Can we talk about my weird experiment with a $20 plastic greenhouse?

I set up one of those cheap plastic mini greenhouses on my apartment balcony in Phoenix, thinking it would help my herbs through the winter. I planted basil and cilantro, expecting them to thrive with the extra warmth. Instead, the cilantro bolted in like two weeks, and the basil got these weird white spots. I think the plastic trapped too much heat and humidity during the day, even in December, and then it got too cold at night. It basically created a tiny, awful climate. I learned that a 'greenhouse' setup isn't a magic fix; you have to really manage the air and temperature inside, maybe with a fan or a thermometer. Has anyone else in a hot, dry area tried one of these and actually had it work?

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the_margaret6mo ago

That "tiny, awful climate" is the whole point. @kim963's cousin overcomplicating it with a fan, you just need tougher plants.

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kim9636mo ago

My cousin in Tucson had the same problem with those plastic covers. She ended up just using a cheap fan on a timer to move the air around, and it helped a ton. Did you try opening the vents during the day?

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rileynelson5mo ago

Totally agree about the fan trick. Had a similar setup on my old patio and that stagnant air under the plastic just cooks everything. A basic box fan on a low setting made a huge difference, way more than I expected. It stopped all that moldy dampness on the soil surface overnight.

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