A well-organised greenhouse extends your growing season and increases productivity. Whether you're growing ornamentals or edibles, smart space management ensures you get the most from your greenhouse investment.
Follow David Domoney's step-by-step guide on how to organise a greenhouse to maximise space
Step 1 – Assess your greenhouse needs
What you want to grow can determine how you should organise your greenhouse. Is your plan to grow ornamentals throughout the year, or perhaps your focus is productive growing?
Additionally, consider the seasonal factors, such as what plants will need propagating, growing, and harvesting and when.
Creating a planting calendar for everything you hope to grow in the year helps you stay organised. Consider which plants you want to prioritise, when you might be planting them out or if you plan to grow exclusively in the greenhouse.
Understanding what you want to grow and the space each plant needs, helps you optimise the layout. When creating your planting calendar, consider the following:
What plants to sow, propagate, plant, and harvest, and when?
Which crops need the most attention?
How much space do each of your crops or ornamentals need?
Which plants will eventually be moved outside, freeing greenhouse space?
Step 2 – Plan a functional layout
The next best step is to sketch out a scale illustration of your greenhouse. Perhaps you have a smaller greenhouse, like the Keder 2 metre range. Or maybe a larger, 6 metre, smallholder-style greenhouse. Sketching it out will give you a clear vision of how much space you have so you can make the most of it.
Use your planting calendar to guide the zoning of your greenhouse space. Think about what spaces you might need and when, such as shelves or tables for propagating or sowing from seed. A space specifically for storage is always helpful to ensure your greenhouse stays organised all year.
Building raised beds is a fantastic way to maximise space in your Keder greenhouse. You can construct them to run along the entire length of your greenhouse, providing plenty of growing space for the whole year. Raised beds allow for an earlier start and a longer growing season, making them a key strategy for greenhouse efficiency. With this, you can crop rotate over several years, using different areas of your raised beds for different crops.
Remember, Keder Greenhouses' unique cladding is designed to distribute sunlight evenly. This means each area of your greenhouse gets equal amounts of light, alleviating the risk of scorching or areas of low light. That means even more of your greenhouse is suitable for growing in.
Step 3 – Make use of vertical space
Once your floor plan is set, the next step is to take advantage of the height in your greenhouse. Greenhouses offer valuable overhead space, which should be utilised. Shelves are an obvious way to optimise height space, using them as surfaces for propagation and to get seedlings started. It also makes tasks like these much more comfortable to carry out, without straining your back bending down.
However, there are other ways to optimise the height in your greenhouse. Climbing plants can be grown on supports in greenhouses. Growing them in your greenhouse reduces how much ground space they take up over other vegetables, which require more room. You can add crop rails to your Keder greenhouse for vertical gardening, using them to support climbing plants.
Some great climbing vegetables for your greenhouse include:
French beans
Runner beans
Peas
Cucumber
Tomatoes
And many more
These crop rails could have other vertical space uses too. A great option is hanging baskets. Plenty of productive plants can be grown in hanging baskets, which saves lots of space in your greenhouse. By hanging these from crop rails, you save raised bed space and shelf space too. I particularly enjoy growing strawberries in hanging baskets, with the jewel-like fruits tumbling over the edges being quite attractive. Other options include some dwarf tomato varieties or perhaps herbs, which are perfect to consistently crop from.
Step 4 – Optimise for efficiency
Now that you have a good idea of what you’re growing, staging your greenhouse to suit is key. Make sure every part of your greenhouse serves multiple purposes to maximise efficiency.
Shelves should be rotated regularly, particularly early in the year when many seedlings need space. Consider adding foldaway shelves that can be tiered to ensure each level gets equal light. Particularly early in the year when many seedlings need to get started at the same time. Once seedlings have been pricked out and planted, the shelves should be in use again for more sowing, seedlings, or propagating.
For particularly busy gardening periods, if you have space, introduce foldaway tables to your greenhouse for an extra working area. This is ideal for rotating on a seasonal basis and can be stored discreetly away when no longer needed.
Plus, don’t forget the spaces under your shelves. Whilst this may be shadier and unsuitable for growing plants, it can certainly be used for storage. Use plastic tubs to store tools, compost, seeds, and bulbs neatly, keeping them accessible but out of the way.
Step 5 – How to keep your greenhouse organised all year
Mark a day each month (or season) in your calendar to tidy up your Keder greenhouse. Remove any pots which are of no use, clean your tools, and make sure everything is stored appropriately. Keeping your greenhouse clean and tidy provides a better growing environment and means no space is wasted with clutter.
Label your storage containers as well, so you know exactly where to find everything. This may also automatically encourage you to keep putting everything back in its allocated space. It also means you are consistently assessing what is in each storage container, making sure you don’t miss sowing or planting opportunities.
A watering system will also save space and keep your plants healthy long-term. An automatic irrigation system not only conserves water but also frees up space by reducing the need for manual watering. Plus, rainwater collected from water butts for irrigation is often better for your plants than tap water, and more sustainable.
With a well-planned layout and smart use of space, your Keder greenhouse will be more efficient, productive, and enjoyable to work in year-round.
To find out more about our Brand Ambassador and Guest Blog Writer visit https://www.kederdomestic.co.uk/david-domoney
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