Best Small Greenhouse Kits To Buy in 2021 – Comprehensive Reviews
Many people love to have a greenhouse in their backyard, which is an excellent add-on to a garden. No matter how big or small your garden area is, there are endless options to set up a greenhouse based on the available space.
As a greenhouse owner, you can get a head start and enjoy all year round gardening experience.
You don’t need a large greenhouse to enjoy gardening throughout the year. You can get started with a small model too. It might be raining or snowing, but your greenhouse will be there to protect your plants from freezing.
Small Greenhouse kits come at different prices depending on the type, size, and other aspects. If you own a small backyard, these models are an excellent solution for your plants.
When it comes to buying a small greenhouse, a plethora of options can create confusion. With this in mind, we have compiled an in-depth review of some of the best small greenhouse kits along with a buying guide to help you choose the one that suits your needs
The Best Small Greenhouse Kit: Top 7
1: Palram Hobby Greenhouse- Best overall
If gardening is your hobby, then this free-standing greenhouse is the ideal size for you. To regulate the interior temperature, maintain the humidity, and airflow, it has clear panels and a roof vent. The door is also lockable, so it can prevent the loss of heat.
Pros:
- Rust-resistant aluminum frame
- Easy to build
- Well designed frame
- Lockable door
- Sturdy and long-lasting materials
Cons:
- Heavyweight and not suitable for portability
- Lack of shelves
- Comparatively expensive model
2: Ohuhu Mini Greenhouse
If you’re looking for a long-lasting starter greenhouse kit within a budget, then Ohuhu Mini Greenhouse is the one you’re looking for. This greenhouse model boasts some of the most outstanding features that help you get the best cultivation experience in a small greenhouse. Due to its enhancement ability, this model is worth the investment.
Pros:
- Lightweight and portable
- Advanced design
- Better accessibility to plants
- Water and UV resistant cover
- Easy to set up
- Durable structure
Cons:
- Offers no additional accessories
- No observation windows
- You can not walk into your greenhouse.
3: Wooden Garden Cold Frame Greenhouse
Are you looking for a greenhouse with a natural look? MCombo Wooden Garden Cold Frame Greenhouse should do the trick. This greenhouse is made of natural fir wood with superb air circulation and ventilation system. The wooden finishes bestow an elegant look that enhances the beauty of your garden.
Pros:
- Double Shelves
- Easy to shift
- Unfixed layer height
- Foldable top
- Structure made with hard and thick wood
Cons:
- Can not withstand heavy winds
- It might get damaged by water
- Has pre-drilled holes
4: Lean-to Greenhouse Walk-In
If you are looking for a greenhouse to plant small plants and keep them fresh and enlightened, then CO-Z Lean-to Greenhouse will be the right choice for you. This greenhouse soaks in heat during the day that enables the plants to stay warm during the night.
Pros:
- Easy to carry
- Easy to set up
- User-friendly design
- Water, UV, and Rust resistant
- Walk-in facility
Cons:
- Must be placed beside a wall
- Body material not durable
- Lack of hardness
The greenhouse is made mostly for simple usage. If you are a beginner in greenhouse gardening, then you might start with this model, but if you are looking for something more advanced, then this is not for you.
5: Quictent Portable Greenhouse
The Quictent Upgraded Portable Greenhouse is nothing but a tent for the plants. But it has two doors and windows so you can see through it. This greenhouse is governed with a good amount of PE, allowing it to be highly resistant to damage
Pros:
- Lightweight design
- Highly Durable
- Simple instructions to set up
- A large amount of space
- Portable
Cons:
- Lack of attachments to hold it to the ground
- Comparably weak polls
- Only set up on a dry surface
6: Mini Walk-In Greenhouse Indoor
If you’re looking for a small greenhouse where you can grow plants all year round, then this mini walk-in greenhouse by Nova is a great choice. This greenhouse is known for its amazing PE cover that protects your seedlings from frosts and pests 365 days a year.
Pros:
- Good for flexible usage
- Strong metal structure
- Easy to assemble
- Large space inside
- Interactive design
Cons:
- Cant withstand strong windy weather
- Difficult to follow setup instructions
- Supportive materials are not durable
7: EAGLE PEAK Portable Walk-in Greenhouse Instant Pop-up
Eagle Peak is known for being the largest pop-up canopy manufacturer till now, and with the portable walk-in instant pop-up greenhouse, they are maintaining the legacy in the market. So if you are looking for an innovative single-person usage greenhouse, then you’re at the right place.
Pros:
- Simple setup
- Extra room for work
- Solid and secure environment
- Multiple access points
- Premium design aesthetics
Cons:
- May blow up during wind storms
- Less sturdy
- Very expensive
Types of Greenhouse
While choosing the right greenhouse, you need to understand your needs and compare them with the features of the home greenhouse kits to find the perfect one.
Lean-to Type Greenhouse
The lean-to-type greenhouses are designed to stand with the help of wall support. If you don’t have a large space in your backyard, then you can choose a lean-to-type greenhouse. With limited space, you can set up a few small plants of your choice in it.
Even Span Type Greenhouse
The even span type greenhouses are the most commonly used greenhouses in Asia. These standard-type models are uniquely constructed to divide the roof pitch length and angle wise on either side for firm support at the base.
Generally, it is less expensive than other greenhouse designs. This design is used mostly in small-sized greenhouses. The flexibility in design and more room for plants makes this design a considerable option for backyards with limited free space.
Uneven Span Type Greenhouse
If you live up in the mountain areas, then you should look into the uneven span-type greenhouses. The construction design of these greenhouses totally blends in and adapts to the craggy terrains.
Its roof pitch configuration varies from one side to another, making the structure perfect for side slopes of the mountain. As the design was not adaptable enough to various situations, they are very rare now.
Ridge & Furrow Type Greenhouse
This so-called “Gutter connected” design consists of several greenhouses connected lengthwise, removing the walls in between, providing more free space for growing maximum plants in a compact space.
Despite snow loads, these greenhouses are effectively used in northern countries of Europe and are also suited for Asian climatic conditions. Offering maximum ground area conservation, these are highly energy efficient.
Saw Tooth Type Greenhouse
You can call this type an upgrade version of Ridge & Furrow type greenhouse.
The improved version also comprises a series of connected greenhouses with roof ventilation. The ventilation openings resemble the shape of teeth and saw acquiring its name from the structure. It is also interconnected, but with an extra provision on the roof for a natural ventilation flow path.
Quonset Greenhouse
The design of these greenhouses is inspired by the Quonset huts built during WWII. The shape of the rooftop is exactly similar to huts, and the semi-circular structures look like barrels cut in half.
They are less costly than the gutter-connected greenhouses and efficient when used in small areas. The houses are connected in many ways, and the overlapping portions of adjacent houses allow enough airflow.
Things to Consider Before Choosing the Right Small Greenhouse Kits
Now that we have done reviewing our top 7 backyard greenhouse kits, it’s also worth taking some time to go through the buying guide as well. It gives valuable insights to help you choose the right greenhouse that matches all your growing needs.
Determine the Greenhouse Size
There are two important aspects to consider when determining the size of greenhouse you need:
Availability of Space: You will find a lot of greenhouse kits for sale, but before buying one, determine the amount of space you have in your backyard.
If you have a small garden area, then a 4×4 greenhouse is easy to house in the empty space, but if you have a large backyard, then you can think about getting a bigger one.
Consider taking a measurement of the free space in your lawn to determine the size of the greenhouse you need.
Growing Needs: Another crucial factor to focus on when deciding on the size of the greenhouse is your gardening goals. Maybe you own a big lawn with a lot of free space. If you are looking to grow some herbs and small flower plants during winter, you need a small model to suit your needs.
Investing in a big greenhouse setup is not worthy unless you are ready for bigger plants or vegetable gardening.
Greenhouse Covering Materials
The greenhouse panels and covers mean a lot to your plant health. The type of cover material impacts the following factors:
• Sunlight: The clear panels let in the maximum amount of sunlight necessary when you are starting seeds.
• Heat Retention: Highly quality panels offer supreme insulation to prevent the heat from escaping after the sunset.
• Energy Efficiency: The capability to trap and retain maximum heat during day time helps you save more on monthly energy bills.
The panel covers you need depends on the type of cultivation you want to do:
• Clear polycarbonate panels: for seeding
• Opaque panels: for plants in their maturity age
• Twin wall polycarbonate system: for the seed to harvest
Determining Greenhouse Design by Climate
Before you choose a greenhouse model, you need to consider the local climatic pattern. If you reside in hardiness zone 1-4, you need an advanced greenhouse model with high-quality insulation.
You need to ensure there is enough provision for installing an electric heating system to keep the plants healthy during the extremely cold months.
If your local area is hit by storms and hurricanes too frequently, make sure the greenhouse materials are sturdy enough to bear the extreme conditions. You must install strong panels to prevent the greenhouse from blowing away.
Likewise, a good ventilation system is essential to release extra heat during scorching summer months.
Greenhouse Accessories
The greenhouse accessories are as important as the kit itself. These elements make your greenhouse fully functional to provide the best growing environment for your plants.
When it comes to choosing the greenhouse accessories, the following are some of the equipment and installations you may need depending on the type of crops, weather conditions, and other factors:
Heating System
Install a heater in your greenhouse to keep your plants warm during colder days. The cold temperature of the winter will freeze your plants to death. So to avoid emergency situations like this, install a heating system in your greenhouse.
Pest Control
When you build a garden full of plants, pests will be crawling towards it. Once they get onto your plants, you will see your plants getting ripped day after day. So to keep these tiny creatures away from your plants, you need to have a pest control system right from day 1. You may use pest control sprays or even buy a burner to keep the pests and bugs away.
Lighting
Lighting is important during the winter season. The sunlight hardly helps your plants during cloudy days or months with shorter daytime. Your plants will crave artificial lights during that time so install a proper lighting system.
Ventilation System
In the warmer days, due to excessive heat, your plants might burn to death. To avoid situations like this, install a greenhouse fan that will continuously blow the warmth away from your plants.
As the air keeps blowing, it will continue to release the heat out of your greenhouse to maintain permissible temperature to keep the plants fresh and healthy.
Frequently Asked Questions
Even after all these reviews and step-by-step guides, you may have a ton of questions. Here are some quick faq’s to provide some information that you may be looking for
Are mini Greenhouses any good?
Mini greenhouses are designed for small spaces to get started with container plantations. They were never made to do all types of gardening. They were made for gardeners who love to grow crops during their spare time.
Mini greenhouses can also protect your plants from rust, water, pests, UV rays, extreme heat, rainfall, winds, etc., you name it. Mini greenhouses work best for seeding. You can sort out plants on different shelves and keep everything in place as well.
However, you can’t always grow large plants or keep high expectations from mini-greenhouses. They are called mini-greenhouses for a reason, you know.
What can I grow in a small greenhouse for beginners?
As a beginner, you can grow starter plants at your greenhouse. Starter plants as if easy to grow plants, it can be flowers or your kitchen herbs.
You can even start growing vegetables such as eggplants, spinach, carrots since these are easy to grow. If you are into fruits, then you can seed strawberries, tomatoes, or cucumbers. If you are into flowers, then grab some seeds of marigold, sunflowers, daisies, etc.
When you are simply starting, you wouldn’t want to go into the hard stuff because they require advanced tools and cultivation that might stress you out. So you can simply start off with the easy ones.
Is it cheaper to build or buy a greenhouse?
Every process has its own advantages and disadvantages. If you go and buy a greenhouse, then you will have an instruction and multiple features attached to it that are made by professionals. So this is a perk of buying a greenhouse.
Now, if you plan to build a greenhouse, then you’ll need to determine the materials you want to use, the size of the greenhouse, and how you want to set it up. This is a long process, and the number of items will determine the total cost of your project.
The plus point of building your own greenhouse is that you can customize it the way you want, but it’s too time-consuming.
So here’s the catch, if you stroll through a market place you can buy a cheap one, but in terms of building a greenhouse by yourself depends on what materials you use.
Where to set up your Mini Greenhouse?
You have bought a mini greenhouse because you have a small backyard, right? But a small greenhouse isn’t only for your backyard because some greenhouse can be placed indoors as well.
You can set up your greenhouse on your balcony, lawn, yard deck, or patio. Wherever you place your mini greenhouse, please avoid placing your greenhouse in an open area where it will be vulnerable and can be easily blown away by the wind.
I would suggest you place your greenhouses near a wall or a fence and position it in a way, so it doesn’t fall over.
Conclusion:
It’s worth mentioning that these greenhouse kits do not include the fancy accessories that you may need to get started. Needless to say, they have a lot to offer to help you in many ways as a gardener. I have reviewed seven different greenhouse kits for small spaces. I hope this piece of information will help find a suitable one for yourself.
But before you buy a greenhouse, I would recommend that read the buying guide properly, so you know how to determine which one you need because once you order a greenhouse, there is no turning back.
