Are you looking for the right greenhouse for your garden? When choosing greenhouse styles it’s easy to be dazzled by aesthetics and forget about practical concerns, but unless you’re prepared to make constant repairs and risk losing plants, you shouldn’t ignore the issues raised by the weather. Greenhouses are designed to let you grow what you want regardless of weather conditions, but that’s no help if the greenhouse styles you choose can’t stand up to the elements.

There are two major weather factors which you should bear in mind when selecting greenhouse styles: wind and snow. Strong winds can topple greenhouses over that are not secured properly and tear through greenhouse plastic poly-film. Other greenhouse styles utilize more resilient materials such as polycarbonate, glass or high density polyethylene plastic. Whatever greenhouse you choose, make sure the greenhouse covering is secure so that the wind can’t knock the material loose.

Some greenhouse styles are less vulnerable to the impact of the wind than others. Quonset style greenhouses are fairly resilient because wind dissipates around them rather than building up pressure in any one area. Lean-to greenhouses can be sheltered from the wind by your house or outbuildings; this is a practical solution if you live in a place where the wind usually blows in the same direction.

Snow can be a hazard for two reasons. It can built up on the roofs of some greenhouse styles, eventually breaking panels under its weight, and it can smother panels so that the plants inside get no light. Whatever greenhouse styles you choose it’s important to scrape snow of them as frequently as you can. If you live in a place with heavy snow, avoid flat roofed greenhouse styles where it is more likely to accumulate. Gothic greenhouses, quonset-style greenhouses, or greenhouses with steep gable pitch make a better choice, as their slanted or curved roofs mean that most of the snow will slide off and not accumulate.

Greenhouse gardening has lots of fun to offer, so make sure you get it right from the start. Choose the right greenhouse styles and you can enjoy many happy years of greenhouse growing, whatever the weather.