If you’re wondering to yourself, “How do I best use my mini polytunnel in a cold climate?” know that even as you ask this question in the United Kingdom, countless gardening enthusiasts across the world envy you. Having your mini polytunnel will not only allow you to experienced longer growing seasons, but it will keep your tender plants safe during winter.
Can You Use a Minipolytunnelin the Winter?
Keep in mind that having a mini polytunnel allows you to grow all types of plants regardless of the weather or the season in the UK. Furthermore, mini-polytunnel gardeners in the UK tend to keep their crops coming up all year round simply because they could keep their plants’ growing environment controlled and consistent even during the coldest winter months!
To give you an idea about how you can best use your mini polytunnel in the cold climate of the UK, check this out:
You can garden in the UK nonstop
Since a mini polytunnel lets you enjoy your British winter garden regardless of the weather or the season, you can expect to grow anything you want. However, you may need to add some artificial lights to make up for the sunlight wavelengths that limited during short winter days. Auxiliary lights will further enhance your plants’ growth potential.
It causes your tropical plants to thrive
Suppose you have a penchant for tropical plants. In that case, you will thank yourself for getting your mini polytunnel because it allows these plants to cycle through seasonal sunlight changes without experiencing the effects of drastic temperature fluctuations. Again, you might want to consider adding a grow light to help them thrive.
It’s extremely mobile
Although mini-polytunnels come in various shapes and sizes, they’re easier to move around than conventional polytunnels. Easiness due to the size makes them the perfect choice for gardening enthusiasts in the UK with limited living spaces. Whether you choose to place your mini polytunnel on the rooftop or at the corner of your kitchen – it’s up to you!
It’s excellent for starting seeds
If you have enough space for a small British garden, you can use your mini polytunnel to help get your plants a great head-start. Although many elements need to go into this process, such as giving your plants enough water, light, ventilation, and feed, a mini polytunnel can help make it easier for you to meet these needs.
Meeting the needs means that you use the enclosed space to start seeds even during the winter season until they’re strong enough to be transported to a larger container or straight into the ground. Even if you want to start the seeding process a little earlier than usual, a mini-polytunnel will still be able to provide your tender plants with the strong foundation that’s needed for them to flourish.
You can grow the most vulnerable plants
One of the most common reasons why gardening enthusiasts in the UK choose to set up their mini polytunnels is that it provides the most vulnerable plants with enough protection against freezing temperatures.
An example of a vulnerable and sensitive plant that has its own specific needs is an orchid. Unlike the usual plants, orchids one needs to place in shaded locations, and they also need to be planted in well-aerated soil that promotes good drainage. Furthermore, orchids also thrive in humid climates.
Unless you’re willing to spend a lot of time and money digging up an entire flower bed so that you can0 lay down dryer soil, consider getting yourself a mini polytunnel. As previously mentioned, this can help you keep the moisture and the temperature levels steady even when it’s snowing outside.
You can grow your herbs indoors
A mini polytunnel eliminates the need for a traditional British garden set-up if you plan on growing herbs. It doesn’t matter if you want to grow your chives, thyme, lemongrass, oregano, basil, cilantro, parsley, mint, etc., in the corner of your kitchen or next to the window in your bedroom. Your favourite herbs will stay healthy in your mini polytunnel even when it’s snowing outside.
What’s more, mini polytunnel gardening promotes hydroponic gardening as well. In case you’re wondering, hydroponics refers to a specific method of growing plants in the absence of soil—the specific method achieved by making use of mineral nutrient solutions, as well as an aqueous solvent.
How Warm is a Minipolytunnelin Winter?
In most cases, the average number of hours of sunlight a day during the winter season is about 5 to 6 hours. If your mini polytunnels adequately insulated, the enclosed space can be about 30˚F warmer than the air outside it.
In other words, you can expect your mini polytunnel to be productive in the winter. Productivity will only be down to -17˚F before the air inside the mini polytunnel gets low enough to reach the frost zone.
Do Mini Polytunnels Protect from Frost?
You can expect the plants inside your mini polytunnel to get enough protection from frost. However, it would help if you made sure that your mini polytunnel is securely anchored to the ground so that you won’t have to worry about strong winds whipping it away.
What Temperature Should You Keep in a Mini Polytunnel?
It would help if you kept your mini polytunnel’s internal temperature steady between 80˚F to 85˚F.
Final Thoughts on “How Do I Best Use My Mini Polytunnel in a Cold Climate?”
Now that you know the answer to the question, “How do I best use my mini polytunnel in a cold climate?” you’re probably glad about your decision to pursue mini polytunnel gardening. Enjoy it as much as you can because it’s worth the investment.