To make a complex soda bottle greenhouse, begin with two bottles. One should be slightly wider than the other if possible. Carefully cut the top off of the thinner bottle, just past the point where it curves to form the tube section. Cut as straight and clean as possible. Use hot glue to attach the opening of the bottle top you just cut to the bottom of the remainder of the bottle. This will form a vase-like base for your mini greenhouse. Smooth any rough edges so that it sits evenly on a table. Next, make the lid for the greenhouse by cutting the top off of the wider bottle, maybe a centimeter below where the top curves into the tube section. The top of this bottle then becomes a lid for the thinner bottle to which you glued the base. If using this style, be sure to put the proper growing materials at the bottom of your greenhouse. This style does not have drainage and will have to be treated more like a terrarium. A simpler method would be to cut the bottom from a 1 liter bottle and simply push the upper portion into the dirt or over a small pot but this will not look as nice as the method described above.
You can also use this bottle to create a base which drains, by puncturing the bottom and cutting 1” vertical lines into the bottom edge of the lid. Be sure to leave at least 1” of jar above the desired dirt line when cutting for the lid. This will keep the dirt from falling out when the bottle is opened.
A small plant in a bed can simply be covered with an upside-down, wide opening fishbowl. A right-side up fishbowl can be used like a terrarium, either covered with plastic or left open at the top. A large tank can be treated as a terrarium with no drainage, holes can be drilled in the bottom to provide drainage, or (if it has a glass bottom) it can be flipped upside-down to form a greenhouse. If left right-side up, a lid will need to be created from plastic wrap or using the wood-frame method described below.
Frames like these can be purchased at a local drug or grocery store, at an art store, at a camera shop, or online from a variety of sources. You can also sometimes find used ones cheaply at thrift stores like Goodwill.
Attach the frames together by drilling a small hole through the inside edge of the larger frame and half-way into the smaller frame. Then use a screw of a size corresponding to the hole you drilled to join the frames securely. Continue joining the frames until you have a rectangle formed by the four largest frames (both 11”x14” frames and bother 8”x10” frames).
Place two of the 5”x7” frames side-by-side, so that the short ends are touching. Then join them together by screwing 2” mending plates at each end of the joined edge. Drilling pilot holes first will make this easier. Repeat process with the other two 5”x7” frames. Join the smaller frame structures to each other, by placing them at a 90° angle along the long edge and screwing in a 90° angle brace to make them secure.
Join the roof to the structure by attaching two 1” utility hinges, evenly spaced, along the edges to be joined. Fill the triangular gap with material cut from the backing of the larger frame, plywood, foam, or another other material you think appropriate. Plywood or foam would need to be accordingly thick, to make them easier to attach to the frame. Whatever material you choose, simply trace the inside of the triangular end (if using plywood or foam) or the outside edge (if using the backing of the frame) and glue into place. The plywood can be nailed if desired.
Use wood paint and be sure to do all of your painting before replacing the glass. Replace the glass from the inside of the greenhouse and attach it by hot gluing the corners. Once the glass is in, seal all the edges with more hot glue. You can even use plastic instead of glass frame.
Try to break up the larger structure into 2’ sections. This will give your greenhouse greater stability and strength. Use relatively thin PVC pipe, no more than 1. 5” wide. A good size to use would be closer to ¾”. Also, be sure that your joints and PVC pipe are sized so that they will fit together. This should be labeled, but you can test in the hardware store to be sure or you can ask a hardware store employee for help and advice.
When you are done, you should have a horizontal rectangle or square base with posts coming up from the T joints at regular intervals. The corner posts should come from the the last T joint on the long sides, with the elbow joints and short side of the base protruding out from the “wall”.
Form the central roof structure by creating a line of PVC pipe identical to one long side of the base. The pieces should be connected with four-way joints at the same intervals as your wall posts, except for the ends which will be capped in T joints. From the T joints and four-way joints, place short sections of pipe and cap them in 45° joints. Next, place 45° joints at the top of each of your wall posts. After that you will need to measure how much pipe you need to join the 45° joints of the wall to the 45° joints of the central roof structure. Cut this pipe once measured and fit it between each of the 45° joints.
Alternatively, you can search for mini greenhouse options available online. Buy a small greenhouse pack that contains all the materials, tools, and instructions for making it. [6] X Expert Source Jon RowlandPlant Specialist Expert Interview. 7 September 2021.
