GrowingHQ

What actually needs a greenhouse

The candidate this collection replaces asked which crops will grow under glass, and Sprint 22 answered it: ninety-nine of a hundred and two, which is worth nothing to somebody deciding what to put in a six-by-eight greenhouse in March. The question with an answer is which crops a greenhouse makes POSSIBLE rather than merely comfortable, and there are eleven — the aubergines, melons and peppers that will not ripen outdoors in most British summers, and the tender tropical herbs that a British winter kills outright. Everything else in the catalogue is choosing to be there.

How this list was built

Generated from the catalogue by the same engine that powers What can I grow? — 11 of the 102 edible plants qualify. It is published because it names a question people ask, returns enough plants to be useful, does not return most of the group it is about, and rests on fields that are actually populated. Lists that fail any of those are on the coverage page instead.

11 plants
PlantTypeLightSpacingMin. pot depthIn a container
AubergineSolanum melongenaVegetableDemandingFull sun45–60 cm30 cmwell suited
BasilOcimum basilicumHerbSome care neededFull sun20–25 cm15 cmwell suited
Chilli pepperCapsicum annuumVegetableSome care neededFull sun40–45 cm20 cmwell suited
CucumberCucumis sativusVegetableSome care neededFull sun45–60 cm30 cmworkable
Curry leafMurraya koenigiiHerbDemandingFull sun100–150 cm35 cmwell suited
LemongrassCymbopogon citratusHerbSome care neededFull sun—25 cmwell suited
MelonCucumis meloFruitDemandingFull sun90 cm35 cmworkable
PassionflowerPassiflora caeruleaOrnamentalStraightforwardFull sun, Partial shade200–300 cm50 cmworkable
Sweet pepperCapsicum annuumVegetableSome care neededFull sun45 cm25 cmwell suited
Thai basilOcimum basilicum var. thyrsifloraHerbSome care neededFull sun25–30 cm20 cmwell suited
Vietnamese corianderPersicaria odorataHerbSome care neededPartial shade, Full sun30–40 cm20 cmwell suited