A greenhouse makes a garden complete. Especially if you’re gardening in colder climates, a greenhouse would allow you to grow and harvest fresh crops throughout the year right from your backyard. You don’t have to break the bank to own a greenhouse – you can spend just a few dollars and build your own. Here are some DIY greenhouse ideas:
1. Small lumber greenhouse
Using lumber frames, you can build a greenhouse that can be scaled up or down depending on the plants you need. You just have to attach big window frames for ventilation, a door, and plastic greenhouse sheets like translucent polyethylene foil or polycarbonate locked into the wood. Use the same material for the roof, or use tin roofing to make it simple.
2. Hoop style greenhouse
Hoop style or tunnel type greenhouse is attracting a lot of gardeners. It’s basic, cheap, and can withstand any weather for at least three years (if you do it right).
To build, you need wood that would serve as the foundation of the greenhouse. Make a square frame out of it. On two opposite sides of the frames, pound rebars unto the ground – this is where you will slide both ends of the PVC pipes that will make a hoop across the width of the greenhouse. Strengthen the frame by inserting a strong PVC pipe at the top (this will serve as a rib). Attach the hooped pipes to the “rib” pipe with plastic zip ties. Then, cover the whole framework with plastic sheet and attach with the lathe. Don’t forget the door, which is a basic rectangular wood frame with plastic covering all around. Feel like entering a green tunnel with this type of greenhouse!
3. Barn greenhouse
If you want a wider space inside the greenhouse, you may build a barn-style greenhouse. This project is a bit more complex, but it’s really good-looking.
First, you have to create a wooden frame on the ground. Use 2×4 wood panels to build barn-style frames. On the lower side panels, use roofing tin to provide strength for the house and to give that barnyard farm look. Just use simple metal flashing to trim out the corners and make it smooth. Then, use corrugated plastic roofing as the wall and roof of the greenhouse.
4. Recycled window greenhouse
This DIY project just needs you to make the most of the old window frames you have on your junkyard. Or if you have a neighbor whose replacing all the windows on their house, ask for it – they might not use them anyway.
All you need to do is to create a basic foundation out of wood (the size depends on how big you want it to be, or on the size and number of available windows), then assemble the windows on them using screws. If there are some windows with broken glass, replace them with new or even recycled ones. Add tin roofing and some corrugated plastic paneling on the open areas on the walls.
5. Recycled door greenhouse
If we could use scrap windows, then we can also use scrap doors! If you have some old doors out there in your storeroom, transform them into something useful like a greenhouse. Instead of side paneling, you could use the old doors to create the walls.
Storm doors or any glass paneled doors work best for this project. If your old doors are neither of those, you can just use the door frames and cover them with plastic sheets to make a gorgeous little greenhouse. Then, add the tin roofing or more plastic sheets (if you’re also using doors for the roof) on top to finish the ensemble.
6. Plastic bottle greenhouse
Although you may not be able to collect more than a thousand plastic bottles, recycling them is always a good idea. Whether you would buy them from a junk shop or collect bottles from your neighborhood, this greenhouse is a worthy cause. While it is very cheap, it can be a huge undertaking in terms of time and labor, since you will be dealing with individual plastic bottles. Plus, the larger the greenhouse, the more bottles you will need.
Nevertheless, here’s an overview of how to do it: Create a basic wooden frame (but don’t place it up on the ground yet). Wash the bottles, remove the labels and lids, and cut their bottoms off. Thread your bottles using garden canes, wire or sticks to hold the bottles in a line. Attach your lines of plastic bottles to the frame, while the frame is placed flat on the floor. This will create the walls. After you have filled all four sides, with a door on the front side, make them all stand and nail the frame walls to the frame on the ground. You may do the lining up of bottles for the roof, or you can use tin roofing.
7. Dome greenhouse
Another beautiful greenhouse project is the dome greenhouse. Obviously, it would also take a lot more time to complete – you need to assemble carefully measured triangles to do this. Getting woodcut in equal length and width, plus the assembling, will be tough, and you need to lay down a “blueprint” for this. However, all that labor will not go in vain for you will enjoy having an amazing greenhouse in your garden that could be the talk of the town.
To do this, you have to build a pony wall that will form a polygon that will serve as a base of the dome. Then, start joining the struts that form the triangles on the dome. The measurements are tricky so you must be very careful, as well as in joining them together. To cover, staple plastic sheets to the struts, with plastic cut 3 facets in a row. Just trim the overlaps using a utility knife. Leave a pentagonal space for the door on the front and make a couple of triangles into windows on the sides.
8. Countertop greenhouse
The easiest and smallest greenhouse on this list, the countertop greenhouse is a perfect gift for a plant-loving mom or aunt. It’s designed to help plants grow on the bay window of a house. This is a simple project any DIYer can make.
Create a basic wooden frame and make it a cube. Also, create a wooden frame for the roof in the shape of a prism. Make sure the roof fits perfectly on top of your cube frame. Glue on transparent sheet vinyl to all the sides of the frames. Then, add the hinges so you can flip the roof to open the mini greenhouse.