Do I need a greenhouse heater?

  • 4 Replies
  • 2621 Views
*

Adopt a Greyhound

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Location: Argyll
  • 4
Do I need a greenhouse heater?
« on: November 30, 2020, 13:37 »
Hi,

I'm getting a greenhouse for my Christmas (yay) and have been asked if I will need a heater. I have no idea.  I'm planning to use it for tomatoes, sweet peppers, chilli peppers and maybe aubergines.  I'm not planning to use it over winter (other than to maybe keep chilli plants alive?).

 I have a heated propagator and a cold frame, and thought I could start cauliflowers early on the greenhouse - I started them in the cold frame this year then moved them to the raised beds but didn't w much luck with them. 

All advice gratefully received 😀

*

JayG

  • Global Moderator
  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Location: South West Sheffield
  • 16722
Re: Do I need a greenhouse heater?
« Reply #1 on: December 01, 2020, 15:59 »
Your choice of summer crops is pretty much the same as mine, and probably many others, and I manage fine without a greenhouse heater, and you probably would too, even being considerably further north than I am.

Unless you're aiming for very early crops I wouldn't bother (even with a heater I doubt you'd be able to keep chilli plants alive over winter, and it would be an expensive failure if it didn't work anyway.)

(Expect a rush of replies telling me they successfully overwinter their chillies in a greenhouse without any heating at all!  ;))
« Last Edit: December 02, 2020, 09:29 by JayG »
Sow your seeds, plant your plants. What's the difference? A couple of weeks or more when answering possible queries!

One of the best things about being an orang-utan is the fact that you don't lose your good looks as you get older

*

Growster...

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Location: Hawkhurst, Kent
  • 13162
Re: Do I need a greenhouse heater?
« Reply #2 on: December 02, 2020, 05:12 »
I usually reckon to have a small blower heater on a thermostat, which kicks in just above freezing point.

At this time of year, we just have over-wintering geraniums, fuscias, cuttings etc, so they'll usually survive, but as for sowing in the late winter, it takes a little more care to ensure the trays are kept warm/covered a night, or more often than not, germinated in the house first.

Chillis tend to give up around now, so we tend to start new ones each year from seed!


*

Adopt a Greyhound

  • Newbie
  • *
  • Location: Argyll
  • 4
Re: Do I need a greenhouse heater?
« Reply #3 on: December 04, 2020, 11:10 »
Cheers. I suppose I should start off small anyway,  so I'll maybe try a heater and really early p!ants next year. Rain is more of an issue than snow and ice here, so maybe I'll get away with it.

*

al78

  • Hero Member
  • *****
  • Location: Horsham, West Sussex
  • 1338
Re: Do I need a greenhouse heater?
« Reply #4 on: February 01, 2021, 18:34 »
If you want to grow things that won't tolerate cold then going by your location, I would say yes. For starting brassicas, I don't think you will need heat. I've started brassicas in a cloche in my back garden around this time of year, the seedlings got frost on them but they weren't harmed.



 

Page created in 0.133 seconds with 43 queries.

Powered by SMFPacks Social Login Mod
Powered by SMFPacks SEO Pro Mod |