Greenhouses for Beginners: Heating, Ventilation and Humidity
Growing plants indoors seems easy when you grow a plant or two, but things get complicated when you start building a greenhouse. There are some environmental details that you have to take into account in order to offer your plants the right growing conditions. Since you will be growing plants in the greenhouse all year round, you will have to find the best solutions that will keep your plants thriving. Here are some tips for ensuring the optimal temperature and air humidity for your plants.
Heating the greenhouse
The plants must grow in a warm environment but the temperatures must not exceed a level that will cause them to become too dry. In the winter, the environment inside the greenhouse gets very cold so you must use heaters to increase the temperatures. You have to be careful which type of heater you choose because most of them dry the air too much and take from the plants’ moisture. An infrared heater is the best alternative because it create a warmth similar to the one created by the sun, so the plants will enjoy a warm and pleasant air. The heat emitted by the infrared heater doesn’t dry the plants like other heaters do, which promotes the infrared heater for use in the greenhouse.
The ventilation in the greenhouse
While the cold can hurt the plants, the warmth doesn’t benefit them either, so you must make sure the air inside the greenhouse will be cool during the hot season. For hot days of summer, when the air gets extremely hot, you can keep your plants cool with a tower fan that is more efficient in ventilating the air than other types of fans. The secret is in the tall shape that ensures a wider air distribution, which will circulate the air inside the greenhouse. This way, you will ensure the proper ventilation that will keep the plants from drying.
The humidity in the greenhouse
The air humidity level inside the greenhouse is essential in keeping the plants healthy throughout the year. For this, you will need to resort to the help of two devices namely, the humidifier and the dehumidifier. When the air humidity is too high, the dehumidifier will help you adjust it to a lower level that will not soak the plants and will keep them dry enough not to rotten. The humidifier, on the other hand, adds moisture to the air in case it gets too dry so the plants will enjoy the right amount of air moisture. With the help of these two devices, your greenhouse will be the perfect growing environment for all your plants.