I Built My Own DIY Greenhouse With This Brilliant $200 Kit – & Just Look How Stylish it is!
You can make one too. Here's everything you need to know, step by simple step…
Every spring, the situation got worse. Trays of needy seedlings cluttered the kitchen table and every windowsill and countertop was covered with baby plants, water stains and stray potting soil. Attempting to live among these temporary installations was difficult – a relentless cycle of rearranging, balancing, trying not to knock over pots and sacrificing comfort and space in the name of growing.
I desperately wanted a greenhouse so I could start my plants off safely outside, but I was on a limited budget and didn’t have much space on my vegetable plot either. Traditional glass and metal-framed structures were expensive new and buying one secondhand would involve paying big bucks for transportation as well as a complicated re-build on-site. Cheaper zip-up plastic options were too small or too flimsy for my needs.
I'd almost given up on my greenhouse dream, when I stumbled across the DIY Geodesic Dome Kit from Build With Hubs. It's a UK-based company, but the kit is available from Amazon US. At just $195, it was by far the cheapest option I’d found and the simple snap-together ball and socket connectors looked easy to use. I ordered the greenhouse kit, bought some timber roof battens (just like these from Home Depot) from my local hardware store. It was time to build a greenhouse.
1. Prepping the Site
I began by levelling the ground where I wanted my greenhouse to be. This took longer than I’d expected because my vegetable plot is on a rather unhelpful slope! I flattened the site as best I could using a spade and rake, re-distributing soil to create a flat-enough base. With hindsight, I wish I’d spent a bit longer on this stage and done a better job of leveling – the door to my greenhouse still doesn't open smoothly due to the uneven ground it rests on.
Once the site was ready, I set about sawing some timber roof battens to the correct lengths. You can use any kind of sticks you like with this kit – some folk use hazel branches or broom handles – but I chose roof battens because they're affordable and already treated for exterior use. By using sticks of different lengths, you can create domes of different diameters and there’s a handy online stick calculator tool on the Build With Hubs website that helps you cut your wood to the correct lengths. I wanted a 3m diameter greenhouse, so needed 30 ‘short’ lengths of 731mm and 35 ‘long’ lengths of 839mm.
Once the timber was all cut-to-size, I used a cross-head screwdriver to attach the ‘ball’ fixtures to the ends of all the sticks.
2. Assembling the Dome
I built the dome following the kit instructions, starting from the ‘top’ – five roof battens and one connecting hub – then adding the hubs and sticks layer by layer until the dome shape was complete. This stage was surprisingly easy and quick, and it was satisfying seeing the shape emerge so fast. I was worried my limited DIY skills would hold me back, but the hubs were simple to click into place and my dome was done in next to no time.
3. Building the Base
I made a basic base using 10 cylindrical fence posts (like these from American Timber and Steel), which I hammered in to the ground in a circle, using the dome as a guide to position them.
Next, I recruited a group of kind and patient friends to help me lift the dome up onto the fence posts and hold it in place while I went around the structure, screwing the hubs to the tops of the posts.
4. Fixing the Panes to the Frame
I used clear UV-resistant plastic greenhouse sheeting for the panes – the kind that farmers use when making agricultural polytunnels (just like this sheeting from Walmart). I cut the panels to size using scissors, then used a staple gun and a million staples to fix the edges tightly to the inside of the dome. This took a lot of time, but a steady supply of cookies and coffee kept my spirits up and it was satisfying to see the greenhouse edge closer to completion with each pane that I fitted.
Once all the panes were filled, I cut to size and stapled on a temporary zip-up plastic door – the kind that decorators use to protect rooms from dust or paint. At last, it was time to get growing! I dug over the ground with some well-rotted manure and moved all my tomato plants into ‘The Dome.’
5. Adding the Finishing Touches
Over the summer, I made a few small changes. I added a simple hinged roof vent to let heat escape on hot days, and replaced the zip-up door with a homemade hinged one for a more robust entrance. But otherwise, my DIY greenhouse has performed so well. My tomatoes loved the warmth and cropped really well.
I’ve been so impressed with how sturdy the structure is overall, too. It's survived strong winds and storms – the shape has amazing integral strength and it's remained standing firm when other nearby polytunnels and glass greenhouses have suffered damage in wild weather.
As well as a place to grow plants, my greenhouse has become a retreat. I put an old folding chair in there, so I could shelter from the rain. Then I added fairy lights, another chair and a camping stove – and before I knew it, The Dome had become much more than just a space to grow plants in. It's now a year-round destination: a place to call my own, somewhere I meet friends for a sunset chat, make pancakes for my kids or just sneak off to and relax in, surrounded by nature.
Occasionally, I treat myself to breakfast in The Dome, cooking a freshly-laid egg on the camping stove. This was the best $200 I've ever spent.
