Many people in Kentucky are learning about the seasonal high tunnel initiative grant program, through the Natural Resources Conservation Service of the USDA and in Barren County, in the past 5 years, over twenty-five producer farmers have been selected through the application process to advantage of that grant program and are now producing fruits and vegetables year-round, with the aid of unheated hoop houses also known as high tunnels and some that have been converted to seasonally heated greenhouses.  With so many producers, new farmers, and hobby farmers inquiring about this program and utilization of unheated high tunnels three Mammoth Cave Area Extension Counties partnered: Metcalfe, Barren and Monroe Counties - to offer this high tunnel production and farm tour program on May 3rd, 2018 at the Metcalfe County Cooperative Extension Service office. 

24 people participated in this program, which offered a UK Specialist led high tunnel production program in the morning, then led participants on tours of three local farms that have utilized the NRCS grant program, to obtain high tunnels and that are utilizing them in different ways.  This group included 2 ANR, 1 Horticulture, 7 Family and Consumer Sciences Extension Agents, (with three Agents from Northern Kentucky) and 10 farmer/producer participants.  The three Metcalfe County Farms toured included: Hill and Hollow Farm CSA; Valley View Orchards and Heron's Hill Farm. By touring three different sites growers got the opportunity to see the different possibilities and different methods of practice that are available through high tunnel production. It can be used on large operations that produce a great deal or smaller lots with only a few acres in production. 

A post program evaluation was e-mailed out to all participants on June 20, roughly 6 weeks after the program was conducted, 8 participants responded.  Seven respondents indicated that the morning educational session and farm tours offered were "Excellent" or a 5 on a scale of 1 - 5.  One respondent rated the morning educational session as a 4 and the farm tours as a 5 on the same scale.

Three respondents indicated that they already had a high tunnel, when they participated.  Two of these participants indicated that they have made changes to how they are utilizing their tunnels, based on what they learned from either the educational session or the tours, including: Implementing the use of water timers for their drip irrigation, implementing the use of fertilizer in the water source, implementing the use of ground cover crops, in low traffic areas to reduce weed growth, adding raised beds on the ground to improve accessibility to rows and crops. 

Of the three respondents who did not have a high tunnel before the program, one participant has obtained the paperwork for the NRCS seasonal high tunnel initiative, to apply for the grant to obtain a high tunnel and one participant indicated that they were going to pursue the addition of a seasonally heated greenhouse, as a result of participating in this program.  Respondents also indicated the following NEW information that they learned as a result of the farm tours: Diversification on small acreage farms, out of zone crops that can be grown in both high tunnels and seasonally heated green houses, like the Hill and Hollow Farm meyer lemon trees and the Heron's Hill Farm ginger and turmeric crops, soil fertility and amending and the extent to which the normal growing season is extended in a high tunnel.

This program has sparked an interest in producers for more information on high tunnel production. A plan is underway to bring a high tunnel series to the Mammoth Cave Area in the fall to help growers continue gaining knowledge about high tunnel production. The hope is to get return participants as well as bring in those that could not make the field day.