I always wanted to have a greenhouse gardening of my own. I could grow those delicious tomatoes and fresh vegetables all year long. I could also maybe grow a few strawberry plants, and those fresh berries all year long, and I could make a lot of side dishes that wouldn’t cost me a dime in the supermarket.
Then I started to learn about greenhouse gardening.
What is greenhouse gardening?
It is a way to garden year round. You don’t stop when the weather gets cold. You still have a beautiful garden. You just have to keep it warm.
Here in Florida one year I had much colder temperatures than usual and my plants Never grew that well. The tomatoes were just as good as last year.
I decided to have a greenhouse.
I could also make a lot of things in a greenhouse. Like breads, and those root vegetables.I could also maybe grow a few grape vines as well.
I thought that was wonderful! I could grow more in my greenhouse.
Then I got my supplies. I had to buy greenhouse things. Things like soil medium, greenhouse heaters, and the basic things you need to build a good greenhouse.
I actually started with a small greenhouse. I didn’t know exactly how it would work but I just decided to have a small one. I found out very quickly that I probably should have done a lot more.
You can grow a lot more in a small greenhouse than in a large one. But you can also grow more in a large greenhouse than in a small one. It’s just that the conditions aren’t as important for a large greenhouse.
So here’s my own experience. I used to grow a lot in a bathtub. It was always a big cutback and I would lose my crop because the roots were always too wet. Here I would sit in my house for hours until the roots dried. Then I would put them in a container and let them dry in the sun. That sure did help. But I still had the bath tub for gardening.
I had a patio with some potted plants. It was perfect. When the tomatoes got so big I had to get bigger pots. My first year I planted strawberries. That was great because I got to eat fresh strawberries. Next year I thought I would try a cucumber garden. That was also great. I just planted a few seeds in random plants throughout the yard. They all grew and fruited. The cucumbers were so big I used a lot of cucumber kegs.
Next year I built a bed and planted some more. I used nursery medium. That was the only way to tell the difference. I was certain the grass would grow and that the bees would come. I just needed the bees to get interested. Well we have bees and all that rural gear isn’t cheap. The nursery medium provided me with absolutely nothing. The biggest expense was the greenhouse. It was 200 percent more than I would have bought.
I learned a lot.
About a month before my birthday my wife bought me a book on sends and all about gardening. She thought I would find it interesting. She was so wrong.
I bought seeds and plants. I bought soils and pest control products. I even bought seeds for ornamental plants. I was so excited. So I started. I didn’t know what I was doing. I didn’t know what soil was. I didn’t even know what greenhouse material was.
Well my secret is in the location. It is sunny. It is warm. It is brimming with wonderful plants. My secret is in the preparation. I didn’t start out with a greenhouse. The first greenhouse I built was an old window with a — at the time I thought it was a greenhouse. It was only 3 x 4 feet and by the end of the growing season it was 6 x 8 feet.
I didn’t start out with landscaping.
Actually I pestered the heck out of myself learning all I could about weeds, pests and fertilizing. By the time spring came I was ready to plant. I just picked the flowers I wanted and by the time summer came I was basically done.
I didn’t plant any of my own seeds. I found a bunch of sage plants at a gas station on the way home and I started putting them in my car. I filled up the gas tank and stopped at the gas station. The gas station was about 20 miles from my house so I figured I would just leave my car there. 60 miles of nothing to do.
I was absolutely vivid when I got out of my car and started toward my house. I redounding many flowers in my car. The thought of attempting to put them all in the garden was overwhelming 3 1/2 acres in 6 1/2 feet of grass. The thought of spending hours just to get a few flowers was not appealing.
