Greenhouses For Gardens
What Are Greenhouses – How To Build?
Green houses also called glass houses are enclosed structures in which crops and plants are grown. They are made from different types of materials among them being plastics, glass, and PVCs. They regulate temperature inside them thus suitable for plant growth. They are constructed in different sizes ranging from large buildings to small sheds. They change weather conditions inside them and maximize the growing season.
They allow penetration of the solar radiations through the transparent roof and walls thus making inner part warm. This provides favorable environment for plant growth. The solar radiations are absorbed by the soils, plants and any other material that may be inside the greenhouse. The warmed air inside the house is prevented from escaping by the walls and the roof. Since the glass or the covering is partially opaque, some of the thermal energy re-radiated by the plants is also trapped. Plants inside radiate energy in form of infrared spectrum that is also trapped thus raising temperatures. Convection is the key heating mechanism applied in greenhouses.
They can be constructed for commercial or for home gardening purposes. Commercial greenhouses are large and also the technology used to construct them is sophisticated. They are installed with other climate regulating equipments such as lighting, cooling, screening and some are even automatically controlled by a computer.
Cool green house: This type of green house is meant for maintaining interior temperatures in the range of 40 to 50 degrees. They are used for hardening off seedling or for plants that are starting from the seedling. They are suitable for cool weather plants like peas and beets.
Warm green houses: Temperatures within these structures are between 50 to 55 degrees. They allow one to extend his or her growing season into winter months as well as giving the farmer a head start on the spring planting season. They are suitable for growth of fruits, vegetables and flowers.
Hot greenhouses: They keep temperatures beyond 65 degrees and provide a humid environment suitable for crops. This makes them suitable for tropical plants such as orchids and mangoes.
According to building designs, they can be categorized into: free standing and attached greenhouses. Attached houses are usually attached to a garage or a house. They are sub-divided into: leaning-to houses. These are half greenhouses and are common where space is limited. Even-span house is another type under attached houses whose one end of the gamble is attached to a building. Free standing greenhouses are not attached to anything; they stand on the ground on their own.
Procedure for building a greenhouse. Establish the purpose or need of your greenhouse…
This involves considering the type of gardening one carries out i.e. is it small scale or large scale? Climatic zone of that particular area as well as the type of plants intended to grow. Consider the space available and also decide whether you want a permanent or a temporary structure. With this information, it is easy to determine the quantity and type of materials, design and size of the house.
2. Layout the foundation
Level the area where you are to construct the structure. Prepare the whole area for instance by draining water away if the area was marshy and soggy. Make the base of the greenhouse using sawn timber that is commonly used for fence posts. The timber chosen should be resistant to decay and rot. Level the corners and square them. Put stakes around the perimeter and firmly secure the base. If concrete is not used for foundation, the base is filled with gravels over a sand bed to allow weed control and easy drainage.
3.Constructing the upper part
All the framings should be constructed from 75X50 sawn timbers. Timbers are laid out on a flat surface and connected together to make walls. Corners should be squared and diagonal braces screwed into place. Set the wall up and prop it in place using boards. Then attach the wall’s bottom to the base firmly using wood screws or nails. Repeat the same with every side of the house but it is preferable to start with the sides and finish on the back and front. Decide the roofing material to use, whether glass, plastic paneling, or even heavy plastics among other materials.
Alternatively, one can construct the frame using readymade PVC pipes and sturdy plastics other than using timber. This method is faster, produces a lighter structure and frugal too.