Success StoryHigh Tunnel Planning, Planting, & Production
High Tunnel Planning, Planting, & Production
Author: April Wilhoit
Planning Unit: Fleming County CES
Major Program: Home & Consumer Horticulture
Plan of Work: Adapting to Changing Agricultural Markets
Outcome: Intermediate Outcome
A recently retired Fleming County couple determined after retirement that they wanted to erect a High Tunnel and utilize it to grow fruits and vegetables. In July of 2017, a day in Lexington at UK's South Farm was planned for the couple to talk with specialist about high tunnel production and for them to gain ideas on high tunnel construction.
By August 21st of 2017 the couple had erected the high tunnel and prepared the soil for the next step of the production process. Because of their trip to UK's South Farm in July, the couple decided they wanted to make the construction of the sides easier to raise up and down form what they had initially had planned. Their construction was still a manual idea, but a lot quicker than hand rolling. They utilized a cordless drill to make the task more mechanized, yet still manual. A hiller tiller, that aids in forming a raised soil bed row, was borrowed from the Morgan County Extension Office for the Lewis County and Fleming County ANR agents to educate the couple on how to prepare the soil for the strawberry plants that they expected to receive the next week. The agents also did a hands on demonstration of how to construct the watering system and lay the gardening weed barrier. At the end of the day the high tunnel was ready for planting.
The couple planted the strawberries the last week of August and had fruits in which they sold at the Farmers Market in the Spring.
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Stories by Fleming County CES
Commercial Pesticide CEU Program
For the past several years the Fleming County ANR Agent and the Lewis County ANR Agent have teamed u... Read More
Hay Sampling to Manage Quality
Fleming Countys participation in the annual East Kentucky Hay Contest has been scare to none over th... Read More
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