Overwintering and Season Extension of Organic Culinary Herbs in Unheated Tunnels

Project Overview

FNE03-464
Project Type: Farmer
Funds awarded in 2003: $6,237.00
Projected End Date: 12/31/2003
Matching Non-Federal Funds: $10,945.00
Region: Northeast
State: New York
Project Leader:
Michael Glos
Cornell University

Commodities

  • Additional Plants: herbs

Practices

  • Crop Production: continuous cropping, cover crops, double cropping, intercropping, organic fertilizers
  • Education and Training: technical assistance, demonstration, extension, farmer to farmer, on-farm/ranch research, participatory research
  • Farm Business Management: new enterprise development, budgets/cost and returns, marketing management, agricultural finance, value added
  • Pest Management: biological control, cultural control, field monitoring/scouting, integrated pest management, physical control, prevention, row covers (for pests), trap crops, weed ecology
  • Production Systems: general crop production
  • Soil Management: green manures, organic matter, soil quality/health
  • Sustainable Communities: sustainability measures

    Proposal summary:

    Historically, growers in New England can only offer four or five months of annual and perennial herbs, and the farmer is interested in developing techniques to both extend the season and improve the overwintering of tender herbs like rosemary by using unheated high-tunnels. Some plants will be mulched or grown under hooped row covers, and the harvest results and tender-plant survival will be recorded. The results will be a presented at a field day, in an extension newsletter, and through conferences and media outreach.

    Any opinions, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in this publication are those of the author(s) and do not necessarily reflect the view of the U.S. Department of Agriculture or SARE.