Get growing in your greenhouse this month

A greenhouse is great for getting a head start on growing fruit, veg and ornamentals before the season is in full swing.

Greenhouses are typically around 4°C warmer than the temperature outside, allowing you to extend the growing seasons as well as providing protection from the late frosts that we so often experience in the UK at this time of year.

To help you get growing this month, Cultivar Greenhouses shares some top tips on what to grow in your greenhouse to get ready for spring.  

Get prepared

Before you get your fingers green, it’s important to ensure you have everything you need for a successful growing season. Assess what tools you may need to invest in or replace, making sure you have the essentials such as a hand trowel, fork, secateurs, and gardening gloves, as well as a seed tray and peat-free compost.

In the greenhouse itself, accessories like a cucumber ladder or grow bar are a must if you are a keen tomato and cucumber grower. The addition of integrated shelving and staging will allow you to grow vertically and create more space for seedlings to thrive, while a rainwater diverter and water butt will allow you to water crops sustainably.

Make sure you have given your greenhouse glass a thorough clean, as sunlight is still in short supply at this time of year and this will ensure your seedlings get as much sun as possible.

What to grow

There is an abundance of vegetable seeds and sets you can start growing in your greenhouse ready for a spring harvest. Starting off seedlings in your greenhouse will help to develop stronger and healthier plants ready for planting out, come spring. Here are just a few vegetables you can sow in March:

• Onions, shallots and garlic
• Microgreens such as basil, chives, parsley and kale
• Carrots
• Herbs
• Chitting potatoes
• Aubergines
• Peas
• Leeks

Growing flowers in the greenhouse allows you to grow a wider variety of flowers throughout the year, as well as get ahead with your spring flowers. Now is the perfect time to start sowing seeds and planting cuttings ready to transition outside when the weather begins to warm up to create colourful beds and borders. These are just a few flowers you can grow in your greenhouse this month:

• Cosmos
• Sweet peas
• Salvias
• Lillies
• Eucomis
• Hardy geraniums
• Japanese anemones
• Chrysanthemums

Tips and tricks

The weather throughout March is inevitably still quite cold, with the chance of frost. Some crops and flowers will require sealing in a plastic bag or placing under glass to help with germination while the weather is still on the cool side. If the weather drops considerably colder, placing fleece over your plants and veggies will help protect them from the drop in temperature overnight.

Keeping fresh air circulating in the greenhouse throughout March is also important to prevent rot and fungal infections. Ventilate your growing space on dry days by opening vents or the door and keep closed on damp and foggy days. Cultivar Greenhouses feature an innovative automatic two-level ventilation system to create a unique chimney effect and produce maximum airflow for your plants.

If you’re looking to invest in a greenhouse to elevate your growing efforts this season, Cultivar Greenhouses offer superior structures made from sustainable Accoya wood and aluminium, available in Victorian and Modern styles in a range of sizes to suit your space.  

Find out more about Cultivar Greenhouses and discover more growing tips at www.cultivargreenhouses.co.uk