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PureHarvest · June 16, 2016

You should consider the NRCS high tunnel program.

The standard does not require it to be as "high" as you might think. It only has to be a minimum of 6' tall.

Farmtek has a kit that is 12 wide by 50 long that is 7' high at the peak. It is 1,085 bucks.

You would have to retrofit it to have roll up sides to meet the standard.

My state pays 3.50 per square foot for beginning farmers (less than 10 years reporting farm income on your tax return). Basically you can get 2,500 square feet of structure paid for ($8,750 is the cap here, every state is different).
So you could get 4 of those farmtek low tunnels paid for.
You would have some of your own money in the base and hip boards and components for the roll up sides. And shipping.

So you could do a low "high" tunnel and cover 12x200 total area. If one tunnel could cover two rows, you'd be able to cover 400' of row.

See here for the farmtek low tunnel:

https://www.farmtek.com/farm/supplie..._105179FF.html

This has me thinking now. 400' of dwarfs on black plastic cover by a "high" low tunnel next year with no rain on them and an early start...

June 16, 2016	#35
PureHarvest Tomatovillian™ Join Date: Mar 2014 Location: Mid-Atlantic right on the line of Zone 7a and 7b Posts: 1,369	You should consider the NRCS high tunnel program. The standard does not require it to be as "high" as you might think. It only has to be a minimum of 6' tall. Farmtek has a kit that is 12 wide by 50 long that is 7' high at the peak. It is 1,085 bucks. You would have to retrofit it to have roll up sides to meet the standard. My state pays 3.50 per square foot for beginning farmers (less than 10 years reporting farm income on your tax return). Basically you can get 2,500 square feet of structure paid for ($8,750 is the cap here, every state is different). So you could get 4 of those farmtek low tunnels paid for. You would have some of your own money in the base and hip boards and components for the roll up sides. And shipping. So you could do a low "high" tunnel and cover 12x200 total area. If one tunnel could cover two rows, you'd be able to cover 400' of row. See here for the farmtek low tunnel: https://www.farmtek.com/farm/supplie..._105179FF.html This has me thinking now. 400' of dwarfs on black plastic cover by a "high" low tunnel next year with no rain on them and an early start... Last edited by PureHarvest; June 16, 2016 at 09:16 AM.