Buying a Greenhouse? What You Need to Know Before You Buy
There’s something exciting about deciding to buy a greenhouse. Before it ever arrives, you can already picture what will happen inside it, seedlings in late winter, tomatoes growing before they could safely go into the garden, flowers protected from a late frost, and fresh greens growing when the rest of the backyard has gone dormant.
Then you start shopping.
Suddenly, there are decisions about greenhouse size, materials, ventilation, flooring, heating, cooling, assembly and delivery. If you’ve never owned a greenhouse before, it can be difficult to know which of those things will actually matter once you start growing.
After years of gardening and growing in my own Yoderbilt Greenhouse, I’ve learned that choosing a greenhouse is less about buying a building and more about deciding how you want to garden.
If you’re thinking about buying a greenhouse, here’s what I would consider before making the investment.
Start With How You Want to Use Your Greenhouse
Before comparing greenhouse sizes or prices, start with a simpler question:
What do you want your greenhouse to do for you?
Maybe you want to start seeds earlier in spring, protect plants from late freezes or overwinter flowers you would otherwise replace every year. You may be dreaming about tomatoes and cucumbers, fresh lettuce in winter, or simply having a dedicated place to pot plants and garden regardless of the weather.
And don’t be surprised if the answer changes.
My greenhouse has a different job depending on the season. Winter can mean fresh greens, lettuce and herbs. Spring brings seed starting, tomatoes, peppers, cucumbers and flowers. I also use it to overwinter plants like geraniums, petunias, ferns, poinsettias and topiaries.
What begins as a place to start a few seeds can quickly become an entirely different way of gardening.
When buying your first greenhouse, don’t think only about what you want to grow today. Think about what you might want to do with the space several years from now.
How Much Greenhouse Space Do You Really Need?
Choosing the right greenhouse size is important, and square footage on paper can be deceiving.
Some of that space has to belong to you.
You need room to walk, water and work. You’ll probably want gardening tables or benches and shelving. Then there are pots, seed trays, soil, tools and supplies, not to mention how much room mature tomatoes and cucumbers can occupy.
My first Yoderbilt was a 12×16 Legacy. Today, I have a 12×28.
That doesn’t mean everyone needs a large greenhouse. Our 12×16 remains one of our most popular sizes for good reason—it provides substantial usable growing space without overwhelming many backyards.
Think about usable space rather than dimensions alone. Picture your greenhouse at the busiest point of the growing season, not when it’s empty.
If you’re comparing sizes, our greenhouse-size guide goes much deeper into choosing the right footprint for your backyard and growing plans.
Choose a Greenhouse for Your Climate
Your USDA growing zone is helpful, but greenhouse gardening involves your entire year.
Here in Arkansas, winter cold matters—but summer heat deserves just as much attention.
A greenhouse captures solar energy incredibly well. That’s wonderful on a cold February afternoon. It’s a different story on a sunny July afternoon when it’s already hot outside.
My greenhouse has fans, automatic ventilation and an exhaust system. During our hottest months, I use 70% Aluminet shade cloth to help manage the intense summer sun. In winter, I use oil-filled radiators with propane available as backup when needed.
A gardener in Minnesota will have different priorities than someone in Arkansas, Texas or Oklahoma.
Instead of simply asking, “Is this a good greenhouse?” ask:
Is this a good greenhouse for my climate?
Don’t Underestimate Greenhouse Ventilation
People shopping for a greenhouse often immediately wonder how they’ll heat it.
There’s another question that’s just as important:
How will you cool it?
Even when outdoor temperatures feel comfortable, direct sunlight can send greenhouse temperatures climbing quickly.
Ventilation should be part of your buying decision from the beginning. Look at how the greenhouse releases hot air and moves fresh air through the space. Vents, windows, doors, exhaust fans and circulation fans can all play a role.
Automatic ventilation is especially useful because greenhouse temperatures don’t wait until you’re home to rise.
In warmer climates, shade cloth can also be invaluable. It doesn’t replace ventilation, but the two can work together to make summer greenhouse growing much more manageable.
Look Beyond the Pretty Pictures
Greenhouses come in everything from lightweight plastic-covered structures to aluminum kits, traditional glass houses, wood-framed greenhouses and polycarbonate models.
When comparing them, look beyond the photographs.
Ask what the frame is made from, what type and thickness polycarbonate is used, what flooring is included, and which ventilation features come standard.
One material you’ll frequently see is twin-wall polycarbonate. Rather than a single thin sheet, twin-wall polycarbonate contains an air space between its layers, combining durability and light transmission with added insulating properties.
Yoderbilt Legacy and Traditional Greenhouses use 8 mm twin-wall polycarbonate, along with pressure-treated deck-board flooring and built-in ventilation features.
Whatever greenhouse you’re considering, compare the actual construction specifications.
A greenhouse lives outside year after year. How it’s built matters.
Know What You’re Actually Paying For
Two greenhouses with similar dimensions can have dramatically different prices because you may not actually be comparing the same product.
One price might represent a greenhouse kit in boxes. Flooring could be additional. You may need to build a foundation, add ventilation or pay separately for shipping and assembly.
Before comparing greenhouse prices, determine what it will actually cost to get from “I bought a greenhouse” to “I’m ready to put plants inside it.”
Consider the structure, glazing, flooring, ventilation, doors, delivery, assembly and site preparation. Then think about features you may eventually want, such as shelving, gardening tables, fans, shade cloth, electricity or heat.
Greenhouse Kit or Fully Assembled Greenhouse?
A greenhouse kit can be a great choice for someone who enjoys building things and has the time, tools and help available.
Just understand what you’re signing up for.
Depending on the greenhouse, assembly can mean preparing a foundation, sorting components and hardware, squaring the structure, assembling the frame, installing panels, hanging doors and vents, and anchoring everything correctly. And if you have questions, how is their Customer Service?
If you’re going to hire someone to assemble it, include that labor in your price comparison.
Yoderbilt takes a different approach.
Our greenhouses are delivered fully assembled.
They’re handcrafted in the USA and arrive as a finished greenhouse rather than a collection of boxes and parts waiting to become one.
For me, that’s a significant difference. I love working in my greenhouse. I don’t particularly need the experience of building one.
Neither option is right for everyone. But before buying a greenhouse kit based on the initial price, decide whether building the greenhouse is actually part of the experience you want.
Think About Delivery Before You Order
If you’re considering a fully assembled greenhouse, walk outside and look at your property as a delivery route.
How will the greenhouse get from the road to its permanent location?
Look for gates, fences, trees, utility lines, roof overhangs, slopes, narrow spaces and tight turns. Pay attention to both width and overhead clearance.
For Yoderbilt delivery, an 8-foot-wide greenhouse generally requires at least a 9-foot-wide opening, while a 12-foot-wide greenhouse needs at least 13 feet with a straight approach. Turns and obstacles can require additional clearance.
It’s not the most exciting part of greenhouse shopping, but it’s important.
Prepare the Space Before Your Greenhouse Arrives
Your greenhouse needs a stable, level location with appropriate drainage.
Depending on the greenhouse, your property and manufacturer requirements, that could mean properly prepared ground, a level gravel pad, concrete or another suitable base.
Also think about convenience.
Where is your water source? Will you eventually want electricity for fans, lighting or heat? Is the greenhouse somewhere you’ll actually want to walk to on a cold January morning? A greenhouse becomes part of your daily routine. The easier it is to use, the more you’ll use it.
Buy for the Gardener You May Become
If there’s one thing I’d tell someone buying their first greenhouse, it’s this:
Don’t buy only for the gardener you are today.
Gardening interests have a way of expanding once you have a protected growing space.
Maybe you start with seed trays. Then you discover fresh winter lettuce. Then you’re overwintering geraniums instead of replacing them. Then come tomatoes, peppers, herbs and hanging baskets.
Ask whether the greenhouse you’re considering can evolve with you. Can you change the interior layout? Add tables or shelving? Add fans or electricity later? Is there room to try something new?
And don’t overlook appearance.
A backyard greenhouse becomes part of your home and landscape. Choose something you’ll still be happy to see outside your window years from now.
A Greenhouse Becomes More Than a Place to Grow
This is the part that’s difficult to understand until you’ve owned one.
A greenhouse can help you start earlier, grow later, protect plants from unpredictable weather and overwinter plants that otherwise wouldn’t survive. But somewhere along the way, it can become something else.
Mine has been a place to grow food for my family, start flowers and save favorite plants from one season to the next. It’s been productive, overflowing and occasionally a complete mess.
It’s also been somewhere I’ve walked simply because I needed a few quiet minutes.
There’s something about stepping into a greenhouse in winter and seeing green things growing when everything outside looks dormant. You can’t put that on a greenhouse specification sheet.
But it’s one of the reasons choosing the right greenhouse matters.
Is a Greenhouse Worth It?
For someone who loves to garden, a greenhouse can completely change the growing year.
Instead of gardening only when the weather cooperates, you have opportunities to start earlier in spring, continue later into fall, overwinter plants and—in the right setup—grow during winter.
The best greenhouse isn’t necessarily the biggest or most elaborate.
It’s the one that fits your property, climate, budget and the way you want to garden.
Take your time. Ask questions. Think beyond your first growing season.
And choose a greenhouse you’ll still be excited to walk into years from now.
Ready to Start Growing?
Buying a greenhouse is an investment in much more than a structure.
It’s longer growing seasons. Fresh food. Flowers. Seed starting. A place to experiment. And maybe, eventually, your favorite place in the backyard.
Yoderbilt Greenhouses are handcrafted in the USA and delivered fully assembled, taking the construction project out of greenhouse ownership so you can focus on what happens next.
Explore Yoderbilt Greenhouses and find the size and style that fits the way you want to grow.
