What are Home Greenhouses

Home Greenhouses, or as they were known in the nineteenth century, hothouses, are freestanding structures that house plants and let in light to 'feed' them. Plants do not move about like animals, so they have to feed in different ways.

To a certain extent they draw it in from the ground by capillary action. Capillary action takes place, for instance, when you soak water up with a paper towel held upright. The water flows upward against gravity. Roots take in water and minerals from the soil, while foliage absorbs water and sunlight.

Sunlight is beneficial because plants utilize it as an energy source to drive photosynthesis. This is the process through which plants use light to create nutrients in order to sustain themselves, grow and reproduce. But how does a glasshouse help plants any more than just planting them outdoors in the ground.

How do Home Greenhouses Work

Greenhouses normally have a roof along with walls of glass or semitransparent plastic. Sunlight comprises a spectrum of light waves, some of which are invisible to the naked eye, such as ultraviolet light and infrared. Glass, along with some types of plastic, let all those waves in but only selected ones escape as efficiently.

Infrared light, which is the wavelength that we sense as heat, does not escape back through the glass as readily as the visible wavelengths. That heats the air inside the greenhouse, which is only partially allowed to vent to the outside, since the majority of them are reasonably well sealed.

The combined consequence of pulling in all that light energy, while only part of it gets out, causes the temperature inside to remain higher than outside. Anybody sitting in a closed car in the summer sun is aware of the effect. That is why green houses were sometimes called hot houses.

Greenhouses, similar to various man made structures, help us control conditions in ways we can not if plants are put in an outside garden. The effects of wind, temperature, quantity of sunlight and other variables are frequently more difficult to control outside a greenhouse.

Together with the ability to regulate the amount of sunlight, by use of glass, shutters or screens, garden greenhouses make it easier to protect fragile plants from high winds. They also afford an environment that can be more comfortable in which to plant, pot and manage soil.

Along with their usefulness, home greenhouses can be an attractive addition to the home. Well built, or pre-made, greenhouses are often architectural marvels. The glass cage can be eye-catching, and the view to the variety of plants and vegetables inside turn a workhouse into a work of art.

Articles About Home Greenhouses

Greenhouse Gardening for Beginners
Home greenhouses create a protected environment in which to grow plants as well as offering an enjoyable and practical way to garden throughout the year. Greenhouses make it possible to pick tomatoes in winter, grow herbs and vegetables and start seedlings and cuttings no matter what the weather outside.

Building Your Own Home Greenhouse
Determining which construction materials to use when building your own garden greenhouse will ultimately determine its practical use. This holds true should you be considering a prefabricated greenhouse as well

How to Build a Home Greenhouse
Before purchasing or constructing a home greenhouse, there are a variety of points to consider. You can save yourself a great deal of time as well as hassle with just a little forward planning

DIY Greenhouse Construction Tips
Many people relish the prospect of building a home greenhouse as much as enjoying the completed product but if you do not buy the green house along with all the fixtures and fittings, you will need some carpentry skills

Building a Greenhouse Foundation
Whatever type of foundation you choose to build your home greenhouse on, it is important that the floor is sturdy enough to support the benches, tables, pots and people that will be inside

Advantages of a Greenhouse Electrical Supply
Even though it is feasible to have a great home greenhouse without any electrical power, your results will be much better and come a lot easier if you put in various systems and devices to assist you

Home Greenhouse Maintenance and Repair
Although you might have believed that having your own greenhouse was simply about growing plants, as with most things around the house, you will likely have to undertake routine greenhouse maintenance and from time to time, a few repairs

Greenhouse Watering Systems
Dependent on the kinds of plants you want to grow in your home greenhouse will determine whether you are happy bringing in a watering can every day or whether you will want to go to the extreme of having an automatic watering system installed

Tips on Choosing Greenhouse Accessories
While home greenhouses contain benches, tools and numerous other accessories which help support and care for the plants, there are plenty of other accessories for the green house itself

Greenhouse Plants to Grow
Having completed construction or installation of your new home garden greenhouse it is now time to enjoy the fruits of your labor and begin choosing which greenhouse plants to grow

Hydroponic Greenhouse Gardening
For all those home gardeners who are seeking to get the best use of their newly built garden greenhouse, hydroponic green house gardening is a worthwhile alternative to popular soil based plant growing