Questions tagged [greenhouse]

Glass building to shelter and heat plants

A greenhouse is a glass-walled building intended to shelter and provide a warm environment for plants. They are typically used in cooler climates. The glass allows the building to absorb the maximum amount of sunlight available, but restrict heat loss (roof sections typically allow ventilation and some heat control). Some greenhouses also have their own heating.

Use this tag for questions about greenhouses themselves, and growing in a greenhouse environment.

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How large a cultivation area to feed one person?

Consider a project like the Earthship. Supposing one would like to grow food (organic polyculture) indoors in such a habitat (i.e. in a green house). How many m² would be required to feed one person yearly?
neydroydrec
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What is the point of a greenhouse?

How does putting my plants in a greenhouse help them grow? Is it purely to shield them from cold weather, or are there other benefits?
Dan
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How to automatically vent a cold frame during the Winter?

I am working on building a cold frame and have purchased a Univent automatic opener to vent the cold frame by lifting the lid/light. However the Univent opener is not supposed to subjected to freezing temperatures or it will break. That is…
spesh
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What color should a greenhouse be?

I'm shopping for a greenhouse to protect my tropical fruit trees from winter frosts. While browsing, I noticed that greenhouses are predominantly green or clear. What are the advantages of each color? I don't quite see the advantage of a green…
JoJo
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What is this thin-stemmed plant with narrow leaves in an aquaponics bed in my greenhouse?

This plant grew from seed to about 2' high within 3 months. I'm sure it's not done growing. I have no clue what it could be, since I'm in the bad habit of sticking anything that looks like a seed into the soil. It could come from the grocery store…
Marion
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Glass vs plastic greenhouse covering: pros and cons

When building or buying a greenhouse, it seems to me that the material to use is one of the first concerns. The two options I'm trying to compare right now are glass and plastic films. The characteristics that seemed important to me were…
Betohaku
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Building a DIY greenhouse - where to start?

I'd like to build an inexpensive, removable greenhouse over the back deck. The deck is approximately 20' x 8'. I'd like to build it for easy disassembly and storage in the summer. I've never seen anyone attempt to cover their deck with a removable…
Micah Githens
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How to safely keep plants in greenhouse at low temperatures

I'm a 2nd year gardener and am just now building a small 6x9' greenhouse onto the side of a shed. I've got some indoor starts that are beginning to take up a lot of space (my okra is ~9" tall!), and I'm anxious to start using the greenhouse. But I…
doub1ejack
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Would an old refrigerated food display case make a good greenhouse?

I came into the possession of one of these: I want to know if it would make a decent greenhouse and, if so, how I could retrofit it to grow some kind of small plants or seedlings. I think the refrigeration component is no longer functional and…
Micah Bolen
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Is drainage important in Greenhouse beds?

I just finished building my first greenhouse! I built in beds on the shelves along the wall that can have up to 10 inches of soil. (I'm planning on putting 8 inches in.) I lined the bottom of the beds with plastic because I don't want the plywood to…
Biff MaGriff
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Tomato plants longevity

I started tomato plants outside but we had a scorching summer. I have finally gotten them healthy but it is the end of the growing season. The question is can I take my plants into my greenhouse and hope for a new crop in the spring? They are…
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If I harvest bell pepper, will it grow back? (I control the temperature in my small greenhouse)

If I harvest bell pepper, will it grow back? (I control the temperature 25 C* in my small greenhouse) If yes, I pick bell pepper fruit only or it needs pruning also after harvesting? how to do it correctly?
tattoo556
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What chemicals react with greenhouse plastic and cause it to turn white?

I have a small PVC hoop house that I built last winter and plan on using again this winter. I found out first hand, then read about it later on, that the plastic used for greenhouses will react with PVC and turn white. Since I've already invested in…
Brian Surowiec
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Plastic sheet for greenhouse

I'm trying to build a DIY greenhouse and have a question about the plastic sheeting. I see that no one is using clear plastic - it's almost always translucent. Is that on purpose or just that the very clear plastic sheet is not available on large…
Mayank Jain
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Is it important to keep greenhouse glass thoroughly clean?

My greenhouse is near some fruit trees and every spring when I come to start off the growing season I find a certain amount of grime has settled across the glass over the preceding year. Most years I give it a thorough clean and it looks much better…
Tea Drinker
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