Plastic in all its many forms has replaced glass in the garden. Not only is it safer, an important consideration when there are children around, but it has better thermal properties and often transmits more light.
What you are trying to achieve with greenhouse plastic is a suitable micro climate for your plants. You protect them from the rigors of the outside environment. You protect them from frost, low temperatures, wind and rain.
In a windy location, a gardener can use greenhouse plastic to protect plants from wind-induced desiccation. In a temperate but humid climate, well-ventilated greenhouses will allow alpine that prefers cool dry conditions and good light to thrive. In northern latitudes, the same materials can be used for tropical and subtropical plants or to give vigorous plants an early start.
The advantage of modern plastics is that the same greenhouse technology can be widely applied in the garden. There is no need to limit yourself to a traditional greenhouse structure. You can use greenhouse plastic in a temporary structure that covers part of your garden for a few months of the year. Similarly, you can use plastic to build an elaborate permanent greenhouse.
The most widely used plastics are PVC, polyethylene, and co polymers. Each of these types of plastics has its own characteristics and uses. They all cut easily and don't shatter which was the problem with the glass in the greenhouse. This allows them to be used in innovative structures or customized to fit challenging spaces.
When selecting plastic for a greenhouse, it is important to choose a high-quality material that will withstand wear and tear. Low-grade plastic will deteriorate when exposed to the environment and become increasingly opaque. The plastic used in the greenhouse must transmit light well.
Some plastics may need to be replaced after a year. So choose plastic specifically designed for use in greenhouses. It will last longer.
The plastic that will be used in the greenhouse must be resistant to degradation by UV rays. UV rays weaken many plastics and will tear easily over time.
If you want to use the plastic sheeting for the long term, choose a reinforced type. This is especially important if wind damage is an issue. Instead, use hard plastic. Double-wall poly carbonate is an ideal choice for a durable structure. It has the added advantage of providing insulation because air is trapped between the two walls.
When used in a traditional greenhouse, double-walled poly carbonate looks like glass but will reduce your heating bills. It is a kind of instant double glazing. It reduced the cost of greenhouse cultivation and made the original hot house more accessible to the hobby gardener. It is no longer expensive to heat a greenhouse to high temperatures in winter.
Plastic has really revolutionized greenhouse construction. Nowhere is this more true than in flexible plastic sheeting. This material made it possible to grow crops such as strawberries all year round, even in northern latitudes. Polyunsaturate have become widespread in commercial gardening.
Commercial technology itself is becoming increasingly available to hobbyists. It is possible to purchase the same steel frame, plastic sheeting that the professionals use. Tires produce a self-contained tunnel structure on which plastic is stretched and secured with special clamps. A range of sizes are available and smaller sizes are ideal for hobbyist use.
A tunnel of this type allows a large area to be covered relatively inexpensively. An entire vegetable plot can be covered in this manner very economically.
Perhaps the main advantage of this structure is its temporary nature. Everything can be taken apart and taken away or stored away until next year. The hobbyist then has the advantage of a greenhouse without having to dedicate part of the plot to a structure that is only used entirely for a short part of the year.
The tunnel-shaped steel frame encased in plastic isn't the prettiest thing. Many people prefer to keep it away from home. But it offers enormous and largely unexplored possibilities for ornamental themes. A double layer of plastic will provide the insulation. The temperatures can then be raised to hothouse levels and an array of tropical plants can be grown.
It is possible to create a natural tropical environment in this way. A small water feature will raise the humidity and allow plants to grow in a way that they can't grow in the dry environment of a home. Fish and other creatures can be added to complete the tropical scene.
With modern plastics, you can create a greenhouse environment that was previously out of most people's budget.
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