hothouse unless ventilation is provided. In this manner, even hand watering creates a relative humidity inside the hothouse.

The Benefits of Hothouse Gardening
Hothouse gardening allows people who live in an otherwise barren region to enjoy the fruits produced in a hothouse environment. Hothouses also allow dedicated gardeners to extend the growing season, with some plants producing fruit well into the winter months.

Hothouse gardening also provides the opportunity to grow exotic or fragile plants in any region. Because the hothouse gardener can strictly control the growing conditions, such as temperature, heat, humidity, water levels, and amount of sunlight, it is possible to grow nearly any crop imaginable with the right knowledge, equipment, and dedication.

Hothouse gardening, also called greenhouse gardening, is becoming an increasingly popular hobby. Gardening lovers around the world sing the praises of hothouse gardening for the many benefits and advantages, the wide range of choices available to the greenhouse gardener, and the spectacular results of hothouse gardening. Even professional commercial growers love hothouses and invest time and money into constructing hothouses for business use. Hothouse gardening benefits gardeners from various backgrounds and is useful in a wide variety of applications.

Portable greenhouses are largely inexpensive, easy to set up, and provide protection from cooler night temperatures and early morning killing frosts. Depending on the type of portable greenhouse you choose, you can move them around the garden, or set up a larger portable in a small corner. This means that you might have to alter your planting plan early in the spring to accommodate the set up of the portable greenhouse in the fall. Plant your tomatoes, beans, and lettuce in one area that can be protected by one, larger portable greenhouse to make the most of your space- and your veggies!

Pop-Up Portable Greenhouses
Pop-up portable greenhouses are great for providing protection for a plant or two. Depending on the size you purchase, you can pop one these greenhouses out in seconds to cover a still blooming tomato plant, or your prize cabbage or head lettuce. You can even set up a whole roll of these pop ups in just a few minutes when an early frost is predicted to help get the most out of your harvest.

Rigid Construction Portable Greenhouses
Rigid construction portable greenhouses are a little more involved to set up, but are still fairly painless to operate. Many gardeners like to set these easy set greenhouses up in late summer and fill them with their container gardening endeavors. They can be easily moved around the yard to take full advantage of daylight hours, or set up in a corner of the existing garden to provide work space and protection from the elements.

These portables also are quite useful other times of the year as well. If you are expecting a harsh storm with damaging wind and torrential downpours that can knock over newly rooted plants and wash away your rich topsoil, setting up a portable greenhouse can save your garden.

Portable Greenhouses in a Pinch
If you haven’t invested in a portable greenhouse yet, but find yourself in desperate need of one, you can make your own. Opaque plastic milk jugs can be cut and used to cover individual smaller plants in a pinch to provide protection from frost and storms.
Portable greenhouses truly are a gardener’s best friend all year long!

1. Gable Greenhouses: Aesthetically Pleasing Designs
This architectural style often correlates with other Colonial style buildings on a property, providing a continuity of visual form that is pleasing to many greenhouse gardeners and homeowners. Such an attractive flow of design adds value to a property and is readily accepted by zoned communities and picky neighbors alike.

2. Gable Greenhouses: the Perfect Choice for Snowy Regions
The gable greenhouse is ideal for climates that receive a large amount of snow and ice, as the steeply sloped sides of the roof facilitate shedding of heavy snow. Excess snow and ice accumulations can crack or cave in a greenhouse roof. A design free of snow and ice also allows more winter sunlight to penetrate the gable greenhouse’s roof panels, providing extra nourishment for delicate winter plants.

3. Gable Greenhouses: Extra Headroom in Less Space
A gable-style greenhouse is an extremely popular choice for gardeners of above average height. The first steeply sloped angles of the roof provide adequate ceiling height, while the more gently sloping angles provide ample headroom for tall gardeners, even when working near the exterior walls of the greenhouse. This design element takes full advantage of limited greenhouse spaces.
The added height afforded by the gable greenhouse roof gives greenhouse gardeners the option of growing extra tall plants and climbing vines without resorting to excessive pruning. This design also helps create an open-air feeling in a cramped space for gardeners who dislike confined spaces, but must settle for a smaller greenhouse.

4. Gable Greenhouses: Various Options
Gable-style greenhouses come in many varied options, just as other styles of greenhouses. A smaller gable-style greenhouse could cost as little as $600, while a larger gable greenhouse could run in the thousands of dollars. This style of roof design adequately supports both Lexan and glass roofs, and often features fold out vent windows as an option.

Gable greenhouses are the greenhouses of choice for many greenhouse gardeners because of the aesthetic appeal, snow shedding tendencies, extra headroom, reasonable pricing and multiple options. For these reasons and more, a gable greenhouse may be the perfect choice for you.