2018 ASHS Annual Conference

Rebecca Grube Sideman, University of New Hampshire Cooperative Extension, Durham, NH

In New England, the numbers of high tunnels in use, and acreage covered by high tunnels, has increase dramatically over the last decade. In New Hampshire alone, an estimated 10 hectares of new high tunnels have been installed during this time period, spurred in part by the U.S. Department of Agriculture Natural Resource Conservation Service high tunnel program. Season extension structures used in New England are highly customized, sometimes incorporating one or more advanced technologies (automatic ventilation, supplemental heating, in-ground heating, etc.) in various combinations. While high tunnels lack permanent foundations and sophisticated environmental controls, the distinction between greenhouse and high tunnel is not always clear. High tunnels are most commonly used to extend the growing season and increase crop quality for warm-season crops such as tomato, pepper and eggplant, but they are also often used year-round in the Northeastern U.S. For example, fall-planting of cold-tolerant vegetable crops in unheated high tunnels for harvest and sales throughout the fall and winter months is increasingly common. We will present a regional overview of the most common high tunnel structures and production systems, with an eye towards identifying region-specific and more broadly applicable needs for research and outreach.