Posted on 01/17/2011 5:00:30 AM PST by markomalley
The federal government has spent millions of dollars to help farmers nationwide buy greenhouse-like structures called high tunnels that can add valuable weeks and even months to their growing seasons by protecting produce from chilly temperatures.
About $13 million has gone to more than 2,400 farmers in 43 states to help pay for the low-tech tunnels that look like a cross between Quonset huts and conventional greenhouses. The structures, also known as hoop houses, have been particularly beneficial in the north, where they allow farmers to plant as much as four weeks early and keep growing later in the fall.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture touts the tunnels as environmentally friendly and a way to help meet the demand for local and sustainable produce. Experts say high tunnels employ efficient drip irrigation systems and reduce pest problems, diseases and fertilizer costs.
(Excerpt) Read more at beaumontenterprise.com ...
....for an investment by the farmers, not for government pork.
Okay...they just had to play the “environmentally friendly” card. Just more PC talk.
Dam* it.
Maybe I can get one for my Townhouse’s 2nd story deck.....Habeneros, herbs...etc.
But seriously.....more food production to keep food costs down....not bad.
If they can couple a passive solar storage in the mix...even longer and earlier for some plant foods.
Yet people bitch at $3.00 for a head of lettuce.
Okay, now I’m talking to myself.
If we are going to spend federal dollars on anything but defense, this seems reasonable. It is better than the stupid corn ethanol (burn your food) program and paying farmers not to farm.
We are going to have a food crises at some point, so investment like this might reduce that damage.
It is a matter of national security.
That's what GREENHOUSES are!..................
New name, new GOV money!
A) These sort of structures are a great idea.
B) If farmers want these sort of structures they should BUY THEM THEMSELVES on the open market at prevailing rates.
Farm subsidy is just another form of marxist income redistribution.
“That’s what GREENHOUSES are!..................”
Yes...but I’m talking about a heat storage system collected during the day and used at night....greenhouses do this by themselves to less extent, but earlier and later can be enhanced with a heat storage system....perferably passive.
The article doesn’t make mention of this.
Not much sun to store in the winter.
Geothermal would be much better and works around the clock 24/7/365.................
“BUY THEM THEMSELVES”
Can’t disagree with you on this.
The greenhouses are still a good idea....but yes, invest in themselves they should.
“Yet people bitch at $3.00 for a head of lettuce.”
No, I laugh and walk on by.
“Not much sun to store in the winter.
Geothermal would be much better and works around the clock 24/7/365.................”
Depends on the latitude.
I’m not suggesting, other than geothermal, that my suggestion is good through the whole winter. Just later in the fall and earlier in the spring.
My dad had a little green house (not the hoop) that allowed him to have some rather impressive tomato plants ready by the end of May in Minnesota (Brainerd). He had grow lamps and a heater that, along with a fanned duct that drew heat from high to low, made for stable moister and temperatures.
If the hoops had a source of geothermal/solar, were ever this makes sense, and low powered fans to draw risen air back down to the ground level, a lot less energy is needed.
More federal debt spending.
Federal debt: $14,040,000,000,000.00
That’s $14.04 Trillion
And the spending rolls on.
I am convinced that there are those in government who are currently deliberately attempting to bankrupt America and ruin the private sector free market Capitalist economy.
Who is it that takes the oath to defend this nation and it’s Constitution from both foreign enemies and domestic enemies?
What must Leftists do before they are considered this nation’s domestic enemies?
Succeed?
Thank you, Yoda.
From what I've heard about 5% of the folks up in British Columbia have similar setups in their basements....
Spending other peoples money seems to be as addictive as heroin and cigarettes.
You really wouldn’t need full geothermal to keep a constant temp.
At a certain depth, 5-10 feet, the temp of the earth remains fairly constant. A network of pipes/ducts, laid out like a radiator, buried beneath the fields could draw heat from the earth to the greenhouses with air circulated thru them. Then when the planting season starts, the fields would be planted with the young plants that were in the greenhouses................
I guess that Global Warming thing isn't happening fast enough so they need to artificially induce said warming.
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