For people who would like to do more gardening but live in a short growing season area, a hobby greenhouse is the answer. A hobby greenhouse is not large enough to produce vegetables or flowers on a commercial basis. It will, however, give you a place for a tomato plant or two and some fresh greens even if you live in the northern regions. Greenhouse enthusiasts even have their own association, called the Hobby Greenhouse Association, which publishes a quarterly magazine. The organization also sponsors events and helps individuals connect to get help with the aspect of gardening that they are interested in, whether it’s growing cacti or saving seeds.

If you are in the market for a hobby greenhouse, there are several types on the market. The smallest type is not large enough to walk into and must be accessed from the outside. It resembles an old-fashioned phone booth made all of glass and outfitted with shelves. This type is designed to fit as many plants as possible in as small a place as possible. The shelves are made of glass to allow as much light as possible to reach plants on the lower shelves. Another inexpensive version of this sort of hobby greenhouse is shelving covered with a zippered tent of clear plastic. This sort of arrangement is great for the small-scale hobby gardener wanting a place to keep her flowers or houseplant starts.

There are a variety of designs of hobby greenhouse that are large enough to walk into but made entirely of clear glass or plastic. They are often about the same size as a small storage building. Some independent builders have started making these to sell locally. Among national brands, one of the nicest is called the “Solar Prism.” It is called this because of it’s unique construction. This hobby greenhouse is made of a single piece of durable clear plastic which is designed to work like tiny prisms side by side. They trap the rays of the sun and shoot them back into the greenhouse at all angles. For this reason, these little greenhouses are said to glow when the weather is cloudy.

Better hobby greenhouses are equipped with automatic sensors that open vents which allow ventilation and keep the interior temperatures from getting too high. These are a great labor saver, but can get expensive. Another benefit sometimes found in nicer greenhouses is a built in irrigation or misting system. Members of the Hobby Greenhouse Association, or HGA, have invented many interesting designs of greenhouses.

If gardening is your hobby, greenhouse growing will interest you. With a greenhouse, you can have the earliest tomatoes and salad greens all year. You can also start seedlings for the main garden early in the spring when outdoor temperatures would kill them. A hobby greenhouse can be a good investment.

Some adults never seem to grow up. They seem to retain their childlike wonder at the world around them. These are the adults who have started a toy hobby. Kids like to hang around with these adults because they seem more like kids. Sometimes having a child or a grandchild can spark an interest in toys. Be that as it may, a toy hobby will keep a person young at heart.

Many women love dolls and never outgrow them. Some prefer baby dolls, some fashion dolls, and still others go for antique or decorative dolls. Often an interest in dolls will spill over into a craft interest, as the doll lover begins to craft clothing and accessories for favorite dolls. Sometimes the hobbyist becomes skilled at crafting the dolls themselves. Some types of dolls that are often hand-crafted are rag dolls and cloth bodied dolls with ceramic heads. It is not uncommon to find older women who have an entire room of their homes filled with special dolls on display.

Older men, on the other hand, (and sometimes women, too) often like cars and trucks. Antique metal cars are hot collectibles, with some older ones being quite valuable. Matchbox cars have always been loved, but so have the large Tonka dumptruck, road grader, and bulldozer. You can bet the grandkids will want to play with your trucks and cars.

A toy hobby that is extremely popular is collecting Beanie Babies. These small velour animals, made by the Ty company, each have a personality all its own. You can find Beanie Babies in every type of animal you can think of. A similar hobby is collecting teddy bears. There are many Beanie Baby teddy bears, but a teddy bear collector will probably want to branch out to collect other types of bears. In fact, many bear collectors have figurines and other items collected in addition to their teddy bears.

Wooden toys are popular among adults, both to craft and to collect. There is something quaint and pleasant about a child playing with a handcrafted wooden toy. Wooden toys make attractive home accents wherever they get dropped, which is not something you can say about the latest plastic gizmo. People who like country decorating often prefer wooden toys for their kids.

You don’t have to outgrow toys! A toy hobby will keep you young at heart and make you a favorite among the kids in your neighborhood. Whether you collect toys or craft them, a toy hobby is something you can play around with!