A greenhouse provides the opportunity to take the next step in growing-your-own - extending the range of crops it is possible to grow reliably, to include tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, chillis and aubergines. All grow better under glass than outdoors in the garden, given the unreliability of the British weather! Greenhouses also provide the perfect environment to grow Mediterranean herbs that require higher temperatures to thrive - especially basil, coriander, tarragon and thyme.
Greenhouses provide the opportunity for year-round gardening, and even a small 6 x 6 ft or 6 x 8 ft greenhouse should be able to supply a wide range of winter salad and vegetable crops (especially leaf greens), and maintain the availability of fresh herbs. The investment in a greenhouse can be substantial, not just in terms of cost (aluminium is generally cheaper than wood) but also in terms of the space it occupies, especially in a small garden - so it’s important to ensure that it pays its way!
A greenhouse is not the place to store outdoor furniture, hammocks, barbeques and hot tub accessories for which a small (or possibly large!) timber shed is a far cheaper and more secure option. Overwintering non-hardy plants on shelving and staging would, however, qualify as a good use of the space!
A greenhouse can also double as a potting shed through the use of shelves and staging, allowing you to start seedlings for growing your own. It can be especially valuable in getting a ‘head start’ in the Spring, and allows plants to be outplanted once firmly established, and the risk of frost has diminished.
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Top tips for getting the most out of the space
Where to locate a greenhouse in a garden is a prime consideration. It should be within easy reach of the kitchen to allow for regular trips to pick whatever you’ve been growing. A greenhouse can provide a centrepiece for a kitchen garden and, if it’s in full view, needs to be attractive - or you’ll never love it! Wooden greenhouses with an oil or stained finish are somewhat softer in appearance than those made from powder coated metal (aluminium greenhouses), which are available in a wide range of colours.
In the expectation that your new greenhouse will provide access to seasonal produce throughout the year for picking daily, it’s a good idea to ensure that there is a clear pathway between your kitchen and the greenhouse. This will ideally be lit, especially if steps are involved, and will be easy to maintain (free of overhanging vegetation and not prone to become slippery when wet).
Greenhouses are sold with a wide (arguably overwhelming) range of accessories that can add considerably to the overall cost. We’d consider just two to be ‘must haves’: automated ventilation which prevents overheating, and guttering that permits rainwater collection for recycling. Automated ventilation is available for even the smallest greenhouse and the most effective systems are those that combine louved side vents with roof vents to maintain air circulation by introducing cold air from outside while expelling hot air from the greenhouse. Many systems in aluminium framed greenhouses use solar panels to power low voltage electrical opening mechanisms, but more traditional waxed-filled rams are fitted to wooden greenhouses and work just as well without compromising the greenhouses’ appearance.
Getting the most out of the space requires careful design, but the principles are self-evident. Any potting area (using shelving & staging) is best placed to the front of the greenhouse immediately inside the doorway. This is likely to be visited most frequently and keeping it accessible is important, you’ll also appreciate the breeze from being able to leave the door open! The back and far end of the greenhouse will ideally be devoted to growing, and this can take the form of a simple planting bed at ground level, staging, raised beds (this will need good support at the back to protect the glazing, unless your greenhouse is installed on a brick plinth), or containers.
While the type of flooring used will largely be down to personal choice, block paving is an especially good idea as the narrow gaps between the paviours allows water to drain away. It can also be brushed clean easily. Concrete is not a good choice as it becomes very slippery when wet, and neither is gravel which will become bound with soil and compost over time.
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What is greenhouse shelving and staging?
Shelving and staging are widely sold as accessories with greenhouses, but these are permanent fixtures that cannot be repositioned easily to make the most of the available space. Staging is to all intents and purposes a fixed work surface comprised of slated wood or aluminium that is set at waist height (about 700 mm off the ground) to provide a comfortable working height. Staging should be no wider than 500mm. Staging is often used to provide a potting area and to provide a surface on which to layout seed trays. The area below the staging is generally open and used for storage of materials and tools, but this isn’t always ideal as drainage water drips down from above. A robust workbench is an alternative to staging that will often prove to be more versatile.
Shelving will also be comprised of slated wood or aluminium which are mounted to the uprights between the greenhouse windows by simple brackets. Most shelving will be 300 mm wide and is designed to accommodate narrower garden trays. Shelving will ideally be along the tallest window so as not to restrict planting below, but should not be so high or beyond reach to make lifting and removing trays of plants hazardous.
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Design and accessory ideas
It is important that those areas devoted to growing crops in a greenhouse are well designed in order to maximise productivity. Planting beds can be prepared by cultivating the soils in situ, but this will only be appropriate if the soils are not compacted (don’t contain fragments of stone, brick and masonry), and are not perpetually wet. The heavy application of manure and compost may well be required to improve the soil sufficiently to grow crops such as tomatoes, chillis, aubergines and peppers - all of which are extremely demanding, and in this case installation of a raised bed can be beneficial by retaining the increased volume of soil. The high humidity of greenhouses means that the boards of wooden raised planters are often prone to crack, warp and decay - therefore a low retaining wall made of brick or concrete block may be better ideas, if you want to avoid the need for frequent replacement!
Unfortunately, growing the same crops repeatedly year after year in a planting bed or raised planter carries an increased risk of harbouring pests and diseases that can cause crops either to fail, or to perform poorly in terms of yield or quality.
Planters and containers will be more suitable for growing crops in a greenhouse where the in-situ soils are unsuitable. They also provide the opportunity to prepare soils which are closely aligned to the needs of the particular crops you wish to grow. This can make a huge difference to the amount and quality of what you grow and reduce the need for feeding plants with fertilisers. These soils can be replaced as necessary to avoid the risks presented by harbouring pests and disease, and either composted or re-used for growing crops from unrelated families. Growing beans and peas are often good ideas for replacing lost nitrogen.
Growing crops successfully in a greenhouse requires careful attention to watering. This can be time consuming if undertaken by hand and a challenge for people who find heavy lifting difficult. Capillary systems, which are now ‘built in’ to some pots can reduce the frequency of watering but may cause soils to become saturated as they offer little regulation on the amount of water that plants receive.
Overhead sprayers can also be used for watering greenhouses and are relatively simple to install. Their main strength is their ability to increase humidity which effectively ‘takes the edge’ off high temperatures and for cooling foliage. To work well, sprayers need to work at quite high pressure to ensure they produce a mist. Overhead sprayers are a great solution for seedlings but are less good for watering greenhouse crops. The foliage of large plants intercepts the water, preventing it reaching the root zone where it is really required. Overhead sprayers are not a good choice if you’ve got hard water as the glass in your beautiful windows will quickly turn opaque with lime scale build-up! Here we speak from experience (as an aside ‘Cillit Bang’ is the only thing that will restore your windows to a shine) …
Finally, drip-irrigation systems are a good choice, but it’s important to note that there are good and bad products. Drippy ‘porous’ pipe is definitely fall bad, and if you are on a water meter is to be avoided at all costs! Commercial equipment (predominately made for large, outdoor areas), while more expensive, is far more reliable - with pressure compensating emitters ensuring precise watering. Drip-irrigation is most suitable for watering plants outdoors, in planting beds or raised planters. Ancillary pipework can also be added to provide watering to individual pots, but can be unmanageable with large numbers. The downsize is that suppliers are not geared towards the domestic market and you are unlikely to require the full 50 m on a standard roll unless you’ve bought a very large greenhouse!
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Why Ergrownomics?
Ergrownomic raised planters provide an alternative solution for fitting out greenhouses. The company started supplying equipment for indoor and outdoor commercial growing nearly 10 years ago and the experience of installing systems and feedback from customers (which include Michelin starred restaurants) has allowed the planters, which are modular, to be configured as kits for domestic use. The planters’ contemporary appearance, compact design and high level of functionality maximises the value of a greenhouse, fully realising the potential of year-round production. This innovative approach raises a number of questions, which we’ve endeavoured to answer below:
1. How do the planters withstand the high humidity and temperature of greenhouses?
Ergrownomic planters have a two-part construction with large (120 litre) plastic containers mounted upon a rigid, steel frame. The plastic containers are rotationally moulded from a special type of plastic (medium density polyethylene or MDPE). This can withstand ambient temperatures as high as 48oC without melting and is impervious to high humidity. The containers weigh 5kg each and have wall thickness of 5 mm, ensuring the containers are able to maintain their rigidity. The frames are heavy duty steel tube that has a wall thickness of 3.2 mm, so won’t flex or suffer from fatigue (which is always a risk with thin tubes). The tubes are connected with branded heavy duty ‘key clamp’ fittings and we use those manufactured by InterclampTM (which also have stainless steel set screws). The steel tube and key clamp fittings are ‘hot dipped’ zinc galvanised to prevent rusting.
The same attention to detail has been paid to the selection of components in the ancillaries fitted to the planter. The plant training system features aluminium supporting bars, vinyl end caps and ‘O’ rings (which hold the bars in position) made from an automotive grade polymer (rubber is far cheaper but perishes). The ‘aglets’ (the sheaths fitted to the end of our cord lines) are solid brass. All our irrigation components are manufactured by RainbirdTM (widely acknowledge to be Class leaders) with our dripline pipe used in commercial systems throughout the world.
Ergrownomic planters have been in commercial use for nearly 10 years and the number of repairs and replacements carried out to date (not just to the planters but the ancillaries also) stands at zero!
2. How do the planters maximise the use of space?
The Ergrownomic planter range for greenhouses comprises of 4 basic linear units with either one, two, three or four containers in each. The planters have a width of 600 mm so are relatively narrow, minimising their intrusion into the floor area when fitted along the backs or sides of small greenhouses. In wider greenhouses, their narrow width allows for two or more additional rows of planters to be fitted. Most people have a comfortable reach of 600mm which allows two rows of planters to be aligned ‘back to back’, as access is required only to one side of each row of planters (contributing further to their space saving).
The planters are also modular, which allows any of the units to be placed end-to-end and for the irrigation systems to be linked. This allows a continuous row of planters to be fitted along the entire length of longer greenhouses - minimising, if not eliminating, the amount of wasted or unproductive space!
While leg length on a standard frame ensures planters offer a comfortable working height of 720 mm (the same as normal kitchen work surface), a frame with shorter legs can be specified to maximise the amount of space available to taller growing and trained plants. This is especially useful in locations where the roofline of the greenhouse is curved or sloping. This can also be used to make planters accessible to children so they can get involved in home growing, as well!
Finally, the space below the planters can be used productively to grow seedlings. The frames are able to accommodate garden trays containing seed trays, seed tray inserts, cell (‘Jiffy’) plug trays and fibre pot strips. These can be placed below the planters whilst waiting for seed to germinate, freeing up staging and shelving for growing seedlings. Furthermore, pathways can be used in addition to, or in lieu of staging, as these can be placed temporarily in the space below the planters when the greenhouse is in use.
3. What makes Ergrownomic planters so ‘labour-saving’?
The in-built irrigation that the system provides is undoubtedly its main labour-saving feature. The ability to link planters to a single inlet, and to add a timer-unit builds on the functionality provided by automated ventilation in a greenhouse. The two (in combination) take care of the routine maintenance, and significantly reduce the risk of plants suffering stress due to drought and overheating (in times of absence). The system also avoids the need to ‘rope in’ the neighbours to carry out watering while you’re away!
The system provides an ease of use which is also ‘labour saving’, and the ergonomic design of the planters is key to this. The planters offer a comfortable working height in a greenhouse which avoids the need for repeated bending, kneeling and straightening required to undertake operations such as seeding, outplanting, weeding, spraying, pruning, training, picking, seed collection and the removal of crops at the end of their life cycle. The planters are extremely solid and robust (much more so than traditional shelving and staging) and can be used to provide support for resting while working in a greenhouse.
Most common greenhouse crops such as peppers, tomatoes and chillis will be at eye level within a planter once established, and this is helpful in identifying pests and allowing their treatment by the removal of affected leaves and / or targeted spraying. It also makes for easier picking and allows fruits which are most mature to be readily identified by peering through foliage.
The planters’ training system can also be easily adapted to provide supports to taller growing and climbing plants within a greenhouse. The cylinders, which are built into the containers, offer a means of routing and tying off individual string, twine or rope supports from the roof of a greenhouse to plants. Multiple strings can be used to create a trellis by weaving horizontal lines between these, or by using a jute netting. This saves time and cost compared to installing wooden or plastic-coated steel stakes and / or trellis.
4. Can I install planters within just a part of/retrofit an older greenhouse?
Ergrownomic planter kits are configured to fit most common sizes (imperial and metric) of greenhouses, in order to maximise the number of units within the available space and fully demonstrate what might be possible! However, there will often be a need to devote at least part of the space to other uses - such as growing seedlings for transplanting, rooting cuttings, repotting plants, cleaning bulbs, dividing plants – as well as the many other tasks involved in maintaining an ornamental garden! These can easily be accommodated because the planters are modular, therefore it is straightforward to omit one or more units in order to accommodate a work bench, potting station, staging or similar.
The same applies when retro fitting a planter kit into an older greenhouse where part of the space is occupied by a well-constructed raised bed or prized plant. The system is sufficiently flexible to enable any such permanent fixtures to be worked around. In most cases the irrigation system can be easily adapted to ensure the units can remain linked and an accessory pack containing assorted fittings and a length of solid carrier pipe is available for this express purpose!
The units not required can choose to be omitted (in which case we’ll stand by the discount available for the full greenhouse kit which is based on the number of units it contains) or else included and used to provide a line of planters on the outside, elsewhere in the garden. Greenhouses provide a favourable micro climate in their lee due to the shelter afforded from prevailing winds and heat exchange which can make outdoor planters extremely productive, and so increasing the versatility of what can be grown by the more temperate conditions afforded. As an additional benefit, the outdoor planter can be linked to the greenhouse irrigation system, with a stop tap included to allow this to be isolated when watering is not required.
5. Can the system use recycled rainwater?
Recycled rainwater will almost invariably be more suitable than a domestic water supply for growing crops in a greenhouse, and its use in hardwater areas where the water contains high concentrations of carbonate minerals will always be beneficial. Rainwater is naturally slightly acidic and as soils in containers have a tendency over time to become more alkaline (especially if home-made composts containing egg shells are added) it can assist in reducing the extent of change.
The use of rainwater can make an important contribution to living sustainably and in houses with water meters also offers significant cost savings (that may in a short time more than cover the cost of installing a rainwater collection system). The irrigation system in Ergrownomic planters has been designed to operate using recycled water without any compromise on performance, or need for any modification on the part of the user.
The RainbirdTM XFS dripline fitted in Ergrownomic planters is capable of operating at a pressure of just 0.59 bar, and so it will work with a gravity fed supply, subject to sufficient head being maintained. This can be achieved by ensuring the outlet from the storage vessel (large plastic water butt, plastic storage tank or suchlike) is at least 100 mm above the planter’s manifold. The system will also work with large underground recycling tanks (these normally form part of a ‘SUDS’ installation) but is likely in this instance to require pumping. Where this is the case the pump will need to be calibrated not to exceed the maximum operating pressure of 4.14 bar.
It is important, when using recycled water, to ensure the system contains a filter (125 microns) to remove fragments of vegetation (algae, lichen and moss washed from roofs and gutters are most common), as well as mineral particles to avoid blocking the drippers, although these do have some ability to release blockages as the pressure compensating emitters contain a ‘floating diaphragm’.
The use of grey water in Ergrownomics planters is not recommended as even products labelled as ‘ecological’ will contain residues of soap and detergent that need time to degrade. These will only really be suitable for irrigating ornamental planting schemes.
6. Are Ergrownomic planters ‘self-watering’?
Ergrownomic planters contain an ‘in-built’ drip irrigation system that allows crops growing in a greenhouse to be watered extremely precisely. Two driplines run through each planter with four emitters per planter, each of which is calibrated to deliver 2.3 litres of water per hour. The emitters are pressure compensating which avoids any loss in pressure along the dripline, meaning that crops in the first planter will receive the same amount of water as those in the last planter at the end of a dripline.
Crops such as tomatoes, cucumbers, peppers, chillis and aubergines, as well as ‘Mediterranean’ herbs, are extremely sensitive to variations in water supply (especially over-watering) and the system allows ‘fine tuning’ to ensure moisture conditions are maintained in an optimum range. Drip-irrigation is far more suitable for greenhouse crops than capillary systems which are prone to cause soils to become saturated intermittently, leading to growth disorders.
An automated irrigation pack is sold in conjunction with Ergrownomic planter kits. This contains a timer unit, tap manifold, assorted fittings and length of solid carrier pipe that allows planters in a greenhouse kit to be ‘hard plumbed’ to a water supply (we’d recommend a recycled rainwater system). This allows the planters to be truly self-watering and is typically the feature that owners’ love most about their planters!
Ergrownomics ‘in-built’ irrigation system features RainbirdTM components that are ordinarily only found in commercial irrigation systems in industrial sized greenhouses. These are resistant to chemicals, UV damage and algal growth, and capable of operating under an ambient temperature of 52oC (comparable to the planter containers themselves which are good for 48oC). RainbirdTM offer a number of fitting and those we use are threaded ‘Lock Type’ which offer smoother water flow and are more reliable than ‘Insert Type’ fittings which can ‘blow apart’ if water pressure surges.
The irrigation system is extremely low maintenance and the emitters contain a ‘floating diaphragm’ capable of releasing blockages caused by any mineral particles and vegetation fragments that enter the water supply.
7. How do I find out if Ergrownomics offer a kit for my size of greenhouse?
Ergrownomic planter kits are available to fit most common sizes of greenhouses from 4’0” x 4’0” to 14’0” x ‘16’0” and these are listed under SHOP. All you need to know is the dimensions of your greenhouse and the position of the entry/type of door opening (this can have a significant baring on the available space in small greenhouses). You can use either the listing for greenhouses or polytunnels depending on whether measurements are in imperial or metric sizes (the kits are identical). Kits for greenhouses larger than 14’0” x ‘16’0” are given in metric sizes only and are contained in the listing for Polytunnels. You are almost certain to find what you are looking for in either one or the other of the listings and if you don’t, then get in touch and we’ll produce a one-off design that meets your needs (without charging bespoke prices!)
A schematic of the layout of each kit is contained in the ‘Dimensions and specification’ sheet and this confirms the number of each model of planter which is contained within each ‘Internal fitting kit’. This information can also be used to produce a tailored design. Planters occupying space required to accommodate a work bench, potting station, staging or similar can be omitted from the kit, or alternatively utilised to provide a row of planters alongside your greenhouse. The schematic also provides a means of identifying those planters which would most appropriately be supplied with lowered frames (shorter legs) where roof height is either limited, or to accommodate shelving. The dimensions of the individual planter units are given in the ‘Dimensions and specification’ sheet for each stand-alone model, which can be also be used for reference.
Free help and ideas are available from Ergrownomics either via Contact Us or by phone, and you can always be assured of our best attention to make the most of your greenhouse!
8. Can Ergrownomic planters be colour matched to my greenhouse?
The planter frames can be powder coated at additional cost, and while this doesn’t improve the durability of the frames (the zinc galvanising provides all the protection required), it does improve their appearance (dependent on taste!) The bright & shiny galvanised finish may lose its lustre and dull over time, whereas the power coated finish remains bright and fresh with minimal maintenance.
Colour matching can be undertaken in order to co-ordinate planter kits with the powder coating on aluminium framed greenhouses. Colour matching requires only the RAL reference number to be known and this will usually be identified on an order confirmation from a greenhouse manufacturer, or provided on request.
Colour matching can also enhance the appearance of wooden greenhouses particularly where a colour is chosen to contrast with a natural oiled, stained or a painted finish.
Customisation can also be completed by choosing a bespoke container colour. This is offered free of charge for kits containing more than 24 containers and at a small additional cost for those with more than 12 containers. There are a total of 12 bespoke colours available which include green, blue (each in dark and light shades), pink, dark brown and pink granite (which has a mottled finish).
The unique ‘bespoke’ combinations of frame and container colour are possible only because Ergrownomic planters are manufactured in the UK and each kit is hand-finished. Customisation is competitively priced (usually no more than 30% of the cost of our standard planters) and while there is a lead-in as these are not available ‘off the shelf’, the time required will almost certainly be less than a greenhouse at 8-10 weeks. The risk of delay can be eliminated by ordering your greenhouse and planter kit at the same time.
Free help and ideas are available from Ergrownomics either via Contact Us or by phone, and you can always be assured of our best attention to make the most of your greenhouse! Please get in touch if you have any questions!
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