Adding mid-season high tunnels?

ddsack · August 2, 2009

Has anyone else been desperate enough to think of adding a large partial plastic enclosure for tomatoes 2/3's of the way through the season? We have only the month of August left here, and highs next week will only be in the low 70's (22C) so not a lot of hope for much change the rest of the month.

I've gotten a few ripe early tomatoes, but the big ones I really crave are behind and unless the weather heats up dramatically likely won't have time to ripen on the vine.

I'm seriously considering adding large plastic tents over at least some of the tomato beds to concentrate a little more heat during the day. The main problem is making the structure temporary, yet sturdy enough to stand some wind without flying away. Also, it has to be high enough to allow some added growth higher than the current support (I grow trellised on cattle panels) in raised beds, so that also affects the placement of supports, because of walking and access space etc. I am pretty creative and have lots of ideas, just limited in the amount of effort and money that I want to sink into this project.

If anyone has already done something similar and has ideas or pictures, I'd love to hear about it.

Sherry_AK · August 2, 2009

I haven't added shelter for heat mid- to late-season, but I have added a cover to keep the rain off when it becomes cool and rainy. And it really helped.

robin303 · August 5, 2009

It's amazing what you can do with 3/4" PVC pipe. Real cheap too.

ddsack · August 5, 2009

Yes, Robin. I think PVC is the way to go in the future.

I have one frame that I use for early/late lettuce and it works really well, but it's too low for the tomatoes. If I hadn't been such an optimist that this summer would be warmer than last year, I would have done better planning and had something ready by now. I like the idea of having pieces that break down for storage, yet have some firm permanent brackets affixed to the wooden frames of the beds. I have to replace the rotten wood of some beds before next spring anyway, so will add some improvements then.

We have about 10 acres of woods on our property, so if I can get my husband to get out the chain saw, I was thinking of using some aspen poles to make a huge tent frame over some of the adjacent beds and drape plastic over that. I can see a problem might be wind and a big balloon flapping away into the woods.

If instead of using one big sheet of plastic, would it help to use parallel pieces of 2' to 3' (foot) sections with an inch or less gap between each section to release some of the air pressure? The lower parts would all be attached to a long board by lathe so it could be rolled up and down for ventilation as needed. I guess I am looking for a quick and dirty fix for now, just to see if it will make any difference this late in the season. We are so far behind this year, my sweet corn is just tasseling. Some years we were eating it by now.

August 2, 2009	#1
ddsack Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Northern Minnesota - zone 3 Posts: 3,231	Adding mid-season high tunnels? Has anyone else been desperate enough to think of adding a large partial plastic enclosure for tomatoes 2/3's of the way through the season? We have only the month of August left here, and highs next week will only be in the low 70's (22C) so not a lot of hope for much change the rest of the month. I've gotten a few ripe early tomatoes, but the big ones I really crave are behind and unless the weather heats up dramatically likely won't have time to ripen on the vine. I'm seriously considering adding large plastic tents over at least some of the tomato beds to concentrate a little more heat during the day. The main problem is making the structure temporary, yet sturdy enough to stand some wind without flying away. Also, it has to be high enough to allow some added growth higher than the current support (I grow trellised on cattle panels) in raised beds, so that also affects the placement of supports, because of walking and access space etc. I am pretty creative and have lots of ideas, just limited in the amount of effort and money that I want to sink into this project. If anyone has already done something similar and has ideas or pictures, I'd love to hear about it. __________________ Dee **************

August 5, 2009	#4
ddsack Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Northern Minnesota - zone 3 Posts: 3,231	Yes, Robin. I think PVC is the way to go in the future. I have one frame that I use for early/late lettuce and it works really well, but it's too low for the tomatoes. If I hadn't been such an optimist that this summer would be warmer than last year, I would have done better planning and had something ready by now. I like the idea of having pieces that break down for storage, yet have some firm permanent brackets affixed to the wooden frames of the beds. I have to replace the rotten wood of some beds before next spring anyway, so will add some improvements then. We have about 10 acres of woods on our property, so if I can get my husband to get out the chain saw, I was thinking of using some aspen poles to make a huge tent frame over some of the adjacent beds and drape plastic over that. I can see a problem might be wind and a big balloon flapping away into the woods. If instead of using one big sheet of plastic, would it help to use parallel pieces of 2' to 3' (foot) sections with an inch or less gap between each section to release some of the air pressure? The lower parts would all be attached to a long board by lathe so it could be rolled up and down for ventilation as needed. I guess I am looking for a quick and dirty fix for now, just to see if it will make any difference this late in the season. We are so far behind this year, my sweet corn is just tasseling. Some years we were eating it by now. __________________ Dee **************

August 2, 2009	#2
Sherry_AK Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Alaska Zone 3/4 Posts: 1,857	I haven't added shelter for heat mid- to late-season, but I have added a cover to keep the rain off when it becomes cool and rainy. And it really helped.

August 5, 2009	#3
robin303 Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Austin, TX Zone 8b Posts: 531	It's amazing what you can do with 3/4" PVC pipe. Real cheap too.