Without a greenhouse?

[JaniceH]

Everything I seem to read on here or watching on YouTube about planting or growing seems to feature a greenhouse. Either sowing, potting on or growing all seems to have a greenhouse as an essential piece of kit. Even bringing on dahlias or starting leeks from seed appear to require one.

I can't have one at home due to various reasons (rented, children, bonkers dog, finances) and my plot is only 8m X 8m so no room there.

Am I at a real disadvantage? Can I really have a successful plot without a proper greenhouse?

[veggiechicken]

You don't need a GH - instead, start your seeds later, when the weather warms up.
Choose veg that grow outdoors, not tender ones like chillies and some tomatoes.
If you need a bit of outdoor protected space, make a coldframe with an old window frame resting on bricks.

[cariann88]

Or you can always start seedlings indoors on windowsills until the weather gets warmer.

[Guest]

A greenhouse does open up a lot more growing opportunities but it is certainly not essential. When I first got into veggie growing I done well with just windowsills and a cheapy blowaway. When reading at the moment greenhouses will tend to be mentioned as they help extend the season - the thing you will find at the moment is trying to be a bit more restrained on your sowing

[Martin H]

I gardened for ages without a greenhouse. You can start tender things off on windowsills and sow / plant hardy things direct into the ground.

Like VC says, you have to be patient and not start too early, otherwise you run into several problems: there isn't enough light on your windowsill so things grow weakly
there isn't enough space on the windowsill as things get bigger
you can't harden plants off properly before planting them out, so they receive a check.

But things still catch up with the mollycoddled specimens raised by your plot neighbours.

So don't worry, go for it!

[sparrow100]

I had 3 years of my 4 years growing without a greenhouse, and with one 2m southfacing windowsill. Stuff still grows - you might sow a few less than others, but then also to bear in mind is you also have a smaller plot so you perhaps don't need as many as those with more space.

[HoneyChild]

Here's a video of a good home made 'light box' made with just an old cardboard box and some white paint. The guy tried growing sweetcorn with and without the box and I think the results speak for themselves!

https://youtu.be/XeFpLZBe85A

[muddled]

I got a greenhouse last year for the first time.
I got it third hand.
The door doesn't shut.
Its not a very good greenhouse.
It does give me a bit more space though and its better for growing chilis.

However, before I had my rubbishy greenhouse, I still grew chillis.
Occasionally, in a very bad year, I'd only get green ones....but I did grow chillis, outside, in London.

It would be hard to grow melons without a greenhouse but, to be fair, its hard to grow melons WITH a greenhouse....another epic fail for me last year so no change there then.

And greenhouses bring their own problems.
Incinerated seedlings, red spider mite and so on.

So no, you're not doomed or terribly disadvantaged....if you want to lengthen your season use cold frames and fleeces, cloches and windowsills.

[Alison]

Although it is nice to be able to garden in there when it's horrible outside

[roitelet]

Here's a video of a good home made 'light box' made with just an old cardboard box and some white paint. The guy tried growing sweetcorn with and without the box and I think the results speak for themselves!

https://youtu.be/XeFpLZBe85A

Obviously works! I have used foil covered cards to reflect light to seedlings. The only thing I would say is that he left the seeds germinating a bit long. Roots that size make planting very difficult.

[vixylix]

I don't have a greenhouse... last year was my first year of growing and I grew allsorts that would normally go in a greenhouse - tomatoes, chillies, cucumbers - with no problems. Just make sure you pick outdoor varieties and be patient - they're likely to be a lot slower than their greenhoused cousins.

Fingers crossed for a long hot summer

[bramble]

When you put out plants that you think might be tender you can always use large plastic bottles as cloches.
Cut off the bottom and pop them over the plant, protection from wind and a little extra heat.
Dont give up, in a good summer anything is possible and this time next year you will wonder what you were worrying about.
Like someone else said, just pick outdoor varieties.

[PyreneesPlot]

I don't have one mostly because I reckon the hot summers (30 plus) would make it too hot and the cold winters too cold without heating. I do have the advantage of full height south facing doors in my living room, currently filled with ugly metal shelving stuffed with trays! But it can become a nightmare potting stuff on and moving it in and out each day, especially in April and May when it can be in the high twenties or snowing from one day to the next.
Writing this has made me think perhaps I do need one!

[lolie]

When you put out plants that you think might be tender you can always use large plastic bottles as cloches.
Cut off the bottom and pop them over the plant, protection from wind and a little extra heat.
Dont give up, in a good summer anything is possible and this time next year you will wonder what you were worrying about.
Like someone else said, just pick outdoor varieties.

Yep. We tend to think of a greenhouse as having to be a structure but there are all sorts of ways we can improvise to create greenhouse conditions.

[TrixC]

I don't have a greenhouse either, even though I love to grow heat loving plants like tomatoes and chillies. The two things that have made a big difference to me are a gro-light garden which I use to bring on seedlings until it's warm enough to plant them out and a heated windowsill propagator for germinating seeds.