A Greenhouse Update, November 2025

Well, if you have followed my blog for a while you will know that our dream greenhouse was put up this summer, and I posted about it here. It has exceeded all my expectations so far and we are very happy with it. In the middle of October the rest of the shelving was delivered and mounted and I could finally start putting this new space to use. And one of the best uses we discovered – with it being at the end of the growing season – has surprisingly had nothing to do with plants…. we have been sitting in there for our afternoon cup of tea almost daily!

We had never really used these two old sunchairs much before, but here they are perfect, with a small coffee table in between.

One of the first things I did was to repot my Lemon Verbena plants and put them inside. One by one my summer Geraniums (Pelargoniums) have followed; some are still flowering and the warm colours are so welcome in there on a drab day. I especially like the small-leafed ones.

Other plants were slowly added over the next couple of weeks, making the greenhouse feel welcoming and attractive. Echeveria, a Pansy, a Hebe, to name a few.

This plant is a kind of Coleus (Jamaican?) which I picked up for a small donation at the Botanical Garden Regensburg in the summer.

Two Primulas/Aurikel and a trio of Cyclamen also seem to be happy with the climate, despite the chilly nights.

Not just decorative plants are in there though. I sowed an Asian salad leaf mix and some babyleaf as well as some lamb’s lettuce back in September and I cut the first leaves for salads last week. And some perennials I had sown in September are also doing well – Echinacea, Achillea and some wallflowers.

I rashly took some late cuttings of my semi-tender salvias too – no high hopes as I never have any luck with them, but if you don’t try you will never succeed, as they say.

Now, with the longer and colder nights, I will probably start moving things into the house for the winter. We have a gas heater which kicks on when it gets really cold. And it has been cold at night too – around and just below freezing point outside,  but a ‘cosy’ 5 or 6°C minimum inside. So far so good.

I repurposed some silver grey storage bins that had previously been used for dog food and treats. They keep my gloves, garden fleece, etc clean and out of the way. In Spring I will have piles of seedtrays and pots in here, so I am currently looking out for a storage idea for them… a box or cupboard perhaps. Other essentials are watering cans, a dustpan and brush, a lamp and a weather station sensor; it is reassuring being able to see the greenhouse temperature while indoors, particularly at night.

A couple of new gadgets have been part of the fun of setting up the greenhouse, such as this handy meter for testing soil moisture…

and this squeezy bottle for watering seedlings…

I have some of those heated mats for seedlings that I haven’t used yet, and I also have some battery powered fairy lights!

The hooks that can be fitted into the greenhouse frame are brilliant. I can see they will come in handy for hanging shade netting if necessary in summer, or simply hanging up pretty things…

In a way I am itching to get started with spring seed-sowing in there. On the other hand, it has been nice to get a feel for how the temperature and humidity varies by day and night, and to just sit ‘in’ the garden and watch the autumn colours changing.

Today the high outside is 3°C, and it is currently only 6°C in the greenhouse/garden room. I think we will skip the afternoon cuppa today and have it indoors! Brrrr!

I’d love to hear about your own experience with greenhouses, so do leave a comment. And have a good weekend!