scholarly journals Rowcover and High Tunnel Growing Systems in the United States

1996 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 172-176 ◽  
Author(s):  
Otho S. Wells
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Production Systems ◽  
The United States ◽  
Tunnel Construction ◽  
High Tunnel ◽  
Descriptive Information ◽  
Intensive Production ◽  
High Tunnels ◽  
Tunnel System

Rowcovers and high tunnels are two intensive production systems used by commercial growers to extend the season and to improve yields of vegetables and strawberries. There are many types of rowcovers. These materials are summarized with descriptive information, primary use, and cost. The basics of high tunnel construction are presented to facilitate setting up a high-tunnel system.

scholarly journals Trends in Soil Quality Under High Tunnels

HortScience ◽  
2010 ◽  
Vol 45 (10) ◽  
pp. 1534-1538 ◽  
Author(s):  
Sharon J.B. Knewtson ◽  
Rhonda Janke ◽  
M.B. Kirkham ◽  
Kimberly A. Williams ◽  
Edward E. Carey
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Organic Matter ◽  
Soil Quality ◽  
Particulate Organic Matter ◽  
Soil Surface ◽  
The United States ◽  
Total Carbon ◽  
Surface Salinity ◽  
High Tunnel ◽  
High Tunnels

Growers have indicated that changes in soil quality under production in high tunnels is an important problem, but these have not yet been quantified or critically assessed in the central Great Plains of the United States. We conducted surveys of grower perceptions of soil quality in their tunnels (n = 81) and compared selected soil quality indicators (salinity and particulate organic matter carbon) under high tunnels of varying ages with those of adjacent fields at sites in Kansas, Missouri, Nebraska, and Iowa in the United States. Fourteen percent of growers surveyed considered soil quality to be a problem in their high tunnels, and there were significant correlations between grower perceptions of soil quality problems and reported observations of clod formation and surface crusting and to a lesser extent surface mineral deposition. Grower perception of soil quality and grower observation of soil characteristics were not related to high tunnel age. Soil surface salinity was elevated in some high tunnels compared with adjacent fields but was not related to time under the high tunnel. In the soil upper 5 cm, salinity in fields did not exceed 2 dS·m−1 and was less than 2 dS·m−1 under 74% of high tunnels and less than 4 dS·m−1 in 97% of high tunnels. The particulate organic matter carbon fraction was higher in high tunnels than adjacent fields at 73% of locations sampled. Particulate organic matter carbon measured 0.11 to 0.67 g particulate organic matter per g of the total carbon under high tunnels sampled. Particulate organic matter carbon in the soil was also not correlated to age of high tunnel. Soil quality as measured in this study was not negatively impacted by use of high tunnel structures over time.

scholarly journals Economic Analysis of Growing Grafted Cucumber Plants for High Tunnel Production

2021 ◽  
Vol 31 (2) ◽  
pp. 181-187
Author(s):  
Orlando F. Rodriguez Izaba ◽  
Wenjing Guan ◽  
Ariana P. Torres
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
The United States ◽  
Cultural Practice ◽  
Economic Feasibility ◽  
Production Costs ◽  
Vegetable Production ◽  
Marketable Yield ◽  
High Tunnel ◽  
Budget Analysis ◽  
High Tunnels

Cucumber (Cucumis sativus) is one of the most important vegetables produced and consumed in the United States. In the midwestern United States, a major obstacle to spring cucumber production is low soil temperatures during plant establishment. High tunnel is a popular tool for season extension of vegetable production. Low soil temperature is a challenge for cucumber production even inside high tunnels. Grafting is a cultural practice known to help control soilborne diseases and improve plants’ tolerance to abiotic stresses. Recent studies found that using grafted cucumber plants with cold-tolerant rootstocks greatly benefited early-season seedless cucumber production in high tunnels. The objective of this study was to analyze the economic feasibility of growing grafted cucumber in high tunnels. A comparison of partial costs and returns between growing grafted and nongrafted cucumbers in a high tunnel in Vincennes, IN, was conducted. Data were used to develop a partial budget analysis and sensitivity tests. Data included production costs, marketable yield, and price of cucumber through different market channels. This study provided a baseline reference for growers interested in grafting seedless cucumber and for high tunnel production. Although costs of grafted transplants were higher, their yield and potential revenue helped to offset the higher costs. Results indicated that grafting can help farmers increase net returns through the increasing yield of grafted plants. Results from the sensitivity analysis illustrated how the increased yield of grafted cucumbers offsets the extra cost incurred in the technique while providing a higher revenue. While actual production costs for individual farmers may vary, our findings suggested that grafting can be an economically feasible tool for high tunnel seedless cucumber production.

scholarly journals Rootstock Evaluation for Grafted Cucumbers Grown in High Tunnels: Yield and Plant Growth

HortScience ◽  
2020 ◽  
Vol 55 (6) ◽  
pp. 914-919
Author(s):  
Wenjing Guan ◽  
Dean Haseman ◽  
Dennis Nowaskie
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Interspecific Hybrid ◽  
The United States ◽  
Cucurbita Moschata ◽  
Early Season ◽  
High Tunnel ◽  
Midwest United States ◽  
Vine Growth ◽  
High Tunnels ◽  
Figleaf Gourd

Grafting technology is increasingly being accepted in the United States, particularly for tomato (Solanum lycopersicum) production under protected structures. There is a great potential to expand this technology to other high tunnel crops. Using grafting technology in cucumber (Cucumis sativus) production is widely adopted in Asia to enhance cucumbers’ tolerance to low temperatures. But this technique is rarely used in the United States mainly because of the lack of information on the performance of the grafted plants under local production systems. Figleaf gourd (Cucurbita ficifolia), Cucurbita moschata, and squash interspecific hybrid (Cucurbita maxima × C. moschata) are the most used cucumber rootstocks worldwide. But their comparative performance was largely unknown for cucumber production in high tunnels in the Midwest United States. This study was therefore designed to compare the major types of cucumber rootstocks with the goal of identifying a rootstock with the maximized benefits for high tunnel cucumber production in the area. Nongrafted ‘Socrates’ and ‘Socrates’ grafted with Cucurbita moschata, squash interspecific hybrid, and figleaf gourd rootstocks were evaluated in high tunnels from March to June or July in 2016–19 at the Southwest Purdue Agricultural Center in Vincennes, IN. Transplant establishment, vine growth, and yield in early- and main-crop seasons were investigated. Grafted plants regardless of rootstocks ensured transplant survival even when the soil temperatures were dropped below 10 °C. Suboptimal soil conditions were encountered in the first month after transplanting. Grafted cucumbers with squash interspecific hybrid rootstock significantly increased vine growth from March to April and increased early-season yields (yield before 15 May) by 1.8 to 18.2 times compared with the early-season yields of the nongrafted cucumbers. The benefits provided by using grafting technology dismissed around middle May. Only squash interspecific hybrid rootstock improved cucumber yields in the entire production seasons. Cucumbers grafted with figleaf gourd rootstock had the lowest yield and the least plant growth after mid-May, indicating figleaf gourd rootstock may not be suitable for cucumber production under the current production system. Overall, squash interspecific hybrid was the most promising rootstock for early-season high tunnel cucumber production in the Midwest United States.

scholarly journals Effects of Three Production Systems on Muskmelon Yield and Quality in New England

HortScience ◽  
2016 ◽  
Vol 51 (5) ◽  
pp. 510-517 ◽  
Author(s):  
Mina Vescera ◽  
Rebecca Nelson Brown
Keyword(s):  
New England ◽  
Open Field ◽  
Air Temperature ◽  
Production System ◽  
Production Systems ◽  
High Tunnel ◽  
High Tunnels ◽  
Low Tunnels ◽  
Tunnel System ◽  
Field Production

Muskmelons (Cucumis melo L.) are routinely grown on black plastic mulch, as the associated increase in soil temperatures, more stable soil moisture, and decreased weed competition result in higher yields than in bare soil production. However, mulch does little to moderate air temperature, which can be below optimum for melon production under New England conditions. One option for increasing air temperature is to grow plants in unheated hoophouses, or high tunnels. Another option is to use low tunnels consisting of ventilated clear plastic rowcovers supported over wire hoops. This study compared low tunnels and high tunnels to open field production for muskmelon production in a peri-urban market farm system in Rhode Island. Five hybrid muskmelon cultivars were grown for 2 years to compare earliness, yield, and fruit quality among the three production systems. Both tunnel systems increased the rate at which growing degree-days (GDD) accumulated relative to open field production, and resulted in statistically significant differences in starting date of first harvest, with fruit in the high tunnel treatment ripening first. The high tunnel production system increased yields per hectare in both years relative to the other production systems due to increased planting density, but not due to increased yields per plant. Marketable yields per hectare from the high tunnel system significantly exceeded those from the open field for four out of the five cultivars in 2011, but for only one out of five cultivars in 2012. Marketable yields from the low tunnel system were ≈10% higher than the open field in 2011, and almost double the open field yields in 2012. Fruit from the low tunnels had the highest concentration of soluble solids in both years. The high tunnel production system did not increase yields sufficiently to offset the associated increase in costs of production, suggesting that muskmelon is not a good crop for high tunnel production in New England. In contrast, a yield increase of only 15% would be sufficient to offset the increased costs of employing the low tunnel production system. Low tunnels have the potential to greatly benefit muskmelon production in New England, particularly in years or locations where GDD accumulate slowly.

Developing twinning cattle for commercial production

2008 ◽  
Vol 48 (7) ◽  
pp. 930 ◽  
Author(s):  
L. J. Cummins ◽  
C. A. Morris ◽  
B. W. Kirkpatrick
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
Production Systems ◽  
The United States ◽  
Research Centre ◽  
Commercial Application ◽  
Term Selection ◽  
Calf Survival ◽  
Potential Benefits ◽  
Meat Animal

Long-term selection programs in the United States and New Zealand have developed twinning herds. In Nebraska, the United States Meat Animal Research Centre population had a calving rate of 1.56 per parturition in 2004. They have shown that the location of ovulation has an important effect on the success of pregnancy and that ovulations ≥3 are probably undesirable. These cattle have issues associated with calving difficulty and calf survival, which present challenges for commercial application. Intensive management using existing technology and/or future genetic improvement to address these traits are required to realise the potential benefits to beef production systems.

scholarly journals Small Fruit Production in High Tunnels

2009 ◽  
Vol 19 (1) ◽  
pp. 44-49 ◽  
Author(s):  
Kathleen Demchak
Keyword(s):  
United States ◽  
The United States ◽  
Fruit Production ◽  
Rubus Idaeus ◽  
Control Measures ◽  
Red Raspberry ◽  
Yield Increase ◽  
Small Fruit ◽  
High Tunnels ◽  
Berry Crops

High tunnels are a relatively economical form of protected culture, and offer cultural advantages such as protection from the elements and an extended production season. Interest in high tunnels for small fruit production has been increasing in North America. Growers in the United States and Canada are using multi-bay and single-bay high tunnels for production of red raspberry (Rubus idaeus), black raspberry (Rubus occidentalis), blackberry (Rubus subgenus Rubus), strawberry (Fragaria ×ananassa), and blueberry (Vaccinium spp.). Research trials using high tunnels are being conducted in numerous places across the United States. In most instances, high tunnels increased yields of berry crops, improved quality, and decreased the incidence of most diseases compared with field production, powdery mildew (Sphaerotheca macularis) being a notable exception. The insect and mite complex encountered in tunnels when growing berry crops has changed markedly, often becoming similar to that which might have been expected in greenhouses, with numbers of two-spotted spider mite (Tetranychus urticae), whitefly (Aleyrodidae), and thrips (Frankliniella spp.) reaching high levels without control measures. In studies at The Pennsylvania State University, primocane-bearing cultivars of red raspberry plants produced at least two to three times as much marketable fruit in tunnels as in a previous field study, with substantial summer and fall crops obtained. ‘Triple Crown’ thornless blackberry produced very high marketable yields in the tunnels, even though winter injury historically resulted in a lack of blackberry production in the field. Strawberry production in a plasticulture system using short-day or day-neutral cultivars was found to be viable; however, the primary benefit of high tunnels for strawberry may have been reliability of production rather than a yield increase. Potential reasons for improvements in productivity and quality are numerous and warrant further attention.

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