Build a mini greenhouse yourself: 4 ideas for a DIY indoor greenhouse

Many gardeners no longer want to buy the young plants for tomatoes, cucumbers or lettuce in the garden market, but grow their vegetables themselves from seeds. With an indoor greenhouse, vegetable plants can be well grown on the window sill before going outside into nature or a large greenhouse.

Advantages of DIY mini greenhouse

Many vegetables need a lot of light and warmth to develop from a seed into a small plant. Greenhouses often offer these needed conditions and with a small greenhouse on the window sill you have a protected area for tomatoes, cucumbers and co. Always in sight.

• can be adapted to the required requirements
• is made quickly
• interesting upcycling project
• Garbage can be used creatively
• hardly any material costs
• is light and mobile
• protected from the wind
• good supply of light

After pricking out and before hardening off, tomatoes first have to develop and grow well. With a small greenhouse, you can always watch the plants grow on the window sill in the children's room, in the kitchen or from the workplace.

You can also make friends, family and acquaintances happy as a small gift. From cress and vegetables to flowers and succulents, almost all plants can be grown in an indoor greenhouse, at least for a certain period of time.

What do you have to consider with the mini greenhouse?

1. UV-impermeable PE film is best, so the plants get enough light and are protected from wind and rain (if I put my little greenhouse on the balcony). That's why cling film is often used for such small projects.
2. When filling a small greenhouse, you also have to make sure that there is no waterlogging. So a drainage layer of small stones under the potting soil is also advisable here - at least if the excess irrigation water cannot drain away in any other way.
3. A greenhouse for the windowsill must also be ventilated regularly, because otherwise condensation is a very suitable trigger for mold growth.

Instructions for the mini greenhouse

It is best to take a look at all of our instructions for an indoor greenhouse beforehand and then choose the one that suits you.

• How much space do I have available?
• How big does my mini greenhouse have to be for the plant to thrive?
• What materials are available to me?
• What do I trust with craftsmanship?

egg packaging

You need:

• Egg packaging (at least for 4 eggs)
• Wooden skewers
• cling film
• obligatory: plasticine / modeling clay / fimo or similar
• Scissors

Step 1

First cut off the lid and the closure (be sure to keep it!) of the packaging.

step 2

Poke the wooden skewers through the egg carton from below, in the cross between the individual egg wells. Push the skewers through until they touch the bottom.

step 3

Now push the lifted locking tab onto the skewers from above. The cardboard serves as a "roof prince" and thus marks the highest point of your indoor greenhouse. A small ball of modeling clay underneath the cardboard (around the skewer) can be used to prevent the upper part from slipping.

step 4

Wrap the cling film, starting at the bottom, once around the egg pack - high above the prince - back down to the other side.

Food packaging - tray

you need

• 2 Plastic food packaging - trays (eg. B. for mushrooms)
• Adhesive tape or packing tape, preferably transparent
• Wooden ice cream stick or skewer
• scissors or cutters

Step 1

Place both bowls next to each other and place a strip of masking tape over the touching edges.

step 2

Close the resulting box and put strips of adhesive tape on the back again, these are used for stabilization.

step 3

In order to be able to ventilate your small greenhouse well, it is advisable to cut a small wooden stick to the right size. You can either use an ice cream stick or a wooden shashlik stick that has been shortened to the right length.

Pet bottle

you need

• empty and cleaned PET bottle without label
• Scissors or craft knife

Step 1

Carefully cut off the bottom of the plastic bottle and deburr the rim so that no sharp corners or edges remain as a source of danger.

step 2

Place the bottle in the ground over the plant to be protected.

CD cases

Very stable mini greenhouses can be made very quickly and easily from old transparent CD cases. For our instructions we use "normal" CD cases, not slim cases or double CD cases.

option A

For the simplest version, all you need is 2 CD cases and some tape.

Step 1

Carefully remove the (usually black) CD holder from the Wednesday.

step 2

Place the two covers (opened at a 90 degree angle) together so that a square is formed. You can either fix the corners with adhesive tape or with hot glue or glue. Fix superglue.

step 3

You can either use another half of the transparent CD case as a roof – this should then be used attached with a “tape hinge” like a food wrap greenhouse become. Or you can simply use some cling film with a few air holes as a roof for your little DIY greenhouse.

Variant B

This variant of a CD greenhouse is a bit more complex, but a lot more stable and, above all, infinitely extendable. Due to its stable construction, this mini greenhouse is also well suited for the balcony.
At least 4 CD cases are required for this.

Step 1

Carefully (!) disassemble the CD case into its three parts. Be careful not to break off any parts and use as little pressure and force as necessary.

step 2

Put the middle part with the CD holder aside and use the two outer parts of the CD packaging. The front flap is simply rotated 180 degrees and placed back on the. This takes place somewhat offset. The flap should click into place easily. then not much can be moved.

If the two clips protrude on one side, the cover is in the right place.

step 3
If you have converted all (at least) 4 shells in this way, you can now click the many components into each other. Make sure that any openings are facing inwards.

This creates a square that is stable in itself and is similar to double glazing. As a result, this greenhouse is very stable and can also store heat better.

step 4

You can use cling film as a roof or, with a little more work, you can also make a hinged roof out of CD cases.

We hope that one of our instructions has convinced you and that you too will become a fan of "urban gardening". Use a mini greenhouse either as a small alternative to the garden for the balcony or for growing tomatoes, cucumbers and lettuce on the windowsill.

Learn more about greenhouse