ShelterLogic 3' x 8' x 3' GrowIT Small Garden Greenhouse for Outdoors, Easy-Access & Durable

4/8/21: My carnivorous plants adore this tent and doubled in size in the last two months! Wow, for the price [**Edit 4/8/21: I came back to buy a second one for my mom and the price has more than doubled. $30 was great - $73, not so much], this is hard to beat! I'm using this indoors for seed flats and tropical plants and the humidity is amazing, 70-80% during the day and 90-93% at night when the lights shut off. Seeds are popping up like daisies, my moringa has stopped dropping leaves and resumed growth, and I already have aerial roots developing on my ficus! With an LED and a 45W incandescent, the temperature runs a little less than 10° warmer than the rest of house, and about 5° warmer at night - if I used a heat mat or something similar, it would probably be warmer. The humidity is high enough that I recommend putting a tray under it to protect your flooring if used indoors. I bought a puppy grass potty tray because it was the only tray I could find with the correct dimensions, which set me back another $20; when it arrives, I'll post pictures of the whole thing. I also have fungus gnats already after just a few days - I'm sure they were already present in my plants, but the warmth, humidity, and confinement makes them much more noticeable. I may tape down the cover at the bottom and release a few ladybugs in there, although I feel mixed about that since I don't know if there would be enough food for them to survive long. Took almost no time at all to set up; I skipped the rubber mallet and just laid it down and thumped on the joints a few times with my fists, and that was enough to make it very sturdy. I even took one shelf out to make room for my taller plants, so one level only has one bar in the back for support - sturdy as a rock when I wiggle it or press on the sides. I did ziptie the shelves down and felt that was a drastic improvement. The flimsy wire shelves are probably the only potential downside, but tied down, they look and feel much more sturdy and attractive. The vinyl cover is attractive and thicker than I expected - feels like it will last forever indoors!

Pro's: + Lightweight (10lbs, if that) + Super fast to assemble (12mins with taking pictures at each step) + Feels strong enough for a cat to jump on a shelf (but not jump off because of the lightweight), or at least 2 5lb mushroom blocks (10lbs) on each shelf + The plastic/PVC sheeting is longer than the height by ~1", so you don't have to worry about humidity escaping Cons: - A bit stinky out of the package, so needs to air out a little after setting up - The shelves rest on top of the metal tubes. They'll be in place well when they have weight on them, but would have been nice if they clipped in somewhere, so they can't fall off when moving it (with nothing on) -There's an extra hole in the center plastic piece, below the one you're supposed to use (and not super clear which to use in the instructions). I'm not sure why it's there. It'll consume you. Summary: Perfect if you need something lightweight, relatively inexpensive, with a decent amount of room (8 5lb mushroom blocks should work, maybe ever 8 10lb blocks), and quick to setup/ break down.

I've owned/used variations of this type of greenhouse over the years. Used both indoor and out, they're a great way to start seeds, control plant humidity, and keep most pests and pets away from the seedlings. There are a couple of drawbacks, but I'll get to those after I review the rated features. Easy to Assemble: Absolutely. Whether you're purchasing a small one for seed starters or the larger walk-in style, it's a simple and reliable design. For some users (like me) that prefer to secure the shelfs (the assembly design just has them floating across the support arms, using plants to hold them down) it's easy to do so with small zip ties or even twist ties. Sturdiness: Moderate. The pieces aren't interlocking, and can easily separate from each other during assembly as well as in high winds if it's not secured somehow. The units are incredibly light, and if kept outdoors can easily be blown around by higher winds. Easy to counter with bags of soil or tent stakes, but very necessary. Stability: The larger units are very stable, but that's by design. The small units do require a little help. For the one we recently purchased, I placed a bag of unopened soil on the bottom shelf. We keep it on a screened in porch, so with high winds (which are frequent here) it wouldn't blow over and ruin our recent sprouts. Not a rated feature BUT: Coupled with a generic seed starter (dried peat moss/loose soil in small 1.25 cups) the seeds went from unplanted to sprouts in less than a week. Having used this style of greenhouse over the last decade almost every year, I recommend it for everyone. Drawbacks: While you can replace just the plastic cover, they are relatively fragile, especially if you use it outdoors. You will have to replace it. If you simply purchase an entire new greenhouse (which isn't a horrible idea as these are very cost effective) you can use the old frame as a trellis for vine type plants. The ties (used to secure the cover to the frame) are a little awkward to install, but they do keep the cover on. Again, if kept outdoors, they will break after about a year of use. The only other draw back is the zippers. Repeated access will wear them out rather rapidly, but you can combat that by keeping them lightly oiled with simple oils found around the kitchen.

The photo doesn’t have the plastic over it but the plastic holds humidity so well. For me, it’ll get to 90ish% humidity without even having a humidifier and my plants absolutely love it. I have been using it as a nursery situation for new plants and rooted propagations and a rehab for struggling plants through the summer, and now I have more to hopefully keep them from going dormant through the winter. I keep grow lights that I stick on every shelf and everything has gone well. I have had to move it a couple times and it comes apart and back together in less than 10 min with no screws or anything crazy, and I usually travel with it in like an old bigger gift bag (keeping the shelves separate of course) so it’s super easy to move or store. Not too big but definitely not too small either. I also have used it to germinate seeds with grow lights and it has gone well. Overall I highly recommend!!

I use these for 12-18" tropical plants. Two of these mini's will fit in the Intex Mini Frame pool. Both sit inside an old 48x48 grow tent frame, which hold the lights over the mini's. Here is what I do. Only the two bottom shelves utilize all three cross poles. I then put two of the wire shelves each on them. I use the extra two poles to more stabilize the mini by using them where the top arch is. The bottom shelf holds a small humidifier and a heated seed mat. On the third and fourth shelf I cut 1x2's to fit cross wise (front to back) across the shelf framing. Then I put round drain trays on them, being careful to center the outside edges of the drain tray over the 1x2's. Very happy with the set up. This one now holds 3 baby pineapple plants, 1 starfruit and mango (they are about 12" tall) with lots of room left over for more babies. One tip that I could give to ensure your mini is stable is to absolutely use a rubber mallet to insert poles. You'd be surprised how much difference this will make to get it together easily and sturdily. Shouldn't take you more than 10 minutes or so to put it up.

Update, didn't survive the first storm. Poles bent some to the point of breaking, plastic connectors also broke.

I needed a small indoor greenhouse to increase the humidity for some of my pickier plants. I researched all the ones I could find and finally chose this one. Assembly was easy, intuitive, and fun! Took me under 15 minutes. This keeps the humidity around 80-90%. My plants love it! Some of my more expensive plants were dying a very slow death but they're all doing great now ever since putting them in this greenhouse. One thing to note is that because of the wide spaces between wires on the shelves, you'll need to be careful when balancing smaller pots as they could tip over if placed un-carefully. I like this though because it allows for plenty of light and airflow through the shelves.

Update a year later. It made it through winter and saved my plants I was over wintering. The frame is in perfect shape. The liner ripped at the zipper for the door and a small home at the back. I repaired with some gorilla tape. It's held up pretty well and I will be using until the liner is too far gone to tape up. I got it put together pretty easily. I used yard stakes and my planter boxes as weights. Hopefully this is good for winterizing my potted plants. I did check it in the evening after I set it up. One small tear in the lining by the zipper and one of the ties popped off while I set it up so it gets a 4 star.