So you think you want to buy a greenhouse? This very question is on a lot of peoples minds these days; mainly because growing your own food has become an appealing option to buying at the local store for health and safety reasons. However, you need to know a few things before you commit to a greenhouse to have a good experience.

The first question is; does size matter? When it comes to buying a green house the answer is yes. The size you buy will depend on several factors including the space you have available for a greenhouse; what you intend on growing in your greenhouse and whether you are using the greenhouse as a season extender or year-round grow house.

Lets talk about the space in the yard itself. If all you have is space that is covered by shade, this is not an optimal space for a green house. You can get away with combination of direct sunlight and shade as long as the direct sunlight hits your greenhouse at least 4 hours per day. The ideal location is one where the grow house sits in direct sunlight all day long, especially in the winter months and in the northern regions of the country.

If you are making out your seed orders for annual flowers, you will want to include those that are sure to produce results. It is too bad that all of our colleges and universities cant have the extensive annual flower trials that are seen at Penn State. But this is done on a smaller scale in many states.

Before you order, why not check out your own state agricultural college or agricultural experiment station to see if they have tried out any of these annuals. They will probably have a list of varieties they recommend for your particular locality.

Do you have a cold frame? If not, you dont know what you are missing. If each person who has a new home would put in a cold frame 3 x 6 feet, and then in addition to it have a little bed 3 x 10 feet in which to grow plants, his yard would soon be the envy of all his friends and neighbors.