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  • From: Richard Stewart <rstewart AT zoomtown.com>
  • To: Market Farming <market-farming AT lists.ibiblio.org>
  • Subject: [Market-farming] High Heat Summer Lettuce Test Project
  • Date: Sat, 23 Jun 2012 08:57:13 -0400

The heat came on early this year and we went from producing about 140# a week of leafy greens to just Kale and Swiss Chard (all on drip).  We were, at our high point, producing new salad mix at about 60# per week average.  We've done a half ton so far not including what we sell at market and move through our volunteers...and my belly.

Now its bone dry and while we have a nice window of cool (but dry weather) coming up, I am figuring that unlike like last year I better plan for a more traditional hot summer.  Drip won't work well and I hate the waste of open air water guns and sprinklers.  So I have this idea.

Seed the beds, place the hoops, run a 1/4" line of micro tubing with high flow (2 GPH) misters every 2' along the top of the hoop and then cover with 30% shadecloth.

Did the first bed yesterday.
Anyone else try something similar to this?  The cost of the stuff isn't too bad when you figure most of it is in shade cloth and the hoops we already have.  The first 30' test bed took me about an hour and a half to build.  FOr the time being, so I did not have to worry about splicing this into an existing .70 drip tape feeder line I ment ahead and placed a compression 3/4" garden hose adapter onto the end of the 1/4" line.  It works awesome so far.  Temperature underneath the cloth from the misters and the light reduction is fantastic and the cloth sort of the contains the moisture in a light breeze so little is lost.  At 12 emitters putting out 24GPH on a 30' bed that is 6' across with 4" separation in lettuce rows I think the water works out very well.

Thoughts?



Richard Stewart
Carriage House Farm
North Bend, Ohio

An Ohio Century Farm Est. 1855

(513) 967-1106




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