Starting the MHJ Greenhouse
16 April, 2021
A Season of Growth
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This past winter season, 2020 into 2021, I was blessed to be able to try my hand at something I've been interested in since my university days. A six-credit course inspired within me a hidden desire to study and grow indoor plants, which I might then use in my landscaping design projects, as well as gifting friends and family with bulbs, cuttings, and potted plants.
Although I've wanted to start a greenhouse for years, just like plants, ideas come to fruition in their due season, and so I continued to nurture my love for horticulture, remaining focused on outdoor landscapes until the time was ripe to begin. I did a sort of trial run in 2019, with a small greenhouse I'd purchased online. While set-up was easy, the problem was that it was only good in three-season weather, and the plants didn't make it in the winter, so I had to think about how to get them to survive the cold season. |
I tried again in the fall of 2020, bringing my plants into an insulated building with temperature and humidity controls. At first I focused on bedding plants like marigolds, zinnias, and easy-grow herbs such as oregano and basil. I also experimented with veggies like peppers, radishes, tomatoes and collard greens, and later I introduced succulents and plants I wanted to save throughout the winter (geraniums, sweet potatoes vines, canna lilies, coleus) into the mix.
I encountered quite a few challenges along the way.
I encountered quite a few challenges along the way.
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Getting the timing right in propagating the plants was a tricky one.
Some plants flowered sooner than I expected. Some did better under the grow lights, while others didn't like being indoors. Some wanted to be left alone and given less water. The plants could be very fussy at times, and it was funny guessing their moods. |
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Another difficulty arose in the early stages of spring, as reintroducing some plants to the outside world too soon caused them to falter and fail after months of caring for them in the greenhouse. I quickly learnt to keep some in despite seemingly temperate weather until conditions were perfect for them to thrive outside once more.
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And oh, yes! I've had to water them every day!
It is a joy to say that most everything did very well during the winter in the greenhouse, and I thoroughly enjoyed everything about working in this inviting space. My latest endeavour has been starting seeds in the greenhouse, and I am looking forward to see how they develop. If you are considering beginning your own greenhouse, go for it, I say! But make sure to read up on it first, and look around to see what others have done, following the “dos” and avoiding the “don'ts.” Starting and maintaining a greenhouse means investing your time, money, and energy wholeheartedly into caring for your plants, so be certain that gardening is what you love to do, or you may find that the greenhouse experiment becomes a short-lived experience! If you can stick with it, however, watching the plants grow and blossom is an extremely rewarding experience. |
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Happy & healthy pepper plants! |
I'm so thankful to be able to finally realise my dream of starting a greenhouse, and I hope to maintain it for many seasons to come.
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