Lene Søe Højberg and her husband Claus Bonde dreamt of a greenhouse in their own unique design. They bought a standard greenhouse from Juliana and rebuild it in a creative wooden construction.

In a garden near Roskilde, Denmark, is a unique and beautiful greenhouse. Both ends are built from a black wooden construction. Lene Søe Højberg and Claus Bonde grow plants and share nice moments in the greenhouse.

“I was inspired by Claus Dalby’s book Greenhouse dreams. We both wanted a greenhouse that could be used as an annex and which fitted our old master builders house.” says Lene Søe højberg.

 

It took many years for the dream of a unique greenhouse to come true. After a talk with some friends, where the husband is a constructing architect who would guide and give advice, the project was taking shape.

“My husband is a social worker and I’m an agronomist, hence we didn’t have any contractual basis to start such a project. But with the help from good friends it was possible.” Lene Søe Højberg says.

 

The first step was to figure out where the greenhouse should be placed. After the family had taken down their hen house, there were plenty of room for a greenhouse in the garden. Next step was to find a standard greenhouse that would fit the wooden construction, and after much search the couple bought a Halls Magnum of 106.5 square feet.

“We were looking for a greenhouse where the profiles could be milled into the wood. We ended up with a Halls as the profiles has a simple construction, and it was a relatively cheap greenhouse. It made more sense to tear apart a cheap house than one of the more expensive Juliana greenhouses.” says Lene Søe Højberg.

Experiences

The project completed and the family have got their own unique greenhouse. Though it has also been challenging. For one thing they built a door from scratch, which has then warped because of some crooked laths. They admit that in hindsight it would have been easier to buy a door in standard measures and then build the gable from that. Another thing is the foundation. The house is placed on two foundations which means it has begun to give. One large foundation for both the wooden part and the greenhouse could have prevented that. Finally, it needs to be considered how the wood is attached to the aluminium profiles. It is important that they are able to give. In their case they milled the profiles into the wood and fastened with glue, which has lasted until now.

“We are happy amateurs, so a professional would maybe smile, but we are happy with the result and we have gained a lot of experience.” says Lene Søe Højberg.

 

Lene and her husband might need this experience as they are moving away from their house and unique greenhouse. The dream is to start a new greenhouse project when they have moved into their new domicile.

“I think we will build another greenhouse. I am really fond of gardens and greenhouses, and we enjoyed it so much. What it will look like, we don’t know yet.” says Lene Søe Højberg.