ATTRA Question of the Week

J.K.
Indiana

Answer: I am pleased to provide you with information on hoophouses and high tunnels for vegetable production.

Please see the ATTRA publications Season Extension Techniques for Market Gardeners, Organic Greenhouse Tomato Production, Compost Heated Greenhouses, Root Zone Heating for Greenhouse Crops, and Solar Greenhouses Resource List.

Please refer to the ATTRA publication that details high-tunnel and greenhouse information, titled “Season Extension Techniques for Market Gardeners.” This publication has detailed information on using high tunnels for season extension on your farm as well as rudimentary plans on constructing them in the appendices.

In your region, a hoop house would be most effective as a season extension tool in the winter, early spring, and late fall. Over wintering cool season crops, such as lettuce, radishes, and other greens, can be planted in there or you can extend your warm-season crops further into the late fall or earlier in the late spring/ early summer.

Generally hoop houses, or high tunnels, are simple unheated “greenhouse-like” structures that provide less control of environmental conditions than full greenhouses at substantially less cost. They are usually covered with a single layer of plastic and are ventilated only through roll-up sides. A typical high tunnel does not have a heating system, but it might be necessary in your climate.

Drip irrigation is often used in high tunnels. The production system may be in-ground culture, or pots can be placed on the ground or on benches. The hoops for the high tunnel are often placed approximately 4 feet apart. Many plans call for using 2” PVC for the hoops, which is a more economical alternative, but they tend to be less rigid and more susceptible in areas of high winds. A narrow width of the building lends itself well to roll-up-side ventilation (approximately 14 feet or so). Tunnels and greenhouses with vertical sides which rise up before curving provide better side to side ventilation and allow for better use of growing spaces along the edges inside. In order to have vertical sides, however, you must use fabricated pipe, or bend the pipe yourself.

High tunnels are commonly sold in units of 48 or 98 feet long, but they can be ordered in any length. The cost of a 14-by 96 foot unit of single poly, roll-up sides and including end-walls and doors, and drip tape is about $2000-$3000, depending on the construction materials.

A great on-line resource for constructing and utilizing high-tunnels is http://www.hightunnels.org. If you have internet access I highly recommend giving this website a look. This excellent on-line resource has three different plans on how to build simple hoop houses as well as cultural information on growing certain vegetables and fruits in them. It seems to be the best, comprehensive, and farmer-friendly resource about high tunnels on the internet.

Recommended High Tunnels Books

The Hoophouse Handbook, by Lynn Byczynski, 2003, 60 pages
Growing for Market
PO Box 3747
Lawrence KS 66046
800-307-8949

High Tunnels, by Ted Blomgren, Tracy Frisch, and Steve Moore, May 2007
Published by the University of Vermont Center for Sustainable Agriculture
UVM Center for Sustainable Agriculture
106 High Point Center, Suite 300
Colchester, VT 05446
Phone: (802) 656-5459.

Recommended High Tunnels Suppliers

Haygrove Tunnels USA
116 Trail Road North
Elizabethtown, PA 17022
Toll-Free Telephone: 866-HAYGROVE

FarmTek
1440 Field of Dreams Way
Dyersville, IA 52040
Toll-Free Fax 1-800-457-8887

Recommended Irrigation Suppliers

Rain-Flo
Call for a catalog. Pennsylvania company.
717-445-6976

DripWorks
190 Sanhedrin Circle
Willits, CA 95490
800-522-3747

Vegetable Growing Books

Grubinger, Vernon. 1999. Sustainable Vegetable Production from Start-up to Market. Natural Resource, Agriculture and Engineering Service. Ithaca, NY.
NRAES Cooperative Extension
PO Box 4557
Ithaca, New York 14852-4557
Phone: (607) 255-7654

Four Season Harvest: Organic Vegetables From Your Home Garden All Year Long. Eliot Coleman. Chelsea Green, 1992, second edition 1999.
Chelsea Green Publishing
85 North Main Street, Suite 120
White River Jct., Vermont 05001.
800-639-4099

Resources

How to build a high tunnel. Amanda Ferguson. Department of Horticulture, University of Kentucky.

Hoop House Construction for New Mexico: 12-ft. x 40-ft. Hoop House. Del Jimenez, Ron Walser and Reynaldo Torres. New Mexico State University, Las Cruces, New Mexico.