Anyone else thinking about adding a greenhouse this spring?

[LeafMeAlone]

Hey everyone，

Spring is finally starting to show up where I live, which always gets me back into yard project mode. The past couple weekends I’ve been cleaning up the backyard, fixing a couple raised beds, and trying to figure out what I’m planting this season. Every year I tell myself I’ll keep it simple… and every year it somehow turns into tomatoes, peppers, herbs, lettuce, and a random experiment or two.

The problem is the spring weather never really cooperates. We’ll get a few warm days, I start seedlings indoors, and then a cold snap or a week of rain slows everything down again.

Right now my setup is kind of all over the place—raised beds outside, pots on the patio, and seed trays under grow lights inside. For a few weeks every spring my kitchen counter basically turns into a mini plant nursery, and I’m constantly moving trays around depending on the temperature. It works, but it definitely feels like a bit of a juggling act.

Because of that I’ve been thinking about adding a small backyard greenhouse this season. Nothing huge—just something to start seedlings earlier, keep herbs going longer, and maybe grow some greens when the weather gets unpredictable. It would also be nice to have one dedicated spot for trays, tools, and pots instead of everything ending up wherever I last used it.

Once I started looking into greenhouses, though, I realized there are way more options than I expected.

I keep seeing brands like Palram (Canopia), Outsunny, and VEVOR mentioned when people talk about backyard greenhouses. Palram looks really solid but gets expensive once you go bigger. Outsunny seems like a common starter option, and VEVOR pops up a lot for metal-frame kits. While comparing a few setups online, I also came across a Garvee greenhouse. The design looked simple and the price seemed a bit lower than some of the other kits I was looking at.

Then there’s the style question, which is where I’m stuck. Some people go with polycarbonate panel greenhouses that look more permanent, while others use the cheaper PE tunnel-style ones. I’ve also seen the smaller lean-to greenhouses for tighter spaces.

For those of you who already have one, I’m curious:
Did it make seed starting easier?
Do people usually wish they went bigger?
And how important are things like ventilation, shelves, or anchoring?
Would love to hear what’s worked (and what hasn’t).

 

[digitS']

My first backyard greenhouse was homemade and, essentially, a lean-to sunshed. It was built against the south wall of my garage.

About 8 1/2 by 5 feet, the growing area was essentially a bench of that length and 3 feet in width. Below the bench was a framed wall of 2 by 4's with exterior wall panels. Above were used house windows with windows that could open on the east and west walls. There was a door with a window. The roof was transparent plastic, corrugated roofing.

The size of that greenhouse was determined by the windows and doors I purchased from a used building supply outfit. It was built with the idea that it could be dismantled and moved because this was at a rental home. It was moved and, because our new home didn't have a suitable wall, I built one so it became "free standing." In time, it was replaced by a larger structure but the wall, on its concrete foundation, continued to be of use.

Really, much smaller size than the first one would have made controlling temperature more difficult. And, I continued to use a convenient window in the house during this time. Windows that had to be manually opened and closed requires quite a bit of attention during sunny days and clear, cold nights.

Welcome to the Easy Garden!
Steve

 

[Alasgun]

Welcome to the forum. Telling us where your from will generate better answers to your questions!
For example, here in Alaska i dont start anything in the greenhouse! Our weather’s too crazy early on and things move so rapidly that waiting for seedlings would consume a lot of our useable season.
Right now it’s 95 in the greenhouse with 2 ft. Of snow on the ground and single digit nights.
All of my seed starting begins in the house back in February and continues till mid April. Shortly after that it all leaves the house and goes thru the greenhouse on it’s way to the outside garden. What stays in the greenhouse can be planted directly in the greenhouse beds at that time. The rest usually goes out later in May.
This all sounds crazy to you but after many years, it’s a system that works up here.
This greenhouse is 12x24 and was built on site, since then i’ve added a Toyo stove a commercial de-humidifier, drip irrigation, shade cloth, raised beds and roof vent’s.
At 75 im thru with upgrades and just work with what i’ve got. However; a Lot of thought went into the project so that it wouldn't need a bunch of “re-do’s” later. Of course affordability plays a huge part in any of this but a skookum set up doesn’t have to be cost prohibitive.

These pictures span quite a time period.
The next to last picture is 1 tomato plant that touched both side’s (12ft.), went to the ceiling, (14ft) then turned and grew out from the back wall 6ft! Greenhouses rock!

Mike

 

[heirloomgal]

So many things to consider with greenhouses. One thing that people always say when they see my little greenhouse is 'you must get a head start on the plants with that'! Personally, I really don't because of nighttime temperatures. I'd have to heat it for getting a head start on plants, and seeing as mine is built more for air flow and ventilation than anything it doesn't make much sense to do that. When the sun isn't out its almost the same temperature as directly outdoors so my greenhouse isn't useful for extending the season either.

As for seed starting, my greenhouse has no role in that either, lol. For the same reason as above. If extension of the season is what your after I'd consider something that would be feasible to heat. As for ventilation, shelves, anchoring, I'd say all 3 are extremely important. The shelves because heat is radically different on the greenhouse floor compared to 3 feet up, and the next 3 feet it jumps again. And for shelves, working among potted plants that are waist high is so much more pleasant that having to bend and squat to water etc. on the floor.

I find their greatest utility is to increase the heat units your plants get, to speed maturity. Excellent for places with medium heat summers, for hot peppers and they do a great job of bulking up seedlings. But you really have to consider the material on the greenhouse, some will make it so the plants can be transferred outside without special treatment, but some still require the plants to be hardened off after being in a greenhouse. I've scorched a few plants like that!

 

[Joao]

Yeah the nighttime temperature thing is the bit nobody warns you about. I looked into a small greenhouse last year and quickly realised it would basically just be a cold frame with extra steps unless I was willing to heat it. Ended up just doing a few cloches over my earliest sowings and that got me maybe two weeks head start without the faff. Still tempted though, there's something about having a proper greenhouse that just feels right.