Greenhouse

When we purchased this farm, a few steps from the garage was a small greenhouse. It was very simply built, mostly with windows salvaged from old buildings, some plastic for a roof and potting shelves at both ends of the small room. I would guess it's 5' x 12' but haven't measured it.

The lady who owned the farm before us had been growing a huge red geranium in it-- one of the largest I had ever seen, way too big for her to move. It was like walking into summer to go into that greenhouse the first winter. Unfortunately winter came fiercely that first year. The temperatures plunged below zero and power went out for over a week. The geranium froze as well as many other plants that grow outside most years but can't tolerate those conditions. I was disappointed in the loss of the geranium but continued to use the greenhouse for many years.

Somewhere along the road, maybe when we added on the solarium, I didn't find the greenhouse to be needed. It's not well insulated, costs a fair amount to keep going even in a mild winter, but it has a charm that I missed. This summer I set my mind to using it again. I needed it partly for some of the plants that had summered on the north deck but won't find room in the solarium with my changing its purposes to an art studio. I have some such as the 8 year old bouganvillea that can't survive our winters outside.

When I went to inspect the work that would be required to use the greenhouse again, I was expecting some broken window panes but was amazed to see how hawthorne starts had taken over the whole space including the center of the greenhouse. The parent tree had been destroyed by a winter storm last year, but its roots had (and have) not given up on the idea of starting new trees everywhere.

I wish I had taken pictures before I began as I felt like Jack with the Beanstalk hacking my way into the greenhouse. I had been using it to store some of the dolls my mother had collected which wasn't exactly a great spot. They (porcelain heads, cloth bodies and cute dresses) have since been cleaned up and brought into the toy box for grandkids. Little by little I saw the greenhouse cleared out, the glass panes replaced, and a new roof installed.

Now with November here, the greenhouse is functioning, harboring the geraniums and bouganvilleas and looking ready for winter-- if it doesn't go below zero and lose power (well actually if it does, this year I now have temporary space in the bedroom for these plants.

There is something special about stepping into this old greenhouse partly because it's made up of windows from long discarded homes and whatever else was available for building materials. It's a place not just for wintering plants although that is its purpose. It has a hidden purpose though and that one is providing a secret garden for me in the middle of winter-- a place I can go to water and lightly fertilize the plants but more importantly reconnect with summers past and live for a moment with pieces of summers to come.