greenhouse paving vs soil

[fran_james]

Hello

My mother in law kindly offered to give us her greenhouse 10 x 12 and after lots of celebrations, we are now thinking about the job ahead. Can someone advise me what is better. My hubby wants to put in paving, but I want to maximise space for my veg production. I'm aware of pests and having to feed the soil, but which is the best? HELP!!!

Thanks very much for your help

[Aberdeenplotter]

Hello

My mother in law kindly offered to give us her greenhouse 10 x 12 and after lots of celebrations, we are now thinking about the job ahead. Can someone advise me what is better. My hubby wants to put in paving, but I want to maximise space for my veg production. I'm aware of pests and having to feed the soil, but which is the best? HELP!!!

Thanks very much for your help

Personally, I would put in a pathway down the centre but stopping short of the end of the greenhouse . That way you will have clean footing in and out and that can save some strife arising from entering the house with mucky feet. If you use 2ft (6oomm) slabs, that will give you 4ft beds on either side and you can have some staging across the end if you need it.

[jackie j]

I have a 6 x 8 green house and we have paved the centre from end to end. We have put stones down both sides, one side has the shelf and underneath I have put the old plastic green house shelves split in half. The other side I will put pots or growbags.
Befoe we put the slabs etc down we laid weed control fabric and put everything on top.

[Kristen]

I just have a dirt path. It doesn't get watered, so now it is bone dry and rock hard. Nothing fancy to look at though!

I think planting into the greenhouse border (rather than pots or growbags) increases the growing height to the roof, so I can get an extra truss on my Tomato plants. In fact I have lowered the soil in mine in order to have more height.

I replace the soil each year (but not the path!). I put the contents of compost heap mixed about 50:50 with well rotted manure. This is fairly rough, and by the end of the year I have nice fine compost to use elsewhere.

[Galileo]

If you like watering pots and growbags up to three times a day (Yes a day)on hot days and can arrange this for when you go away on your holidays then pave the whole area. Otherwise put a path down the centre and grow in the border soil.

[Flummery]

I find the greenhouse border soil holds the water much better than a pot. I also have the small paving stone centre path and side borders.

[salilah]

I started with soil down the middle, raised bed for tomatoes on one side, and staging on the other side with buckets (on the soil).
I've since put flagstones / tiles (whatever spare) down the middle, as although the soil inside was dry, the outside wasn't, and so wet boots made muddy boots which did not go down well!! Think it will be easier to keep clean (and interested in the idea of watering down to keep cooler in the summer...)
cheers
S

[Aberdeenplotter]

Fran, thank you, you spurred me into action in my 10ft x 8ft glasshouse in my allotment and it is all dug over and tidied ready to take the photograph I intended to take for you with my camera ---------- which I left at home
.. I'm an eejit.

[Bren In Pots]

I've got a couple of flagstones in the middle with borders on one side and across the bottom, with staging taking up around half the other side that gets used as a potting bench then later on for growing my chillis on.

[fran_james]

Thanks everyone for all your help. Hopefully, this means the base for the greenhouse will be completed this week end, and the greenhouse can be built next week end , just in time to house my newly sprouted broad beans. yeh

[chris]

I have gravel down in mine, with a few flags to step on too. I have an auto watering system though.. incase I'm away, or when I'm in work!