Vines beside the windows. Buds on old wood. A place to sit in the sun. The greenhouse is both a growing space and part of everyday life.
A garden through the seasons
Snow on the glass, bare winter vines, low sunlight on timber and new leaves in spring: the seasons still shape life under this roof.
Spring: the garden starts again
The first buds on the vines bring the growing season close to home. We can follow the new leaves from one day to the next, just beyond the timber walls.
Summer: growing, shade and air
In summer, we usually experience the greenhouse as warm and fairly dry. The planted area is relatively small, and air moves through the space continually. Nights can still be cold: living under glass does not mean a constant tropical climate.
The roof vents open automatically according to the greenhouse temperature, and we open the large sliding doors manually when the sun makes the space too hot. During the hottest periods, we keep the timber house closed by day and air it at night. We share more about managing the heat on our Energy & climate page.
Autumn: a different kind of light
As the days shorten, the greenhouse changes character. Leaves and the timber house catch the light from indoors, while the garden outside becomes darker. This is also when we notice more humidity in the greenhouse, compared with the fairly dry summer air.
Winter: the structure shows
In winter, the bare vines reveal the steelwork and glass above them. Low sunlight reaches the timber walls, and the greenhouse feels quite different from the leafy space of summer.
What has grown here?
The original diary records grapes, tomatoes, cucumbers, squash, strawberries and herbs, alongside experiments that did not always go to plan. Those entries are a record of particular years, not a list of everything growing here today.
The photographs on this page show later moments in the garden, from autumn light to the first buds of spring.
Historical growing notes: the first operating bed, July 2016 and May 2019. The seasonal descriptions draw on our dated photographs and current experience of living here.