to get a greeenhouse or polytunnel for spring 2013... help?

Stressica

so yeah i want to grow even more food.... this year we did spuds, cabbage, turnips, onions, broccoli and lettuce and few heads of cauliflower, but i want to do peppers, tomatpes, cucumber etc next year,,,,

im in a fairly windy area (coast) although the yard would be quote sheltered... so dont know which.. not looking for anything huge perhapos 3m x 3m..

and also this one in argos i saw, might do a temp job, what ye think? /:
http://www.argos.ie/static/Product/partNumber/7201998/c_1/1%7Ccategory_root%7CGarden+and+DIY%7C14418702/c_2/3%7C19285823%7CSheds%2C+greenhouses+and+storage%7C14418827/c_3/4%7Ccat_14418827%7CGreenhouses%7C14418830.htm

planetX

For starters that's a terrible price - hardware stores had them for less than half that, and at this time of year they should be even cheaper.
If your garden is not extremely sheltered I think even at half price you'll be throwing that money away. Those things fly away in the wind, it'll end up in the treetops.

pwurple

I toying with the two myself. Glasshouse is more long term, poly more short term.

Polytunnels rip and break down in sunlight and wind over time. You can only repair them so many times before you end up replacing them. But they are easy and cheap to put up, simple to irrigate with a hose, and if your needs change you haven't wasted a whole pile.

Glass houses are more expensive, and hard to reloate if you ever want to shift them elsewhere. But, they are easier to do raised beds in, and my back likes raised beds. They do look better too, if it's in an area you look at out a window.

To try to reduce costs I am keeping in touch with my local double glazing people, and thinking about using some reclaimed single glazed windows from old houses for a greenhouse. That's a project and a half though, which will take a bit of thought, foundation, plumbing for a tap, brickwork and finding someone to use their mad carpentry skills on it. You could have a tunnel up this weekend.

Macy0161

Not sure I really agree with the assessment of polytunnels being short term. The proper poly tunnel, eh, poly, normally comes with a 5 year warranty, and in most cases lasts longer than that.

The things that can damage the poly, like high winds, can also blow glass out of greenhouse frames, and sometimes buckle the frames of them too. And if anything poly is more resistant to actual breaking from debris/ footballs.

I have raised beds in my poly tunnel - 2 down each side, and one "island" down the middle (which is split into two beds). I'm not convinced rotation really works in such a small area, but I try to rotate anyway. Planting in the soil does help with watering requirements.

If you're in an exposed area, you can upgrade from the standard polytunnel - I got thicker tubes, crop bars, braces, base plates, and I went with the retaining system for the plastic, rather than burying it (supposedly you get a better tension on the plastic this way, which is a big factor in wind damage). To be honest, it'd be a total pain to move - i'd rather move a greenhouse!

Having said all that, in an ideal world I'd have both a greenhouse and a polytunnel. They both do have their advantages over the other. For me, in an exposed area at altitude, growing space for my buck was the main factor. I was looking at greenhouses above the bog standard because of the exposure, safety glass etc, and I would've got a tiny greenhouse compared to the polytunnel I got.

Just on the one linked - everything I've ever read suggests they don't stand up to winds. If you were looking for cheaper options, google should give you plans for DIY polytunnels using water/ gas pipes, or there are plans to make greenhouses out of 3 by 2 using polytunnel plastic or corrugated plastic as a cover. I probably have links to both somewhere, if needed.

redser7

Those argos jobs are affectionately known as blowaways. If you are pinned to your collar they will do you for a 2-3 years. But you need to take them down during winter, treat them very gently and brace and weigh them down very well with blocks or slabs.

What's your budget and how much space do you have/want to grow in? Those are the ultimate factors in deciding between greenhouse or tunnel I find. You will get much much more space for much less with a tunnel.

Here's mine done for 200 euro.
http://www.boards.ie/vbulletin/showthread.php?t=2056374212

zombiepaw

There are a few options on this page, not sure how sturdy some of them are
plant-protection