Glasshouses are magical places. They create their own climate that can enable certain crops to grow throughout the year. The French called their first glasshouses orangeries, they were used to protect orange trees from freezing. The Victorian era was the golden era of the glasshouse. Spectacular glasshouses were constructed as the upper class competed to build the biggest and most elaborate structures. We are surrounded by glasshouses where we live, but sadly, most of them are neglected. Nina and Billy explored an old glasshouse that I wish I could restore, it would be my hide-away from the Auckland Winter where I would grow beautiful tomatoes. I met some amazing tomato growers in Nelson, the Romano’s who have been growing tomatoes there, since the 1940’s. Nelson’s capri tomato is classified as a “family heirloom cultivar” – a non-hybrid fruit that has been grown for several generations from seed passed down within families. The glasshouses were transferred from Tony Romano to his son and daughter, they removed all the panels and transferred the steel structures to their property in Cable Bay. Rebuilding the glasshouses took a full year of hard labour. Read their glasshouse tomato story here.
