greenhouse

greenhouse, enclosed glass house used for growing plants in regulated temperatures, humidity, and ventilation. A greenhouse can range from a small room carrying a few plants over the winter, to an immense heated glass building called a hothouse or conservatory, covering acres of ground and used for forcing fruits or flowers out of season. Greenhouses have long been used for holding plants over cold seasons and for growing tropical plants and less hardy fruits, but only in this century has the greenhouse been used for forcing vegetables. Now millions of dollars' worth of plant products are raised yearly in greenhouses. See cold frame.

Bibliography

See A. Laurie et al., Commercial Flower Forcing (6th ed. 1958); H. Ibbotson, Build Your Own Greenhouse (rev. ed. 1965); H. T. and R. T. Northen, Greenhouse Gardening (2d ed. 1973).

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greenhouse

Building designed for the protection of tender or out-of-season plants against excessive cold or heat. Usually a glass- or plastic-enclosed structure with a framing of aluminum, galvanized steel, or such woods as redwood, cedar, or cypress, it is used for the production of fruits, vegetables, flowers, and any other plants requiring special temperature conditions. It is heated partly by the sun and partly by artificial means. This controlled environment can be adapted to the needs of particular plants.

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greenhouse

1. a building with transparent walls and roof, usually of glass, for the cultivation and exhibition of plants under controlled conditions

2. relating to or contributing to the greenhouse effect: greenhouse gases such as carbon dioxide

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greenhouse [′grēn‚hau̇s]

(botany)

Glass-enclosed, climate-controlled structure in which young or out-of-season plants are cultivated and protected.