Our Lidl greenhouse build (and the chaos that came with it!)

If there’s one thing we love, it’s a good garden project, especially when it starts with a bargain. So when we spotted that Lidl had a walk-in greenhouse in their weekly Special Buys, we knew we had to try and get one.

The Early Morning Lidl Run

Anyone who shops the Special Buys knows they can disappear quickly, so I set the alarm early on Thursday morning and headed down to Lidl to try and grab one before they sold out.

Luckily, the early start paid off and I managed to get one. For the price, it looked like a brilliant way to give our seedlings a bit more protection and growing space as we were running out of windowsills.

Building the Greenhouse

Once we got it home, it was straight into build mode. The greenhouse itself was surprisingly straightforward to put together. The metal frame slots together easily, and before long we had the basic structure standing in the garden.

It’s always satisfying when something that starts as a pile of parts begins to look like the real thing.

Reinforcing It With a Wooden Base

The greenhouse is designed to be secured to the ground using tent pegs pushed into grass. However, we were planning to place ours on the patio, which meant we needed to come up with a different solution.

Jesse came up with the idea of building a wooden base frame for the greenhouse to sit on. This would give us something solid to secure the structure to and stop it moving around on the patio.

Battling the Wind

Of course, no DIY garden project would be complete without a little bit of chaos.

Just as we got the cover on the greenhouse, the wind suddenly picked up and not just a gentle breeze either. The whole thing started wobbling around and looking like it might take off across the garden!

So we had to think quickly. In a slightly ridiculous but effective solution, we zipped me up inside the greenhouse to hold it steady while Jesse ran around outside securing everything.

While I stood inside acting as a human paperweight, Jesse cable-tied the cover down to the wooden base to stop the wind getting underneath it.

It might not have been the most glamorous moment, but it definitely did the trick and stopped the greenhouse from flying away.

Moving the Plants In

With everything finally built and secured, it was time for the exciting part — moving some plants into their new home.

We’ve started transferring some of our larger seedlings into bigger pots and giving them space inside the greenhouse. So far we’ve moved in:

• Courgettes

• Sunflowers

• Tomatoes

• Peas

• Some of our dahlias

The greenhouse should help protect them from unpredictable British weather this time of year and give them a warmer environment while they continue growing.

Looking Ahead

For a budget Special Buy, we’re really impressed with how the greenhouse has turned out. With the added wooden base and a few cable ties for extra security, it feels sturdy and ready for the growing season.

Now the fun really begins watching everything grow and seeing how much we can produce this year.

Hopefully, next time we build something in the garden, we won’t have to zip anyone inside it to stop it from blowing away!