Which gardener doesn’t dream of owning a pretty garden greenhouse ? This structure makes it possible to shelter its frost-prone plants, to start its spring sowing, to prolong the picking of its tomatoes in autumn…
However, faced with the many models offered by manufacturers, it is clear that the choice is not easy! So, which type of greenhouse do you prefer? Glass greenhouses ? Those in polycarbonate with single or double walls? The ornamental greenhouses ? Or old fashioned? Do you prefer plastic greenhouses instead ? Tunnel greenhouses ? Or do you simply need a small greenhouse for balcony and terrace …? Because there is a greenhouse for almost every purpose and every budget!
The winter and spring garden greenhouse!
In the coldest regions, a greenhouse is first of all useful for overwintering exotic plants (orchids, carnivorous plants, cacti, Christmas cactus and other non-hardy banana trees such as the bird of paradise, etc.), but also so-called orangery, hardened Mediterranean (bougainvillea, orange trees, lemon trees and other citrus fruits…) A large greenhouse requires auxiliary heating to guarantee positive temperatures even at night.
From spring and all year round, a large greenhouse can also be used to accommodate fragile plants, in pots or in the ground, to protect them from bad weather, high winds, heavy hail and continuous rain. For example, the cultivation of tomatoes in greenhouses does without treatment!
Still in the spring, smaller greenhouse models allow the gardener to prepare early sowing of flowers or vegetables and hasten their cultivation. The heat stored during the day accelerates seed emergence. The seedlings are then pampered in the shelter while waiting for good transplanting conditions in the garden. It is thus easy to obtain flowers in advance (annuals, perennials, bulbs, or even shrubs, etc.) or to grow certain vegetables early (carrots, lettuce, beans, turnips, leeks, radishes, peas, etc.)
The garden greenhouse in summer
In many French regions, the greenhouse empties in the summer and the plants join the garden. However, space can be set aside to grow naturally chilly vegetables that need a healthy dose of heat to grow profusely. Eggplants, peppers… are among them!
The garden greenhouse in autumn
From the end of the summer and during the fall, the greenhouse is the ideal place to carry out delicate gestures, such as the cuttings of summer-flowering shrubs or the division of perennials… The small cuttings emit in these optimal conditions of many new roots. However, it is necessary to provide a potting table and a water point which are always very useful.
The greenhouse also allows at this time of the year to prolong the harvest in the vegetable garden. For aromatic plants, which cannot take place inside the greenhouse, smaller protections can be deployed, such as individual cloches, such as those that cover parsley and salads and prolong the harvest, while temperatures drop. .
Plastic grow tunnels are also handy. Light and easy to move, they advantageously cover the rows of chilly vegetables which nevertheless still reach maturity at the beginning of autumn and those which start at the end of winter.
As winter approaches…
In winter, the ornamental greenhouse or the veranda, in a resolutely Victorian style or on the contrary very contemporary, preferably leaning against a wall of the house, offers an additional living room. How pleasant it is then, with a hot cup of coffee in your hands, to enjoy the last rays of sunshine of the year in this winter garden!