One of the most obvious things you are going to have to include if you are truly going to have your own homestead is a garden in some form or other. That garden can take on any number of forms. It can be something tiny for just yourself. It can be several acres to feed a large group, and even potentially sell at the local Farmers' Market for a little bit of extra income. It can be traditional, hydroponic, aeroponic, or aquaponic. But the most important thing of all is to make sure to plant according to your climate. Unless, of course, you want to include a greenhouse. Your greenhouse can be every bit as creative and unique as your house, itself. You can even have it as part of your house. Think of an old fashioned Victorian observatory. Some of the first images that pop into my head when I think of this type of greenhouse are from movies like "Practical Magic", "The Addams Family" or the 1999 remake of "The Haunting". That observatory was absolutely stunning!
I'm not going to go into a big post on what to grow, or different types of gardens and gardening. I just wanted to cover some of the different types of greenhouses that you could very easily include into the overall design of your homestead. There are many different types. I've already mentioned the Victorian type. That is one that would be built right onto the house. In addition to the Victorian, there are also other ways for a greenhouse to be incorporated into the actual house. For example, if you were to decide to build an earthship or something similar, the greenhouse is built right onto the front of the house, generally stretching the entire length of the home. There are also newer ideas where people are taking a normal, average house, and then enclosing the entire structure inside one big, massive greenhouse.
There are also the traditional stand alone types of greenhouses. These are the ones that can be something as simple as a frame of pvc pipes with plastic draped around the posts. Or, have you ever thought about building a greenhouse from recycled bottles? There are plans out there that tell you how to do just that. If you are looking for a way to save money on your build, and aesethetics are not your major concern, this could be a great little option. Then, of course, you could always add windows to the list of things to hunt for when scavenging the landfill or construction sites, and use those to build your greenhouse.
The final option I'd like to throw out there is the idea of a walipini, or an underground greenhouse. The idea here is that an area is dug out that goes below the frost line. The walls of the area are the earth, herself. Then you simply place a type of plastic sheating over the roof area. This will allow the ease of growing yearround.
As you can see, there are many options to think about when pondering a greenhouse. It can be as simple or as elaborate as you wish. Be sure to consider all of your options. And whatever you do, don't forget to think about any furr babies you may have. There are many plants that are toxic to our four-legged friends. For me personally, I plant to have an attached greenhouse in the idea of an earthship. But I also plan to have a spearate walipini where I will grow those things that could hurt my babies. Things like onions, garlic, tomoatoes, potatoes, eggplant, etc. Otherwise, use your imagination and make it whimsical.
http://wisemindhealthybody.com/ad1/how-to-build-a-50-greenhouse/
https://astriddegroot.wordpress.com/2011/01/16/dome-greenhouse/
http://www.goodshomedesign.com/build-plastic-bottle-greenhouse/
http://www.goodshomedesign.com/10-easy-diy-free-greenhouse-plans/
http://ourfairfieldhomeandgarden.com/building-a-repurposed-windows-greenhouse/
https://www.niftyhomestead.com/blog/underground-greenhouse/
http://home.howstuffworks.com/lawn-garden/professional-landscaping/alternative-methods/greenhouse3.htm
https://www.niftyhomestead.com/blog/underground-greenhouse/
http://northernhomestead.com/how-to-build-a-geodome-greenhouse/
http://yourhouseandgarden.com/15-cheap-easy-diy-greenhouse-projects/
http://www.inspiredhomeideas.com/whats-happened-to-conservatories-in-2016/
http://biodomesystems.com/
http://undergroundaquaponics.blogspot.com/
No comments:
Post a Comment