APRIL 2020 • LONGISLANDPRESS.COM 49
INSIDE JOB
SPRING SEEDING BUILDING A GREENHOUSE
BY ARLENE GROSS
If you’re an avid gardener, you’ll want
to get a jumpstart on planting for the
spring and summer seasons. And
there’s no better way to start than with
your very own greenhouse.
The first step in designing a greenhouse
is figuring out where to put it, notes Andrew
M. Simko, owner of Garden Under
Glass, a Dix Hills-based company that
builds the foundation, assembles, and
glazes greenhouses.
LOCATION, LOCATION
You’ll have to assess which part of your
yard gets the most sunlight. Typically,
it’s either a southern, eastern or western
exposure, but it often depends on
how much shade there is due to tree
cover.
“You don’t want to put it on the north
side of the house because you do most
of your growing in the winter time and
with the sun low in the sky, the house
would shade it for the whole day, so you
would not really get any sunshine into
it,” explains Simko.
Since most gardeners work in greenhouses
in the winter, the structures
are typically attached to the house, so
you don’t have to go outside to work in
them.
“So you’d like a door to go right from
the house into your greenhouse, if it’s
possible,” says Simko.
But if your house faces south and the
back faces north, you might need to
place a detached greenhouse in the
backyard, so the house wouldn’t
shade it.
MATERIALS/SHAPES/SIZES
Glass is the least expensive glazing material
and costs less than plastic, which
doesn’t hold up over time.
“The sun deteriorates plastic rather
rapidly,” notes Simko.
Greenhouses come in various shapes,
from lean-to, which looks like a shed
roof that slopes down to a vertical
wall, or gable, which attaches to the
house at one end, or curved eave or
straight eave, both of which look similar
to a house.
A greenhouse can run anywhere from
4 feet wide by 6 feet long to 25 feet
wide by 75 feet long, and anywhere in
between, says Simko.
“It depends on how much space you
have, how big your budget is, and what
you’re going to grow,” says Simko. “That
determines the size.”
PLANTING THE SEED
The greenhouse is built on a concrete
foundation that’s dug about 30 to 36
inches below grade.
“That’s to get under the frost line, so
when the ground freezes it doesn’t push
the foundation up and break the glass,”
Simko explains.
You place the structure on a concrete
block about 8 inches above ground so
that you can open the door without
worrying about shoveling snow.
Above the concrete, the floor consists
of 4 inches of gravel and, between the
benches, flagstone walking paths. The
gravel floor prevents fallen seeds from
germinating into weeds and plants.
Garden Under Glass will also supply
custom-sized benches, windows, and
ridge vents that can be automated with
a motor and thermostat. In addition, the
distributor will install suspended misting
nozzle water systems controlled
by a time clock, thermostatically controlled
gas, propane or electric heating
systems, and shades that can be used
during the warmer months
ALMOST MAINTENANCE FREE
The greenhouse, which is made from
aluminum and glass, requires no maintenance,
says Simko.
“Maybe once a year, if you want to get a
pressure washer and wash the outside
of the glass a little bit, that’s about it,”
he explains. “It’s really maintenance
free.”
Greenhouses
attached to the house
are better for winter
gardening, but detached
greenhouses avoid shade
from south-facing
homes.
When choosing
greenhouse
windows, glass
lasts longer than
plastic.
/LONGISLANDPRESS.COM
