Types of greenhouses and their designs (photo)

2024 Author: Howard Calhoun | [email protected]. Last modified: 2024-01-09 14:06

Greenhouse is a structure with light-transmitting walls and a roof and designed for growing various plants in the spring-autumn period, when weather conditions do not allow several crops to be taken in one year.

Currently, there are a variety of types of greenhouses. In their form, they are large and small, square, rectangular, one- or two-slope, etc. Frames can be made in the form of a tent, arch, house, or have a different shape. Types of greenhouses also differ in size: they are standard and non-standard. They are made of polycarbonate, wood, metal. You need to choose a heifer taking into account what goals it faces, why it is needed at all. Cost also plays an important role.

How to choose a greenhouse for a summer residence?

Ideally, the structure should have the following characteristics:

• be of sufficient quality;
• reliable;
• durable;
• adapted to different weather conditions.

In addition, it should be practical and convenient to use, as well as inexpensive.

When choosing a greenhouse, each personpursues a variety of goals. For some, it is enough that she has a nice appearance and looks good against the backdrop of a house or plot. For other people who see the greenhouse as a household accessory or a way of doing business, more serious features are needed. Appearance is not the most important thing for them.

Collapsible or stationary?

Before purchasing a greenhouse, you should decide which model is needed: stationary or collapsible. From a stationary fuss, much less - once installed and forgotten. A collapsible one will have to be installed and disassembled twice a year. However, if the greenhouse is in the country, where you visit only in the summer, and theft occurs quite often in the holiday village, then it is more expedient to purchase a collapsible model.

What will be grown

Before making the final choice, you should decide what exactly you will grow in the greenhouse: tomatoes, cucumbers, herbs, seedlings, etc. The decision is yours, but keep in mind that different greenhouse crops differ in the mode of cultivation and humidity and lighting requirements. In addition, some plants do not tolerate any neighborhood and can harm each other.

Once you decide which plants will be grown, you can choose a building of a suitable height.

What are greenhouses?

Today, the modern market offers a variety of types of greenhouses and greenhouses, different in shape, characteristics, sizes andcost. For their production, modern high-quality and reliable covering materials are used.

Types of greenhouses

Depending on the coating used, such structures are divided into the following types:

• Polycarbonate.
• Film.
• Glass.

All types of greenhouses are good, but they perform their functions with varying degrees of efficiency. Each option has its advantages and disadvantages.

Foil greenhouses

Film is one of the most widely used covering materials.

• The main advantage of such structures is their low cost.
• Another plus is the possibility of self-erection. Do-it-yourself film types of greenhouses are assembled very simply. To do this, you only need plastic wrap, a rail, a screwdriver and a furniture stapler.
• Such a structure perfectly transmits ultraviolet rays, which are so necessary for the normal development of plants,
• No foundation needed.

Unfortunately, film greenhouses have many disadvantages. First of all, it is short-lived. The film tears quite easily and rarely survives the winter. The next season, the greenhouse must be covered again. Yes, and a frame made of boards or rails can rarely withstand more than 2 seasons. Humidity and heat are ideal conditions for the development of wood fungus.

Reinforced polyethylene film is more durable due to the special reinforced mesh. She can't standonly strong wind, but even hail.

Glass greenhouses

Glass is a durable and strong material for covering greenhouses. Its distinctive properties are high light transmission and excellent thermal insulation.

However, glass greenhouses have a drawback: inside the air can be very hot, which can be very bad for plant he alth. Also, their minus is the complexity of glazing. A large mass of glass requires a reliable, and therefore expensive frame. The glass must be at least 4 mm thick. The larger the frame sizes, the better the greenhouse lighting will be. But this increases heating costs. And replacing a large broken glass will also be more expensive.

The disadvantages of glass greenhouses include the fragility of the material itself, which tends to break not only due to physical influences, but also due to temperature changes (large temperature difference inside and outside the greenhouse in severe frost).

Polycarbonate Structures

This relatively new material has recently captured the greenhouse market and the attention of gardeners. Polycarbonate structures have a number of clear advantages over film and glass types. The material has advantages:

• High strength (nearly 200 times stronger than glass), heat resistance and fire resistance.
• Extremely lightweight (cellular polycarbonate weighs 16 times less than glass and 3 times less than acrylic of the same thickness).
• High thermal insulation and lowthermal conductivity.
• High light transmission (transparency of the material is up to 86%). In addition, the material diffuses light, so that it reaches almost all beds.
• Good noise and sound insulation.
• High chemical resistance.
• Excellent weather resistance.
• Polycarbonate is durable. Products made from it have a warranty period of up to 10-12 years.
• Polycarbonate does not break, does not crack.
• Has a special UV protection. Thanks to the protective layer, hard UV rays do not pass through the cellular polycarbonate.
• Easy installation. The lightness and flexibility of the sheets allows you to create original and elegant designs of various types.
• Looks attractive and modern.

All types of polycarbonate greenhouses have some disadvantages:

• If the sheets are placed incorrectly (with UV protection inside), then their service life will be significantly reduced (from 10 years to 2-3 years).
• Almost all types of polycarbonate greenhouses (photos are available in the article) require the construction of a foundation for their normal operation.
• The material has a hollow structure, water and dirt often get inside. This contributes to the deterioration of light transmission and a fairly rapid loss of heat, which is undesirable. In addition, the appearance deteriorates.

Types of greenhouses and their designs

Under polycarbonate, frames are made and built, which differ both in shape and in the material used. The most common typespolycarbonate greenhouses - arched and with a tent (house). All others are variations of these two.

Arched structures

Arched types of greenhouses and greenhouses are one of the most popular designs on the market. They are used for early and all-season cultivation of various garden crops and flowers.

The frame consists of semicircular arches, which are most often installed on a vertical base. As a rule, these are factory-made greenhouses.

Types of greenhouses (photo above) arched design have the following advantages:

• They are weather resistant. Their streamlined shape keeps snow out of them.
• Their installation is quite simple, which allows you to build these types of greenhouses with your own hands.
• Having a small number of connections. A typical construction, which is 3 meters wide, is covered with one sheet, fixed to the frame only at the ends.
• Consumption of polycarbonate for greenhouses is small.
• Good sunlight penetration.
• Low cost.
• Can be installed without foundation.

Disadvantages include:

Low functionality. Small height of the outer beds.

Arched greenhouses are good for low crops like peppers or eggplants.

Tent structures

Tent types of greenhouses and their designs are most often chosen for self-construction, but there are also factory options. Pros:

• Opportunitycreating an individual design.
• Sizes can be the most non-standard for any culture.
• Very practical and functional.

Their main flaws:

• The frame should be made of the strongest possible material.
• The cost is higher compared to other types.
• Polycarbonate consumption is quite large.

Types of frames

Greenhouse frame can be made from the following materials:

• Tree.
• PVC.
• Metal.

At present, the wooden frame is used less and less. The tree requires impregnation with special compounds against decay, various fungi and other destructive, negative phenomena. It is also impossible to bury wooden racks in the ground without first sheathing them with waterproofing materials. Otherwise, the structure will fall apart quickly. All these nuances make the installation process quite laborious and unprofitable.

The frame for PVC greenhouses is rarely used in our country. His merits:

• Material will not rust or rot.
• Resistant to various chemicals, fertilizers, etc.
• Very practical.
• The material does not need special treatment such as painting, impregnation.
• The appearance is quite aesthetic.

Metal frames are among the most durable structures. They won't rust, rot, release harmful toxins, and don't need to be painted.

The biggest drawback is the high cost of aluminum. In addition, there is a very high probability that the greenhouse can be dismantled and taken to a metal collection point.

Industrial greenhouses

The only significant difference between industrial greenhouses and those used in household plots and cottages is their size. They can occupy quite impressive areas that exceed 1000 square meters. m, and their height can reach 6 m.

Types of industrial greenhouses:

• Seasonal. The period of active operation is limited to the season (March-November). They are used to grow crops that are in high demand among agricultural consumers.
• Year-round, allowing you to get a high yield even in winter. All types of winter greenhouses are quite expensive, but the high profitability of the economy more than allows you to recoup the costs in the shortest possible time.

The efficiency of industrial greenhouses depends on the following factors:

• the ability to create and maintain a suitable temperature and humidity;
• the quality of the materials used to build the structure;
• availability of irrigation, lighting, heating and other systems.