A shock of green disrupts the white and brown winter landscape in
Neil Bertrando’s backyard as he peeks beneath the covering of
a hoop house. Under the arching fabric, baby greens, turnips and kale
grow in a wild, enticing mass.
Beside this hoop house sit three others, their fabric either sagging
beneath a layer of icy snow or torn off in the wind. It’s
testament to the trial and error that’s come with attempting to
extend the growing season with a hoop house.
“If you’re going to try something like this, you have to
be willing to make mistakes,” says Bertrando, owner of Radiant
Tortoise Permaculture. He lives at Loping Coyote Farms, the home of the
Rosenbloom family, which is developing their roughly one-acre property
in Reno as a permaculture demonstration site. In hindsight, Bertrando
says they probably should’ve started with one hoop house and
managed it intensively, rather than several at once.
“Start small, pick a good location in the sun, and think very
specifically about how to deal with snow and wind in the winter,”
he says.
Hoop houses, at their most basic, involve arching rebar and PVC
piping over a crops on the ground and covering them with either fabric
or plastic. Tunnel-like in appearance, they’re similar to
greenhouses but not built to be permanent. The main benefit? Adding 30
to 60 days on either end of the season, and the ability to harvest
fresh produce in the dead of winter.
With hoop houses, the usual rules don’t apply. “If you
want winter vegetables, you’d plant cold-hardy vegetables as
early as August and September,” says Virginia Johnson of the
certified organic farm Custom Gardens, which has used hoop houses since
the 1990s. “You can’t plant lettuce in January and have
your crop in 30 days like you would in better weather days. Having a
hoop house puts you into a whole different climate range of
what’s going on outside. It might move our zones two or three
zones to the south.”
Depending on your needs, scale and budget, there are different ways
to build a hoop house. Bertrando and his farming partner Nate
Rosenbloom were aiming for low-maintenance, low-cost hoop houses. Using
materials from a local surplus store, they bought PVC pipes, rebar,
Agribon row cover in bulk and clothesline string, allowing them to
build a hoop house for less than $30.
Ray and Virginia Johnson are working farmers, with CSA subscribers
and an onsite produce stand. Their priorities were high yields and
longevity, leading Virginia to advise, “Don’t skimp on your
cover.” She says fabric and even some plastics don’t hold
up long-term, as evidenced by the stories of many farmers and backyard
gardeners who’ve tried both and watched them flail in a harsh
wind. Custom Gardens uses a super strong woven plastic from Northern
Greenhouse in North Dakota. It’s held up to Nevada wind and snow
for about 10 years.
For those interested in building a hoop house, Virginia advises they
research the structures, then visit farms, such as theirs, that have
them.
“See what their experience is, take what you want, and leave
the rest,” she says. “It has to fit what you’re
looking for. We love ’em.”