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You want a
greenhouse . . .
what next?
You have a greenhouse . . .
now what?
 If you want every
question answered on greenhouse gardening check
out the book,
Greenhouse Gardener's Companion by Shane Smith.
Click here to learn more
about this handy resource.
"...Shane Smith
has been on the vanguard of "user-friendly"
greenhouse design and utilization for several
years. Virtually any question which might be
asked by either a novice or an advanced home
greenhouse gardener is answered fully"
-
HortIdeas
Send me your ideas for how to improve the book
Greenhouse Gardener's
Companion for the next 4th edition
being developed right now.
Explore
this web site to lead you down the path to the
goal of a wonderful heat producing, food
producing and flower producing greenhouse!
Click around.
You won't believe
how much information is on this web site.
Note:
While we must have
advertisers to help support this extensive web
site, we are not beholden to any company nor do
we have any hopes to sell you on anything. Our
only hope is to help you become a great
greenhouse gardener!
Laugh at the winter.
Make the summer last all year!
Kids love
greenhouses too
Growing on. . . Don't
let your greenhouse get too hot!
Temperatures above 95 degrees F. can hurt yields. Why? High
temperatures can be harmful to the setting on of fruiting plants such as
tomatoes, peppers, eggplant and other crops. There are many strategies to
keep a greenhouse cool including evaporative-based cooling such as:
evaporative misting, pad and fan evaporative cooling, swamp coolers. Other
options include more traditional air conditioning and shading. For details
on these strategies to keep your greenhouse cool consult my book 'Greenhouse
Gardener's Companion.' If you need a copy you can order it online
by clicking below:
Order Greenhouse
Gardener's Companion |
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 It is time to start your seeds for the outside garden. Germinating Seeds
To germinate seeds, you must create a specific environment that is conducive to helping seeds germinate. Think about setting aside a special area for starting seeds within the greenhouse. A seed and propagation area can even be located somewhere else in your house that has moderate temperatures and light. Good ventilation also helps. Here is a detailed list of what is needed for good germination.
1. Disease-free soil and pots. Many seedling diseases cause poor germination. Diseases can be borne on old, dirty pots. It's always a good idea to recycle, but if you are going to use an old pot, wash it well with some detergent and a little bleach. Old potting soil or garden soil can also harbor diseases. You can heat sterilize the soil (discussed later in this chapter) to kill diseases before you use it. Even easier, you can start your seedlings in store-bought potting soil. See seedling diseases in When Things Go Wrong.
2. Moisture (for germination and seedlings). Seedlings that are germinating usually require constant moisture, keep the soil moist but not dripping wet. If the soil dries out even once, it might kill germinating seedlings. If your tap water is extremely cold in winter, you can speed germination by using warm water on the seedlings. Be careful of water pressure or nozzles that create a force so powerful that it blasts the seeds out of the soil. Gently mist seedlings with a spray, much like a light, gentle rain. Misting nozzles available at good garden centers or in catalogs are ideal for watering seedlings. In general, seedlings need a bit less water than do seeds, so cut back slightly once they germinate.
Click here to read more about starting seeds. . . .
Bugs on the prowl in your greenhouse? The book Greenhouse Gardener's Companion lays out hundreds of solutions to controlling everything from aphids to slugs to whiteflies. Also check this link to a listing of companies that provide supplies for controlling bugs.
Simple tip: If you have a low infestation
of Whiteflies convert your dust buster into a
whitefly sucker. Simply make the tip of the
dust buster yellow (done here with yellow
paper wrapped around the nozzle). This attracts the little buggers
into the vacuum. Suck thousands of them in
minutes!
Simple tip: If you are growing tomatoes in your greenhouse be sure to tap the blossoms every morning to insure pollination.
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You can grow
food and flowers in your
own home greenhouse-
any day of the year!
Gardens Create Abundance
Have a little food security
year-round!
This site grew out
of writing the best-selling book on gardening in
a greenhouse titled:
Greenhouse Gardener's Companion
by
Shane Smith.
The goal of this site is to provide a wealth of
up-to-date information and tips for those who
have a passion for gardening in greenhouses.
You will also find special pages
that discuss:
Heating:
Heat a
greenhouse without going broke. See
Energy Conservation for home Greenhouses.
Natural pest
control, Interior design and more.
Greenhouse
Questions Answered:
Jump to our
discussion
boards,
post
your question directly to the author and other
enthusiasts.
Want a copy of the
Greenhouse Gardener's Bible? Check your local
book store or
click here.
Check out the Greenhouse
Gallery
- see other home greenhouses and read about the
experiences of others. Behind every greenhouse
is a good story. Share yours!
"A well-designed
attached home greenhouse can heat your home,
provide fresh food and flowers. It is no longer
a question of whether you can afford a
greenhouse, but whether you can afford to not
have a home greenhouse"
- Shane Smith
There is such a thing as a
GOOD
Greenhouse Effect!
Grow your own
winter salads.
Leafy greens require
very little heat
in order to produce!
Start your spring seedlings
see the current planning
schedule
Check back monthly for schedule updates
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Wall Street Journal
Writes about home greenhouses
Backyard Greenhouse:
The New Woman Cave?
Read more
here.
New Mexico family grows their own food
using a greenhouse.
Read more here.
This
year I tried
grafting tomatoes
for the first
time . . .
It
was not scientific but I was convinced that this
is a great way to go for increased late season
yields and increased disease resistance. It is
especially helpful in growing heirloom varieties
that have little in the way of disease
resistance.
I
was pleased that Johnny's Selected Seeds sells a
variety of
grafting clips and rootstock tomato
varieties. Check out this
great data
that the folks at Johnny's
posted. I experienced similar yield increases.
Plants were more vigorous and yielded higher up
on the tomato truss.
Check around the web and you'll find all kinds
of information and videos on grafting tomatoes.
Now there are
many catalogs selling pre-grafted tomatoes for
around $7 - $10 per plant.
Turn your
greenhouse into a
food factory!
Fresh salads, herbs, tomatoes and even
tropical food like papayas and pineapple guavas
can all be grown in your home greenhouse. You
can even grow cut flowers year-round as food for
the spirit
What gives you a lot
of poundage? Greenhouse cucumbers
out-yield most other food crops (with the right
growing conditions.)
Use every square
inch and every cubic inch . . Use your air space
and ground space for effective yields. For
instance, you can grow edible peas or sweet peas vertically up a string next to a crop of
lettuce.
Grow "indeterminate"
vining tomatoes
straight up for higher yields in less space!!!
Learn more about
these
special growing techniques in the book
"Greenhouse
Gardener's Companion."
Tomatoes in a
short growing season using a greenhouse
Like many
greenhouse growers I live in a
short season area where growing tomatoes outside results in poor yields. The
best option is to grow indeterminate tomatoes up strings
 vertically in the
greenhouse. I get bushels of fruit every year. One tip I have found is to
use fish based fertilizer early in the season. This has resulted in a
dramatic reduction in diseases. Later in the season I switch to more balance
fertilizers. Here is what
I grew from March to Early October in my unheated backyard Wyoming greenhouse:
TWO Favorite tomatoes for the greenhouse
Early Goliath
(from Totally Tomatoes)
Most impressive of the season. Big early fruit.
Good disease resistance. Good flavor. Best of all it had the vigor to
continue on throughout the season!
Sungold
(from Johnny's Selected Seeds)
Always a great flavored cherry tomato. High-yielding, heat tolerant but some
cracking
Tip: Buying a greenhouse? The closer your greenhouse is to
your home the better the care it will receive
from you. Better yet if you can attach the
greenhouse to your home or garage then the
greenhouse will not only provide you with food
and flowers but will also help to heat your
indoor living space in winter.
Read more about the
best location for your greenhouse in the book
"Greenhouse
Gardener's Companion." 
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