My little greenhouse is 5' X 7'. I use a brooder heat lamp to heat it. I have a thermometer that records minimum and maximum temps inside and out. I found that the heat lamp only kept it 2 degrees above the outside temps. I threw a winter weight row cover over the top, and now it stays 8 degrees above outside. The row cover also makes it good for house plants in the summer. When it goes down into the teens, I start bringing more plants into the house. The GH doesn't stay warm enough for geraniums, etc., but I brought one into the house. I'll take cuttings from it next spring. It is nice not to have to buy potted fuchsias every year. I suppose I could try a small space heater in it if I really want to keep more tender plants in it. What kind of space heater are you using? I added a temperature sensitive timer this year. I spent yesterday moving some stuff from the greenhouse into the house. Moving other stuff from sheltered locations into the greenhouse, and moving more stuff from unsheltered positions to sheltered positions. Today, I dug up dahlias I want to save, covered other dahlias that I care less about, but wouldn't mind if they came back, with plastic buckets. I also dug up the acidenthera after remembering last night it's not hardy here. Next year, I'm putting them in a pot rather than digging them up. We haven't had a killing frost yet, so the tops of everything are still green. The laundry room/workshop is full of begonias, acidentheras, and dahlias drying before I can store them. Hubby will be unhappy if I leave them there too long.
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I have a lighting store not to far from me that sells hydroponic supplies. I thought about it, but just haven't done enough research on it yet. I need to get with it, and check it out. I have had a great year with the greenhouse. I have had the GH for a number of years now, and it spent most of the time as a quasi garden shed. Last year I finally decided that it was time to make it worth something more than a catchall. Last winter I was able to winter over most all of my geraniums and ferns out in the GH. I did have to add extra protection to the GH when the temps drop well below freezing last winter for a couple of weeks. I put blankets over the roof of the GH, and I had a space heater on a temperature sensitive timer. I was able to keep everything alive out there during the cold spell. (Including a cranky little hummingbird.) The GH is only 6'X8' I know at this point I could use more space than that. I need to build another shelf over the chicken feed and other supplies that I have out there. That should help some on need for more shelf space. I still have awful lot of plants to stuff into a rather small space. And I worry about getting the feed and stuff wet accidentally. I figure that I will need to cover the bench, and make sure that it drains away from the feed containers.
