Summer is a busy and delightful time for gardeners everywhere. From the sweet fragrance of flowers in bloom to the quiet anticipation of tomorrow’s harvest, gardening can be a rewarding hobby and lucrative business.
More than ever, with the advent of newer, lightweight materials and smaller design scales, people everywhere are discovering the joy of working in a greenhouse. A greenhouse provides shelter from the weather for you and your plants.
For the traditionalist, however, the proverbial glass house is the greenhouse of choice. The keyword there is: house. Anytime you have a number of plants in an enclosed area, there is plenty of debris from falling leaves, soil spills, and other clutter that requires some cleanup. But in preparation for winter, many greenhouse growers designate fall as the perfect time of year for a thorough house cleaning and maintenance of the entire facility.
Greenhouse maintenance is essential to ensuring a clean working environment that keeps you and your plants healthy and safe. A few preventive measures today can save you money and headaches tomorrow.
Words of Wisdom
Most of us are familiar with the Chinese phrase “hung ho”. The words conjure up images of someone or some group over-the-top with boundless energy, all fired-up and working feverishly like robots or ants. That is a misperception of the true meaning of those words. In the Chinese language, gung means work while ho means harmony or together. So the translation essentially means, “To work in harmony.”
So let us get to work.
Growing Panes
Many greenhouse gardeners prefer to do their fall cleaning on a breezy, warm day before the temperature drops for the season. If you are able, set all your plants outside for the indoor cleaning process. Be sure not to place sun-sensitive plants in direct sunlight.
Remember Before You Start
- Be sure the electricity is turned off
- Unplug all cords and electrical appliances
- Cover the wall sockets
For the interior glass, use a garden hose with a jet-spray setting, or whatever works best for your house, to rinse all the windows down with water. The orange, coppers, and golds of autumn fall into the cool spectrum of light category and are less intense. Plants thrive on this late-season sunlight, so be sure to wash well any windows that are dirty or have film over them. Tougher dirt may require a soapy, wet sponge or cloth. Depending on your situation, you may need to use a damp mop to reach the higher panes if necessary. An extendable painter’s roller pole can also be useful in reaching those higher panes
Be sure to inspect each glass and replace any that are cracked or broken. A word of caution: when cleaning, do not stand directly beneath any glass windows. Stand a few panes back from the panel you are cleaning in case the glass should break. You don’t want to be under falling glass.
Additionally, check the window frames for any dirt that can harbor parasites. A toothbrush or those white plastic plant labels work really well for removing any grime that may have accumulated in the frames at the joints over the summer. You can blast out the loosened dirt with the hose water.
Look for signs of mold or mildew that can begin to grow wherever moisture and warmth are constantly present. If any mold is discovered, mix a solution of one part bleach to ten parts water and spray directly on the infected area. Aside from the mold, this bleaching rinse kills any eggs, parasites, and microorganisms that may be present. People have also reported having success against white mold using pure isopropyl alcohol from a spray bottle.
Next, you will also need to wipe down all work surfaces with a disinfectant.
If you have cement or tile floors, and even wood, rinse them down thoroughly as well. With a gravel floor, you can replace the old gravel with new.
When you have finished cleaning and disinfecting, it is important to rinse everything really well with plain water before bringing the plants back inside. But be careful; you don’t want them coming into contact with any type of dripping cleaning solution. Bleach especially. In fact, while you have them all gathered outside, this would be an excellent time to give your plants the once-over and cull any plants that appear sickly or have possible parasites, as well as removing the dead or dying leaves. You don’t want to bring back into your greenhouse what you just spent so much time eliminating.
Keeping the greenhouse doors open on a warm, breezy day will help it to dry faster while providing some fresh air as a bonus.
Inside Out
Outside cleaning is somewhat like inside cleaning, sans the disinfectant. Find an effective pressure setting with a hose, spray the outside glass in a back-and-forth motion starting at the top of the greenhouse and rinsing down.
Another reason for choosing a windy day to do this on is that the wind acts as a blow dryer and dries the windows faster, helping to eliminate some extra work and the streaking often left behind by paper towels or cloths.
The beauty of having a greenhouse is nearly self-explanatory. Aside from their simple, crystal beauty, greenhouses are an effective way to control your plants’ environment and protect them from a host of threats. The downside, however (if there is one), is that greenhouses are the perfect breeding ground for all manner of pests which are harmful to the very plants you are trying to protect. Warm and moist with often open doors and an eclectic salad bar, what plant predator could resist?
Your greenhouse can harbor mites, aphids, or any number of microorganisms, which is why a strong maintenance cleanup is required every fall and each spring.
According to the experts, however, just as important is keeping up with the task on a regular basis. That is to say, staying on top of the cleaning and culling on a regular basis is a proactive step we should take to not only provide a clean working environment, but to keep the plants healthier by reducing the risk of contamination by infected soil or a sickly plant.
When your greenhouse is clean, your plants are healthier, and you create a more pleasant and harmonious environment in which to work, contributing to your own peace of mind.
There is peace in order. When our house is in order—even a greenhouse—we are working in harmony with our environment and are truly gung ho.