[helluvatractor]

I know i'm looking a bit too far ahead here, and i bet most of you don't like to think of winter yet.  but being new to this game but very keen, i just wondered what you can grow in your greenhouse after all the tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers have been and gone?  I can't afford to keep it heated, although i could probably get a heater and use it overnight to keep it above zero degrees on those real cold nights.

seems a shame to waste all that space, cheers!

[Biscombe]

What do you mean after the tomatoes! I sowed some early girl tomatoes in October kept them in my heated greenhouse, I live in Spain but I know peeps in the UK who do this



Pic taken in late feb

I also have late pepper sowings in the greenhouse too

[Ice]

OK peeps.  I have a shiny new greenhouse (well, new to me) I'm going to bubble wrap it and invest in a heater.  

What grows best over winter?
Do fumes from a paraffin heater affect the plants?
Do I need to invest in a light to boost levels in the gloom?
What pests might I encounter?

[muntjac]

lettuce and carrots do ok in mine

[richyrich7]

Can you get lekky to your greenhouse Ice ? you'll find a lekky fan far better than them paraffin burners, which give off loads of condensation as a by product, fans help keep the air moving about as well.

As for the light depends on what you are growing ? nothing funny I hope  

Genrally I find you get far less pests in the winter even in the heated greenhouse slugs/snails and aphids seem to be my biggest prob's . After that it can be moulds and rots from poor ventilation/ air movement. Not a problem I tend to get to be honest.

[Ice]

Thanks RR.  No, not growing anything funny, the copper chopper sometimes goes overhead and those cameras can pinpoint a spot on an elephants backside.

Would an electric heater be more expensive to run?

[richyrich7]

Thanks RR.  No, not growing anything funny, the copper chopper sometimes goes overhead and those cameras can pinpoint a spot on an elephants backside.

   

Would an electric heater be more expensive to run?

Not sure really Ice, as most are thermostatically controlled so only come on when needed, what Temp are you thinking of keeping it at ?

I make a tunnel out of bubble wrap on one side of mine and keep just that one side warm, but the whole greenhouse is bubble wrapped as well , I keep mine at about 5 C just enough to keep my pelergoniums ok then about Feb the 1st seeds go in to a heated propagator in the tunnel and I start making it warmer from about March, I find you don't need it sub tropical to get things moving slowly along min night temps of 5-10 C seems to be OK and of course if your on economy 7 then your heater is cheaper to run from 1am to 8am.

[Ice]

Not sure about the temperature RR as I have absolutely no experience.  I do like the idea of an electric heater though as I remember from my youth we had a paraffin heater in the kitchen and the house stank.  I'm not organic but the fumes bother me.

Thinking about it I would like to grow fresh herbs over winter as I absolutely love them.  Chantenay carrots are also something I will try (thanks Munty).

[shaun]

if you get a proper electric heater for the greenhouse it will be cheaper to run than a paraffin heater .in the depth of winter you should think about doing a partition out of bubble wrap to keep the heating cost down

[wellingtons]

... I have a tiny glass greenhouse, and have had for about 10 years, which I heat with a paraffin heater and do quite well.  I quite like the fumes myself ...  

I overwinter tender shrubs (datura and "dagnabbit what's the pretty blue flowered thingamy called??"), keep geraniums alive and flowering right through til spring.

I keep chillies flowering and fruiting.  Lettuce and herbs do well.

As do my precious carnivorous babies ... my collection of insect eating lovelies  

[neal]

Consider a bottled gas heater. I use a 2.2kw heater in my polytunnel which is part insulated for plant propagatoin. In the unheated section I grow Carrots  Parabell (round), Cauliflower  All Year Round, Spring Onion Winter  White Lisbon, Lettuce  Artic King. All come very early from an autumn sowing try Rocket potatos plant mid Febuary, Early Onward Peas do well. Obviously you need the room for all of these but the possibilities are there. Ventilation can be problem as grey mould can build up. Try some out nothing ventured nothing gained.

[spinny]

a lot of the oriental veg such as pak choi do well over winter in an unheated greenhouse....

[Rangerkris]

Might just have to get some stuff in  today, anyone got anything growing in there greenhouse now.

[zazen999]

My greenhouse is still full; and I've started sowing for next spring's flowers.

I have a cucumber in there ready to harvest at the moment, along with tomatoes and chillis/peppers. I am putting onion sets into the tomato pots to grow through the winter; and will be bringing in my home made onion sets to go out next spring soon. I also have celery in pots sitting in a gravel tray full of water all winter. And lettuce of course. Plus a load of lavenders that we are growing from seed and cuttings to go out in the spring. Oh, and green beans; I tried those indoors last winter and we got a fair few pickings so I'm doing that in the greenhouse this winter.

Mine is unheated.

[pushrod]

If a paraffin heater is properly trimmed it should not give off loads of fumes. However it will give off CO2 (useful) and water vapour (potentially a problem in winter as high humidity can encourage moulds). An electric heater will have the advantage of thermostatic control and a fan so will probs be more effective and cheaper.

The thing about trying to heat an isolated glass and aluminium greenhouse with tender plants in is it only takes one day out of the three months to be really cold and all your previous heating has been wasted. If we get one of those winters when we have some really freezing cold nights - a gallon of paraffin and a few layers of bubblewrap are unlikely to make any difference at all.