5 Best Fruits to Grow

Now, when it comes to the best fruit to grow, strawberries and melons are fan-favourites. But, you can also grow figs, lemons, and oranges in your greenhouse.

The temperature and the size of your greenhouse should be considered when deciding what fruit to grow. For instance, figs and apricots like cool conditions while oranges thrive in a heated structure.

Strawberries

Ideal for both novice and skilled gardeners, strawberries are easy to cultivate and they do very well in a greenhouse. The most popular choices for greenhouse growing are:

•  the Cambridge favourite
• Royal sovereign
• Tamella
• Elvira 

You can start sowing them in August or September with good roots in 6 inches pots. During the winter months, keep the potted ones in a cool greenhouse. Around April, they will be ready for picking.

Figs

Growing fig trees can mean two things: a basket of delicious fruit and the perfect summer shade! 

Figs thrive full in the sun and make tasty fruits. They also produce broad leaves in spring, providing natural shade for your plants. 

One of the amazing things about this tree is that it loses its leaves just in time for fall as well. This means it retreats in time to give your plants more sunlight. What’s more, they’re a dry tolerant fruit and can withstand inadequate ventilation environments.

5 Best Herbs to Grow

Herbs make an exciting and healthy way to incorporate fresh greens into your food. Not only that but they add natural decor to your home.

If you wish to create a year-round herb garden in your greenhouse, it’s best to know which herbs do best in these growing conditions. Listed below are our top five herbs for greenhouse gardening.

Rosemary

Come on – you’ve heard about this astonishing herb before. Rosemary is a must-have in every culinary spice rack!

This herb is also ornamental, which makes it a lovely decorative plant. Thanks to its aromatic and flavourful leaves, rosemary is one of the tastiest herbs out there.

It’s surprisingly easy to grow them in a greenhouse, too! You can either start from seeds or cuttings. Plant them about ten weeks ahead of the last spring frost.

But before planting, soak the seeds for four to six hours. This is to soften the seed coat as well as prime them to sprout.

Rosemary does best in well-drained soils with temperatures ranging from 65°F-75°F. The preferred spacing is 3ft by 3ft. Considering they love light and humidity, growing them in a terracotta pot is a good call.

Pick a sunny location to provide them with enough sunlight. The herbs should also be watered using the deep watering method. To keep humidity high around the plant, spritz regularly with a spray bottle of water.

Top tip: Trim them after the first flowering to encourage the herb to grow bushier.

Coriander

Also known as Cilantro or Chinese parsley, this deep green herb is commonly used to enhance the flavour of South American, Arabic, and Asian dishes. 

When growing this herb in a greenhouse, prepare a patch of soil. Alternatively, if you have slab bases, you can grow cilantro inside hanging pots or raised beds.

Add well-composted manure to the soil. Next, sow the seeds about a quarter of an inch deep. Sow seeds 6 inches apart in rows about a foot apart.

This savoury herb also does well in dry weather. Meaning, there’s no need to keep the soil soggy after the plants germinate. Lastly, if you want a fresh supply for the entire growing season, plant fresh batches every two to three weeks.

Basil

Packed with Vitamins K and A, basil is a nutritious and delicious herb. It’s rich in minerals too, including manganese, calcium, copper, and magnesium.

In addition to being jam-packed with vitamins and minerals, this herb also has medicinal properties. It’s an anti-inflammatory and an effective pain reliever.

Sounds like a great reason to grow some! With steady temperature regulation, light, and moisture, you can start growing basil in your greenhouse.

It grows well in rich aerated soil. The seedlings are then expected to appear within two weeks.

When this warm-weather herb has more than five ‘true’ leaves, transplant it to its final growing area. They should be planted 4 inches apart to develop properly.

Make sure to water them regularly to avoid untimely blossoming. But avoid over-watering, as the plant will become more susceptible to damp. 

Top tip: Since basil is quite tolerant to dry conditions, expose it to intense daylight 6-8 hours a day to grow healthy.

Petunias

If you want to brighten up your greenhouse with lovely pastel colours, growing petunias is your best bet! And there’s a bonus – cultivating them is easy.

Petunias bloom best in full sun. These attractive flowers like fertile soil which drains well and is neutral to slightly acidic (pH 6.0 to 7.0).

Spread a 2- or 3-inch layer of organic material to mulch the soil. Organic mulch can suppress weeds, keeping the soil moist. This also improves the texture as it gradually decomposes.

By midsummer, the plants will start to get leggy and spindly. This causes the stems to produce fewer and smaller flowers. What you can do is cut each stem back by half to revitalise the plant.

Chrysanthemums

Planning on putting a big show on with some chrysanthemums in your landscape this year? Save your money and put your greenhouse to work!

There are around 150 to 200 different species of this beautiful flowering plant. So it’s important that you have the specific species and colour in mind before planting. Varieties including Paris daisy and Marguerite can thrive in a greenhouse.

But before you introduce chrysanthemums to your greenhouse, clean the structure with a commercial disinfecting product. Sterilisation is a great way to eliminate any fungal and bacteria infections. 

Set the greenhouse’s thermostat to 68°F-75°F during the growth period or until the plant begins to bloom. Decrease the day and night temperature to 65°F once the flowers begin to bud.

Water chrysanthemums once or several times a day, depending on the greenhouse temperature to keep soil moist.

There are dozens of things to consider when starting a greenhouse garden. When it comes to what you can grow, the possibilities are endless, that’s for sure.