Growing a Sunroom Garden in Winter
Architecturally speaking, a sunroom is a catch-all phrase for any type of room designed to allow in an abundance of natural sunlight. If you’re lucky enough to have such a room, it’s important to distinguish whether you have a three-season or four-season room before you begin planting winter sunroom vegetables. A three-season sunroom is not climate controlled. It has no air conditioning in the summer and no heat in the winter. As such, these sunrooms tend to fluctuate in temperature between night and day. Building materials, like glass and brick, determine how much solar radiation these rooms absorb when it’s sunny and how quickly they lose heat when it’s not. A three-season room can be the perfect environment for growing cool-season crops in a sunroom garden in winter. Some vegetables, like kale and Brussels sprouts, can not only withstand a short period below freezing, but actually taste sweeter when exposed to the cold. Here’s a list of winter sunroom vegetables you might be able to grow in a three-season room:
Bok choyBroccoliBrussels sproutsCabbageCarrotsCauliflowerKaleKohlrabiLettuceOnionsPeasRadishesSpinachTurnips
Crops for a Four-Season Sunroom Veggie Garden
As the name suggests, a four-season sunroom is designed for year-round use. Equipped with heat and ventilation, these rooms increase the number of crops which can be grown in a sunroom garden in winter. Cold-sensitive herbs, like basil, will flourish in this type of environment. Here’s a few more herbs to try:
Bay LaurelChivesCilantroFennelLemongrassMintOreganoParsleyRosemaryThyme
In addition to herbs, it’s possible to grow many warm-weather vegetables in a sunroom that’s heated during the winter. For sun-loving plants, like tomatoes and peppers, supplemental lighting is often necessary due to decreased daylight hours during the winter months. Winter sunroom vegetables might also need assistance with pollination in order to bear fruit. If you’re up for a challenge, try growing these warm season crops in a sunroom garden in winter:
BeansCucumberEggplantsOkraPeppersSquashSweet potatoTomatoesWatermelonZucchini
