[Agatha]

Hi

I help at a care farm for young people with autism.  They have the opportunity to put up a greenhouse, but have concerns about the best type with regard to the safety of the clients.  Some of the young people are at the extreme end of the spectrum, so can kick or throw things without warning.  How safe is toughened glass in these circumstances?  We have been recommended a Keder greenhouse, but I have no experience of using these and we have a few concerns about them.

If anyone has any experience of using greenhouses in similar situations or any experience of the Keder greenhouses, I would be grateful to hear from you.

Thanks

Agatha

[Eblana]

My daughter is a nurse for people with intellectual disabilities (with challenging behaviour).  I just asked her because I know that the place she works has a horticultural therapy unit.  They did a risk assessment on this and decided that the only safe option was a polytunnel, the risk of someone breaking glass or hard plastic were too high.

[Kevin67]

You might also need to risk-assess the tools and consumables required.

I do wish you the best in a very worthwhile endeavour.

[Eblana]

Very few of my daughters 'clients' use tools at all.  From a sensory and therapy point of view they benefit more from using their hands in the soil (I can relate to this!). They fill module trays with compost - sow seeds into them and then plant the plants on into the beds or hanging baskets with their hands.  I don't know if it is the same in the UK as here in Ireland but for health and safety reasons they are not allowed to consume any of the crops - they sell them to the staff and use the money to buy the seeds that they like which again benefits their therapy.

[Kevin67]

My wife works in a similar environment and I was thinking of pots and vases etc that could be thrown.

[Comfreypatch]

I am just about to buy a Keder greenhouse. I chose it instead of a polytunnel because it is more durable. I already have a greenhouse so didn't want another one, especially as some of the glass got broken by tennis balls from the nearby school. It was safety glass which just shattered into millions of pieces but I don't want that happening again. The school did pay for replacement glass and fitters as we certainly were not going to do it.

Good luck with what ever you choose.

[Eblana]

Yip raised beds, no pots, or tools that they can be thrown or lashed out with.  Modules are the light plastic type, no chemicals and close liaison with their care givers on each visit to ascertain what their behaviour is like on that day - their care givers will usually know the warning signs.

[Agatha]

Thanks for the feedback.  We are already growing stuff and some of the kids are brilliant gardeners. We do use tools - some of them dislike direct contact with the soil, depending on their sensory issues.  But of course, there are risk assessments for each student and each process.

Eblana, we are allowed to use the crops here - shame it's not allowed in Ireland.  For our students, it is a very important part of the learning process, helping them understand about food.   

Comfreypatch, one of our concerns about the Keder is that the sales person told us birds peck through the holes which then have to be pierced from beneath and filled with silicon.  Also, it is difficult to spot from below when the holes have been made until mould starts turning them black.  Sounds like a lot of work, and also we wondered how our kids would cope with black patches appearing on the roof!  Be interested to hear how you get on.

[Kevin67]

There's a way to stop the birds.

Imagine 3 or 4 wires or lines stretching from either end of the polytunnel. These wires are supported by small poles that can take the strain.

For added effectiveness and sight, you might have lengths of coloured ribbon along the lengths of the wires.

No bird will settle on that!

Now my problem is a young tom cat who has adopted me and uses his claws to climb up my polytunnel!

[adri123]

I've just finished constructing a greenhouse made using twin wall polycarbonate.  I think that would be perfectly safe and would allow for the replacement of any glazing that took a battering without having to replace the whole polythene sheet should it be needed.

Adri

[Agatha]

I suggested that but they said they have been told twin wall polycarbonate is no good as it doesn't stand up well to wind and the site is quite exposed.  Anyone know how accurate this is? It's half the price of the Keder ones, which makes it VERY attractive to me 

[Kevin67]

If you looked at polycarbonate, please check for UV stability. I had some sheets a while back and the sun made them brittle.