Greenhouse Heater Keeps Plants from Shivering on Cold Nights

12 June 2008

The whole point to greenhouses is that they keep your plants warm, but that’s only true during the day, when the sun is shining through those glass or plastic panes. Once the sun is gone, so is the heat, and in many climates temperatures drop low enough that plants will suffer. Even during late spring and summer, plants may still need a little extra warming (some years are just cold–the spring we’re having the Pacific Northwest is a perfect example–it snowed in Spokane this morning and yes, it’s June).

That’s where greenhouse heaters come in.

Turn them on during the night to keep your plants from freezing. You can get greenhouse heaters that are powered by propane or electric (there are also some solar heaters, that will warm water and pass it through pipes in the floor but this requires quite a retrofit and is probably more of an expense than most of us backyard gardeners are looking for).

For $130, you can pick up the electric Flexi Furnace greenhouse heater shown here. Just plug it in and keep your plants warm. The adjustable heater can provide 5200 BTUs, which should be enough heat for a residential greenhouse.

Flexi Furnace Heater