Philip Schmidt - Black & Decker The complete guide to greenhouses & garden projects: greenhouses, cold frames, compost bins, trellises, planting beds, potting benches & more

The Complete Guide to

GREENHOUSES & GARDEN PROJECTS

Greenhouses Cold Frames Compost Bins Trellises
Planting Beds Potting Benches & More

Copyright 2011, 2011
Creative Publishing international, Inc.
400 First Avenue North, Suite 300
Minneapolis, Minnesota 55401
1-800-328-0590
www.creativepub.com
All rights reserved

Printed in China

10 9 8 7 6 5 4 3 2 1

Digital edition: 978-1-61059-017-4

Softcover edition: 978-1-58923-599-1

Library of Congress Cataloging-in-Publication Data

The Complete Guide To Greenhouses and Garden Projects : Greenhouses, Cold Frames, Compost Bins, Garden Carts, Planter Beds, Potting Benches and More.
pages cm. -- (The Complete Guide)
At head of title: Black & Decker.
Includes index.
Summary: Includes plans and step-by-step instructions for building several greenhouses and other garden projects. Projects suitable to homes and landscapes in urban, suburban and rural settings--Provided by publisher.
ISBN-13: 978-1-58923-599-1 (soft cover)
ISBN-10: 1-58923-599-1 (soft cover)
1. Greenhouses--Design and construction--Amateurs manuals. 2. Garden structures--Design and construction--Amateurs manuals. I. Black & Decker Corporation (Towson, Md.) II. Title. III. Series.
SB416.C64 2011
690.8924--dc22

2010042930

The Complete Guide to Greenhouses & Garden Projects
Created by: The Editors of Creative Publishing international, Inc., in cooperation with Black & Decker.
Black & Decker is a trademark of The Black & Decker Corporation and is used under license.

President/CEO: Ken Fund

Home Improvement Group

Publisher: Bryan Trandem
Managing Editor: Tracy Stanley
Senior Editor: Mark Johanson

Creative Director: Michele Lanci-Altomare
Art Direction/Design: Brad Springer, Jon Simpson, James Kegley

Lead Photographer: Joel Schnell
Set Builder: James Parmeter
Production Managers: Laura Hokkanen, Linda Halls

Page Layout Artist: Danielle Smith
Tech Editor: Chris Marshall
Photographer: Richard Fleischman
Shop Help: Charles Boldt
Proofreader: Ingrid Sundstrom Lundegaard

Author: Philip Schmidt
Contributing Writers: Pat Price, Nora Richter Greer
Illustrations: Robert Leana II, Michael Prendergast

NOTICE TO READERS

For safety, use caution, care, and good judgment when following the procedures described in this book. The publisher and Black & Decker cannot assume responsibility for any damage to property or injury to persons as a result of misuse of the information provided.

The techniques shown in this book are general techniques for various applications. In some instances, additional techniques not shown in this book may be required. Always follow manufacturers instructions included with products, since deviating from the directions may void warranties. The projects in this book vary widely as to skill levels required: some may not be appropriate for all do-it-yourselfers, and some may require professional help.

Consult your local building department for information on building permits, codes, and other laws as they apply to your project.

The Complete Guide to Greenhouses & Garden Projects

You hold this book in your hands because youre someone who likes to work and play in the dirt. Or at least you like the thought of it, and youre looking for inspiration to help you get out there. In either case, youve come to the right place. Like a garden itself, this book is filled with diverse bounty. It is a compendium of information, advice, projects, and nitty-gritty details to help you satisfy your passion to grow things.

If youre already an avid gardener and are thinking about taking your hobby to the next level, the Greenhouses chapter is the place to start. Surely youve dreamt of bending the rules of nature just a bit, starting spring a little earlier, extending summer into October, or maybe creating a tropical paradise in the dead of winter. Even the simplest of greenhouse structures can expand the possibilities of what and when you can grow, and they make it much more fun and comfortable to garden in (what used to be called) the off season.

Todays greenhouses are widely available in a variety of styles and sizes to fit just about any budget. And you always have the option of building your own custom house or assembling one from a kit. Projects for building the most popular types of hobby greenhouses are included here, along with answers to the essential greenhouse questions, like what type of structure is right for your needs, where and how to build it, what materials to use, and how to maintain it.

While many attractive greenhouses are available for sale in kit form, most would only blend in with your home style if you happen to live in a drive-thru restaurant. If youd like to have the advantages of a fully functioning greenhouse but you want to maintain the architectural style of your house, then youll want to follow along the custom Victorian greenhouse project. There, youll find a complete, start-to-finish demonstration of a custom lean-to greenhouse with Victorian styling to match the Queen Anne house to which it is attached. Even the door and the windows are made from scratch using ordinary building materials.

And no matter what type of gardening you do, the Garden Projects chapter is bound to have something you can really use: planting beds, a compost bin, trellises, potting benches...you name it. Best of all, every design uses simple, inexpensive raw materials that you work with your hands into something thats much more than the sum of its parts. Sounds a lot like gardening, doesnt it?

Enter a greenhouse and youve crossed the threshold of an extraordinary place. Youre greeted by a profusion of flowers and the rich textures of foliage. Sweet fragrances mix with the earthy smell of soil. Diffused light shines through the misty air. In the silence, you can almost hear the plants growing. Traffic rumbles by unnoticed, and the distractions of the real world seem miles away.

Once the province of the wealthy, greenhouse gardening is now practiced by almost two million American homeowners, according to the American Horticultural Society. Youll find greenhouses on city rooftops and tucked into suburban gardens. No two are identical, even if theyre constructed from the same kit; the contents of a greenhouse make it unique. Some house vegetables (tomatoes and cucumbers), some shelter tropicals (scheffleras and dieffenbachias), and some are home to flats of germinating begonias.