the five-minute greenhouse

The Five-Minute Greenhouseas presented at

Northwest Flower and Garden Show’sSproutopia – February 21 & 22, 2009

bySusan L. Harrington, CEO (chief education

officer)

Labyrinth Hill Lavender

Cuttings planted: Cornus stolonifera baileyiRedtwig Dogwood, Red Osier Dogwood

Suggestions for othercuttings easy to propagate: Rosemary

Lavandula x intermedia ‘Grosso’ - LavenderEscallonia

This is also a great project for starting seeds and watching the roots appear at the sides of the bottle.

Copyright 2006-2009 Labyrinth Hill www.LabyrinthHill.comGrowing Fragrant Lavender in a Classic Labyrinth

Susan Harrington Teaches Children of all Ages How to Make a Five-Minute Greenhouse!

Northwest Flower & Garden Show

Cyle Eldred, Show Manager

Cyle Eldred, Show ManagerNorthwest Flower & Garden Show


The Five-Minute Greenhouse

Ah, yes, another “Spawn of Insomnia.” It was my first plant clinic as a Master Gardener and opening day of my garden club’s annual plant sale. I knew there would be children accompanying parents. Ah Ha! Teach them botany and recycling at the same time.

Materials List: Small water bottle Scissors Tape Plastic bread tab 4" to 6" cuttings

Remove the leaves from the bottom half of the stems


Recycling in Action

With scissors cut around the bottle 5” from the bottom, leaving a hinge of approximately 1”-2”.

Poke 5-6 holes in the bottom for drainage.

Add 3”-4” of moist, not wet, mix:Potting Soil or1:1:1 Sand:Peat:Perlite or half Sand and half Perlite

Stick 4 cuttings in the planting mix

The latch is a piece of tape with a bread tab attached at the end (it opens and closes easily).

Check the soil weekly for moisture though there should be no need to add water except perhaps a few drops.

When you see the roots through the clear sides, it’s time to pot up your new plants in pots 2” larger or directly in the garden.

I’ve seen roots as early as 4 weeks later with the bottle…I mean greenhouse… sitting in a bright but not direct sunlight west-facing window.


Master Gardeners at Flotsam and Jetsam Garden ClubPlant Sale, Hansville WA


Carbon Dioxide and Greenhouses

Here’s the best part about your Five-Minute Greenhouse: Oxygen-breathing life forms exhale carbon dioxide (Co2). Plants

take in Co2 during photosynthesis and give off or “exhale” oxygen. This process is referred to as the carbon dioxide-oxygen cycle.

Commercial greenhouses “fertilize” the air with additional carbon dioxide to speed up plant growth and improve plant quality. Vegetable production can be boosted by 25% to 100%, flower production up to 35% with one to two weeks cut from the growing schedule utilizing Co2 generators.

You are a Co2 generator. Every morning open the lid of your greenhouse and gently blow into

the bottle. (Just don’t let your neighbors see you doing this…they might begin to talk!)

My favorite Assistant Lavender Wrangler actually gave mouth-to-mouth resuscitation to a tree seedling. When he saw that it had fainted, he blew into a cottage cheese carton and upended it over the seedling. Twenty minutes later it had revived!


Wolfle Elementary School, Kingston WA


Contact Information

Labyrinth Hill

Growing Fragrant Lavenderin a Classic Labyrinth

Susan L. Harrington

[email protected]

PO Box 448

Hansville, WA 98340

360.638.2642

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