Will This Greenhouse From Aldi Protect Your Plants This Winter? Here's What To Know

Although there is usually less for a gardener to do as the days get colder during the fall, there are still a number of jobs to be done to get the yard winter-ready. When it comes to the plants themselves, where you live can make a big difference. Even frost-tolerant flowers and vegetables can suffer as you go further north. More tender plants will certainly need protection.

There's lots of well-meaning advice offered online, but sadly there are many so-called DIY or money-saving garden hacks that won't actually protect your plants from frost. It's no surprise that people often turn to commercial solutions. Traditional glass or newer polycarbonate greenhouses are effective, particularly when heated. However, they can also be expensive.

Aldi offers the Gardenline Winter Protection Greenhouse as an alternative. It is lightweight and has a metal frame that is easy to assemble, and although space is limited (it's 5.25 feet x 5.25 feet x 5.9 feet), it costs only $19.99. It could be ideal for a few prized specimens, used either in borders or for covering a collection of pots. The big question is whether it will actually protect your plants this winter. It will definitely offer some degree of frost protection, and the shape is designed to keep the snow off, but exactly how effective it will be will largely depend on where you live.

Why Aldi's greenhouse won't be for everyone

Aldi's winter protection greenhouse has a zipper front and ties to hold it open, plus ropes and stakes to make sure it's secured to the ground. The material is not mentioned, although a very similar model we found quotes PE (polyethylene), which is generally considered durable and has good water resistance. When used as foam sheets, it can be an excellent insulator, but in this case there is just a thin skin. Tough, but probably not thick enough for much heat retention.

Unfortunately, there are very few reviews of Aldi's greenhouse, and most simply repeat the same details. We did find one person who had tested a previous (and almost identical) version through several seasons, and it's reasonable to expect similar performance from this model. The customer, a resident of the Midwest, thought it would be fine for southern areas with the occasional cold snap and could extend the growing season. However, it didn't offer sufficient protection for extended periods of weather below freezing. So it wasn't thought suitable for their winters or anywhere further north.

Aldi suggests the greenhouse could be useful for seed propagation and it could also be used to give seedlings a head start in spring. However, if you have favorite plants that need overwintering before the temperatures drop and you get regular frosts or heavy snow where you live, you'll probably need a different solution.

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