You can find your hardiness zone via your zipcode if you do a little Googling to find the website for it.

In my experience, a small greenhouse is mostly useful for keeping the frost and chill off plants, rather than creating summertime conditions in the middle of winter. If you're new to gardening, I would start out with something like lettuce or mesclun mix in pots. If you want to garden right in the ground, you'll have to plan out and prepare some raised beds. I would stick with cool season vegetables either way. In late winter/early spring, you can use it to get a head start by sprouting your own warm-season veggies from seed for trasplant when it warms up.

I have no experience, either, but I am so excited for you! I am trying sooo hard to convince DH that we need one. lol- not sure what for, but want one anyway!

I think you can sow seeds or cuttings, get plants started in advance of moving them outdoors, save more tropical plants from freeze, and have a nice warm place to dream of summer when everything outside is icy.

My guess would be to start vegetable seeds a couple of months before transferring them outdoors?

Good luck! Let us know what all you do with your new greenhouse! :)

I'm in the DFW area and have had a small, hobby greenhouse for several years. I start seeds in my house, in January. As soon as they germinate I move the pots to the greenhouse. I keep a shadecloth on my gh year around. The temperature in it can reach to over 100 degrees in January if the vents and door aren't opened each day. Email me directly if you have any questions. I'll be happy to help you out with advice based on what I've learned.
Robin

thanks for the responses! :oD

texasflip - unfortunately the ground here is so full of rocks that there's no way i would attempt (or convince the hubs) to till it! lol i'm thinking either landscape timbers to make areas i can fill with soil or maybe even just containers to start. and as far as the hardiness zone goes, half the time i get zone 7b and half the time i get zone 8b depending on which site it is o.O

holleygarden - you should convince him you need one so that we can plow through this together! (pun intended :oP) and as long as it keeps the wind and animals out and the ice off i'll be happy, i'm terrible about checking the weather and protecting my one poor outdoor plant from the elements...i really hope it comes back in the spring! :o(

sowngrow - i am definitely worried about the greenhouse getting too hot as well...the sun is really strong out here and we don't have many overcast days so i can definitely see everything frying if i'm not careful. what do you shade your greenhouse with? being as ours is going to be portable, should i position it in partial shade near some trees maybe? i will definitely e-mail you if you really don't mind, i could use the help! :o)

I have a shadecloth over my greenhouse. I do have two automatic vents, but the door must be opened on sunny days too. Feel free to email me.

Christoval being just south of San Angelo would be 7 or 7b in so use that as your starting guide then use get with the agrilife people in San Angelo on proper timing and varieties of veggies and other crops. They can help a lot with this and unless a garden webber is in the area would be a important source for local conditions.
As to a GH as you describe I think Texasflip offers some great starting points for you....Unless you come up with a heat source the nights will still freeze for you through Feb maybe even March so stay to cool season veggies for this season... learn some and grow some and continue to ask more specific questions as you go along.... many here can help in several different ways. You may also go to the greenhouse forum here on gardenweb I have found many there to be very open and helpful to specific questions in there situations. Lurking there will give you a better idea of some of the challenges you will face learning about GH growing. I would suggest learning all you can about container culture as this sound like you best starting point for the next year or so. Also think about raised beds and how to keep the critters out before you actually start building them so you can make it as good as you can the first time.. Good Luck and Happy Growing David.
PS never be afraid of asking a questions. As I have told thousands of customers and fellow gardeners the only dumb question is the unasked one:)

Hello Karabeth. Yep, gardening can be intimidating when you first start. There are so many questions. I tell people who are new to an area to go around the neighborhoods and see what people are growing.. what is doing well there. Local nurseries should be able to help you a lot, if they are the small ones. Big box stores usually employ people who really don't know much about the plants they sell.

If the area has a garden club, ask if you can join in one meeting and make some garden friends.

Check here on GardenWEb to see if there is a plant swap planned for the spring in that area. Even if you have nothing to swap, you will learn a lot by attending.

If you have a lot of rocks you could use those rocks for great borders. When given lemons....
However, raised beds would probably be a good idea.

and you can email me any time you like ! I love to help new gardeners and I have hosted and attended plant swaps for over 10 years....I LOVE them ! and I love talking others into attending.

good luck !
patty
castroville