Update on my greenhouse

I previously wrote a blog (August 2013) about my newly-built greenhouse and growing vegetables in it, and now after 1-1/2 years I am starting to learn how to properly grow in this environment. Everything takes time to learn and adjust to.

For example, new soil in the raised beds needs time to build up the right balance of nutrients and bacteria for the plants. I also discovered you need varieties of plants that are self-pollinating because few pollinators, such as bees, get inside my greenhouse. And then there is ventilation, another major factor, which I still am working on to get it just right, because even on a sunny winter day in Southern California it still can get extremely hot inside the greenhouse and my plants don't like that. 

Overall, it's been a lot of work, more work than I initially anticipated. But I am very glad I took the time to build the greenhouse and work out most of the kinks. My flats of lettuce, spinach, parsley, cilantro and basil starts grow much faster in the greenhouse. I am picking more cucumbers than we can eat (and it's winter, not cucumber season). My tomatoes, peppers and basil are very close to picking and I hope to be enjoying them by the end of February. What fun a greenhouse has turned out to be. I was never able to grow these summer veggies at this time of year.