Hoop Houses Research Articles

Protected cultivation of horticultural crops in Nepal: Current practices and future needs

Protected cultivation infers the cultivation under guarded conditions or we can say simply, cultivation under a modified atmosphere or man-made micro-climatic conditions such as alteration in the CO2 concentration also use of different temperature levels on specific protected structures such as hoop houses, cold houses, shade houses, hot frames or hotbeds, hot-bed manures as well as high tunnels which are less costly as well and can be easily afforded by Nepalese farmers. Horticultural crops rely heavily on specific environmental conditions i.e., temperature, soil moisture, sunlight, and soil fertility. However, with climate change, weather patterns worldwide are shifting, significantly impacting horticultural crops directly and indirectly in the mid-hills as well as high-hills of Nepal. The people of the mountainous region are getting malnutrition due to the scarcity of food. By adapting the different climate-smart practices we can increase the productivity of the seasonal crop as well as the availability of off-season crops throughout the year which not only improves the malnutrition status of Nepalese people but also helps the country to lower the vulnerability towards climate change. This review highlights the common protected practices used in Nepal and their need in the future.

Sparrow's Nest Feeds Body & Spirit of Cancer Patients & Families

Sparrow's Nest Feeds Body & Spirit of Cancer Patients & Families

Hoop Houses Provide Optimal Conditions for Increased Crop Production Year-round

I worked with the non-profit organization Eco Vrindavan Inc., located in Moundsville West Virginia to grow and provide organic food to the local community. Wheeling’s Grow Ohio Valley, an organization that supports local food production, assisted in installing “hoop houses” which increase the length of the growing season and increase production. Hoop houses are unheated structures covered in plastic where crops are planted directly into the ground. While working for Eco Vrindavan Inc., I observed how hoop houses extend the growing season by keeping the ground from freezing and ensuring the survival of selected crops through winter months. During this internship, I grew, planted, and harvested various greens in order to provide produce to the community. I learned what types of greens do well in cold climates and which ones do not and I have gained experience in how to organically fertilize plants, check soil quality, and look for mites and other diseases on crops. Currently, preparation for spring planting is underway to ensure early crops of flowers and summer vegetables. Hoop houses may provide benefits to organic growers who need crops to be available all year long and help minimize labor costs by keeping pests away while ensuring temperature changes do not negatively affect crops. In the future, I hope to educate other organic growers on the benefits hoop houses provide and use what I have learned to introduce organic growing in hoop houses to more communities statewide.

Exploring the adoption of technologies among beginning farmers in the specialty crops industry

PurposeThe purpose of this paper is to investigate the adoption of two categories of agricultural technologies among beginning farmers (10 years or less of experience) operating in the specialty crops industry. A secondary goal is to characterize the beginning farmers' population in the specialty crops industry and compare them to more experienced farmers (more than 10 years of farming experience).Design/methodology/approachUsing a series of regressions, this paper tests the hypothesis that beginning farmers are more likely to adopt agricultural technologies such as growing technologies (i.e. hydroponics and hoop houses) and value-added (VA) technologies (drying and cutting produce into customer-ready portions) relative to counterparts. Using a unique primary collected dataset of specialty crops farmers, the dependent variable for each model is the binary decision to adopt each agricultural technology, while the main variables of interest are the dummy variables beginning farmers and the interaction terms created between beginning farmers and land farmed, percent of land rented, crop diversification, local sales, and part-time farming.FindingsFarmers' characterization suggests that, on average, beginning farmers are more likely to adopt growing technologies than more experienced farmers. However, after controlling for other determinants of adoption, there is no significantly difference between the two groups. Lastly, results suggest that beginning farmers are more likely to adopt VA technologies relative to experienced farmers.Originality/valueWhile the adoption of agricultural innovations can lead to increases in economic and environmental resilience, little is known about beginning farmers adopting agricultural technologies, and studies are even less common for specialty crops operations. As the world population continues to grow rapidly, the demand for agricultural food products is expected to increase up to 100% between 2010 and 2050. This growth places additional stress on the limited access to land and water for agricultural production. Farm profitability can be boosted by increasing economies of scope through the use of growing technologies that increase yield or by adding value to specialty crops. The increasing global demand for food makes it imperative to understand what influences the adoption of agricultural technologies among beginning farmers growing food crops.

Releases of the parasitoid Pachycrepoideus vindemmiae for augmentative biological control of spotted wing drosophila, Drosophila suzukii

Spotted wing drosophila, Drosophila suzukii, is native to East Asia but has become a major pest of soft-skinned fruit crops in its invaded range in the Americas, Europe and North Africa. Control efforts are complicated by the seasonal movement of D. suzukii into crops from non-crop or untreated-crop habitats. Biological control may help to suppress D. suzukii populations. However, surveys have found that few parasitoid species attack D. suzukii in North America and Europe, with low levels of parasitism by the pupal parasitoids Trichopria drosophilae and Pachycrepoideus vindemmiae and little or no parasitism by larval parasitoids. Augmentation of these resident pupal parasitoids may be a sustainable tool for D. suzukii management. Most augmentation efforts to date have focused on T. drosophilae, although P. vindemmiae is the more abundant and widespread species in North America. In this study, we tested whether augmentative releases of P. vindemmiae could help control D. suzukii in caneberry hoop houses in Minnesota, Oregon and California. Results were inconsistent. Most trials showed no detectable post-release effects on parasitism or D. suzukii levels, although one trial in Oregon did show elevated parasitism levels in release plots. Larger releases of P. vindemmiae may be needed when D. suzukii numbers are high, or to overcome the effects of suboptimal conditions and/or dispersal.

First report of Sclerotinia sclerotiorum causing stem canker on Cannabis sativa L. in Oregon.

In August of 2020, plants of Cannabis sativa L. grown in hoop houses at two farms located in Benton County, Oregon exhibited wilting and chlorosis, followed by shoot necrosis. Symptomatic plants had dry, tan-brown lesions or cankers, often accompanied by large, round to irregular or ribbon-shaped, black sclerotia and/or profuse white mycelial growth. Lesions or cankers were observed on the stems at both the plant crown (soil) level and higher in the canopy; flower infections were not observed. Sclerotia were removed from two infected plants and placed on potato dextrose agar (PDA) at room temperature. Fast-growing, pure white, largely appressed, sterile mycelium grew radially from plated sclerotia. Hyphal tips were transferred to obtain a pure culture. Additional sclerotia, solitary and aggregate, approximately 30 to more than 50 per plate, exhibiting identical features to those observed on plant tissue, formed in culture 6-7 days following transfer and ranged in size from 2 to 11 mm in length or width (n=50). Mycelia were aseptically harvested from cultures for DNA extraction (Quick-DNA Plant/Seed Miniprep Kit, Zymo Research). Primers ITS1-F (Gardes and Bruns 1993) and ITS4 (White et al. 1990) were used to amplify the internal transcribed spacer region (ITS) and primers G3PDHfor and G3PDHrev were used to amplify the glyceraldehyde 3-phosphate dehydrogenase (G3PDH) gene (Staats et al. 2005) from a single isolate, LAS01. The ITS region from LAS01 (MW079844) shared 100 to >99% homology to several Sclerotinia species isolates in GenBank. The LAS01 G3PDH gene (MW082601), shared >99% and 100% homology with S. sclerotiorum type specimens strains 484 (GenBank accession no. AJ705044) and 1980 (JQ036048), respectively, and only 97% and 96% sequence identity with S. minor (KF878364) and S. trifoliorum (KF878375), respectively. A phylogenetic tree (presented as an eXtra) identifies LAS01 as S. sclerotiorum. To confirm pathogenicity, isolate LAS01 was grown on PDA at room temperature. After 48 hours, 4mm plugs were cut from the colony and placed mycelium-side down onto the main stems of five healthy C. sativa plants that had been grown for approximately six weeks from rooted cuttings and secured using a minutien pin. Uncolonized PDA plugs placed on the stem of the same plants several leaf nodes away were used as controls. Plants were incubated at room temperature in a grow tent under 24-hour light and 70-95% humidity conditions. Elongate, tan-brown lesions were observed at the inoculation sites 4-5 days post inoculation; stems at mock inoculated sites remained green. After six days, tissue was excised from the margin of each lesion, surface sterilized with 1% NaOCl, rinsed in sterile water, and placed onto PDA. Resultant fungal growth was confirmed to be S. sclerotiorum based on morphology. Isolation attempts were also made from mock inoculations; no fungal growth was observed. Trials were repeated on two additional cultivars with similar results. This report is the first of S. sclerotiorum on C. sativa in Oregon; the only peer-reviewed reports that could be located for S. sclerotiorum on C. sativa in the United States were from host indices in Montana (Anon. 1960; Shaw 1973) and references cited by McPartland (1996). Sclerotinia sclerotiorum has been reported in Canada on hemp-type C. sativa (Bains et al. 2000). The economic impact of S. sclerotiorum on the emerging C. sativa industry in Oregon and the United States remains unclear.

Stemphylium leaf spot of asparagus caused by Stemphylium lycopersici

Cercospora blight caused by Cercospora asparagi routinely developed on asparagus in certain plastic hoop houses in Hiroshima Prefecture in western Japan every July to November. Stemphylium lycopersici was repeatedly isolated with C. asparagi from the blighted leaves in September 2016 and shown to be another causal agent of the blighting and added as another pathogen causing Stemphylium leaf spot of asparagus.

Testing a Novel Attract-and-Kill Strategy for Drosophila suzukii (Diptera: Drosophilidae) Management.

The invasion of the spotted wing drosophila, Drosophila suzukii Matsumura, across the Americas and Europe has led to increased insecticide applications to protect fruit crops. This insecticide usage conflicts with integrated pest management programs, as well as harvest, export, and pollination services in the affected crops. A novel management tool was assessed against D. suzukii that may mitigate these conflicts. HOOK SWD, an attract-and-kill (A&K) formulation applied as a sprayable bait, was evaluated for three growing seasons in two berry crops in New Jersey and California. In blueberry crops treated with HOOK SWD, fruit infestations by D. suzukii were 2–8 times lower than in untreated crops. In trials in commercial raspberry fields, weekly or biweekly HOOK SWD applications combined with a single grower standard D. suzukii-targeted cover spray resulted in nearly 2–5 times fewer fruit infestations compared to the grower standard cover spray alone. Assays of the residual activity of HOOK SWD resulted in more than 78–93% adult D. suzukii mortality when exposed to raspberry leaves after the formulation had aged for 35 d in the field under plastic hoop houses. These results suggest that this A&K strategy can be integrated in D. suzukii management programs.

Composting

Composting Austyn Gaffney (bio) In the five years between when I left and returned to Virginia, of the fifteen jobs I held, at least a third involved petals. Every time I stripped a zinnia of its leaves, the smell of milky chlorophyll and compost slipped me back to that first fall when I was twenty-one, an intern at a flower farm in a shallow valley east of Shenandoah. In that era, I woke to cold in an old farmhouse. It was haunted though I only heard creaks and never moans. Beyond my bedroom window, fog settled into the drainage slopes between hoop houses, in the roots of oak trees and maple trees and elm trees, as a blanket over the straight beds of blooms. I'd stretch up from my pillow and put my socked feet onto a sloping wood floor. The house was tilted atop a foundation laid in 1742. I walked down a back staircase. I shuffled into the living room, a space of musty rugs and armchairs, vases of fresh and decaying flowers, the smell of propane from the fake stack of wood in the stone fireplace. The kitchen on the other side of the doorway had a string of lights across the four-tiered windowpanes. They pointed toward the coffeepot. Smells are watch-towers for memories: propane, caffeine, chlorophyll. The last time I woke up in the farmhouse, it was next to a man who I dragged there when his job as a park ranger in Kentucky ended. We had been dating for a few months, and we had dated a few times before. I followed him through my four years of college like a weak shadow, like one closing in on dusk. He was perpetually tanned, a speckled piece of amber, with thick eyebrows that furrowed together with questions and opened wide when he laughed. He had a sweet mouth and calloused hands. He wore the same t-shirts from Goodwill the four years I knew him, and when he met my parents it was in a Christmas sweater of knitted cats. His uniform was flannels and baggy jeans and sandals, and he was convinced that if he swore off deodorant his armpits would stop smelling. He was musky. I was very young, and I loved him as faithfully as I loved that house. [End Page 152] Now, five years later, I pull up to the farmhouse on a clear night in May, after an eight-hour drive from my home in Kentucky. I push open the screen door to the kitchen. Its smell pummels me. It contains memories so pungent that they open like a spigot. It is half a decade since I woke to make oatmeal in this yellow room, since I heard the rooster announce dawn. I used to spend evenings chasing that old rooster at twilight with just the light of my headlamp to get it in its coop. I raged that as I protected him from foxes or coyotes, he threatened me with menacing spurs four inches long. But I spent much of my time that fall chasing things that didn't want to be caught. I'm told the rooster died years ago. It's a comfort that some things are the same. My daily retreat is still the outdoor shower. Its wooden planks of sunken pine smell like my childhood spent sunbathing on docks over cold lakes. A smell dim and heady and almost molding. It's the same smell in the bushes of viburnum or the trees of styrax—something decomposing in the weight of its sweetness. This humid decay is one of my favorite smells, the ephemeral space between fragrance and rot. ________ This time, instead of early fall it is early summer. The zinnias are still in their seed trays. I start work by watering the greenhouse. I pinch the Oklahoma Sunrise, already shooting up peach buds. The hose showers over them. I worry about them blooming too early, miniature in a too small cell. They are beginning to blossom tight and tiny like the choked shape of a bonsai tree. I too feel oddly small my first few days on the farm. It...

Meat quality characteristics of fast-growing broilers reared under different types of pasture management: Implications for organic and alternative production systems (Part II)

SUMMARY Currently, there is little scientific information regarding the effect of differing housing types and production methods on the final quality of broiler meat. The purpose of this study was to evaluate meat quality characteristics of commercial fast-growing broiler chickens when raised in portable vs. fixed housing, with or without access to pasture. Fast-growing broilers are being grown by many small farm poultry producers due to their favorable attributes, including greater breast meat yields, a more uniform carcass, and higher feed efficiency than heritage or slower growing breeds. The pasture land used in this study closely matched the lands common to this local area. It was a pasture composed of a mix of tall fescue, Bermuda grass, and a lesser amount of legumes and forbs. The experiment had 4 treatment groups: (1) small, portable hoop houses with access to pasture, (2) small, portable hoop houses without access to pasture, (3) a fixed house with access to the outdoors, and (4) a fixed house without access to the outdoors. The study was conducted during spring and fall within the same yr to evaluate if any seasonal effects on carcass or meat quality were present. Overall, the access to pasture did not alter meat quality parameters such as moisture, protein, fat percentage, pH, color, texture, cooking loss, or shear energy when compared to birds without pasture access. Since forages contribute to the nutritive value of the meat and may help in reducing costs, the type and quality of forage choices in pastures are important considerations for these production methods and need to be explored further for pasture production systems.

Feeding Children, Communities, and Souls

Feeding Children, Communities, and Souls

Tomato variety trials for productivity and quality in organic hoop house versus open field management

AbstractTomatoes are a profitable direct-market crop for diversified Midwestern farmers. Unfortunately, many tomatoes with the flavor and quality characteristics consumers desire (such as heirloom varieties) lack agronomic traits important to organic farmers. Hoop-house production offers potentially higher yields and quality than field-grown tomatoes, and has become a popular option for organic farmers. This study compares 19 varieties of tomatoes in both organic hoop house and field conditions, to identify high-performing varieties for future plant breeding, and to characterize the effect of hoop houses on productivity and quality traits. We found that tomatoes grown in a hoop house had significantly higher yield, lower disease severity and higher °Brix (soluble sugars) than those grown in an adjacent field; and that management (hoop house versus field) had significantly more influence over those traits than other variables (variety, market class or year). This lack of varietal differences between management systems will simplify breeding efforts aimed at introducing varieties for hoop house production.

Growth performance of fast-growing broilers reared under different types of production systems with outdoor access: Implications for organic and alternative production systems

Outdoor access is an important part of organic and free-range poultry production, yet limited information exists on the effect of various housing and production systems on growth performance and colonization of food-borne pathogens. Therefore, the primary purpose of the current study was to evaluate the influence of different housing systems, particularly fixed versus small, portable houses, with and without outdoor access to pasture, on seasonal growth performance, leg quality, and presence of bacterial food-borne pathogens. In the current study, we used fast-growing broilers, as many small producers use commercial broilers due to their carcass conformation and high breast yield compared with slow-growing hybrids or standard heritage breeds. Although interest in alternative genetics exists because they may be more adapted to outdoor production, they require longer growing periods, with accompanying labor and cost. A pasture containing a mixture of forages was used to simulate the conditions common for small farms in the local region. The experiment had 4 treatment groups: (1) small, portable hoop houses with access to pasture, (2) small, portable hoop houses without access to pasture, (3) a fixed house with access to the outdoors, and (4) a fixed house without access to the outdoors. The present study was repeated at different times of the year to determine if a seasonal effect on the consumption of pasture and carcass quality was present. Overall, raising birds in hoop houses resulted in a reduced growth rate compared with birds raised in the fixed house. None of the production systems altered bone strength or feed conversion. Food-borne pathogens commonly associated with poultry were not found in any of the environments tested. Seasonal production was an issue in the small hoop house birds, as extreme heat in the summer resulted in early termination of that trial. Expanding on forage choice in pastures and customizing hoop houses to deal with weather fluctuations, especially in regions where extreme heat may affect production, are important considerations for these systems.

Ammonia and hydrogen sulfide emissions from swine production facilities in North America: A meta-analysis1

Literature on NH3 and H2S emissions from swine production facilities in North America was reviewed, and a meta-analysis was conducted on measured emissions data from swine houses and manure storage facilities as well as concentration data in the vicinity of swine production facilities. Results from more than 80 studies were compiled with results from the 11 swine sites in the National Air Emissions Monitoring Study (NAEMS). Data across studies were analyzed statistically using the MIXED procedures of SAS. The median emission rates from swine houses across various production stages and manure handling systems were 2.78 and 0.09 kg/yr per pig for NH3 and H2S, respectively. The median emission rates from swine storage facilities were 2.08 and 0.20 kg/yr per pig for NH3 and H2S, respectively. The size of swine farm that may trigger the need to report NH3 emissions under the Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) is 3,410 pigs on the basis of the median NH3 emission rate (4.86 kg/yr per pig), but the threshold can be as low as 992 pigs on the basis of the 90th-percentile emission rates (16.71 kg/yr per pig). Swine hoop houses had significantly higher NH3 emission rate (14.80 kg/yr per pig) than other manure-handling systems (P < 0.01), whereas deep-pit houses had the highest H2S emission rate (16.03 kg/yr per pig, P = 0.03). Farrowing houses had the highest H2S emission rate (2.50 kg/yr per pig), followed by gestation houses, and finishing houses had the lowest H2S emission rate (P < 0.01). Regression models for NH3 and H2S emission rates were developed for finishing houses with deep pits, recharge pits, and lagoons. The NH3 emission rates increased with increasing air temperature, but effects of air temperature on H2S emission rates were not significant. The recharge interval of manure pits significantly affected H2S but not NH3 emission rates. The H2S emission rates were also influenced by the size of the operation. Although NH3 and H2S concentrations at the edge of swine houses or lagoons were often higher than corresponding acute or intermediate minimum risk levels (MRL), they decreased quickly to less than corresponding chronic or intermediate MRL as distances from emission sources increased. At the distances 30 to 1,185 m from emission sources, the average ambient concentrations for NH3 and H2S were 46 ± 46 µg/m(3) and 4.3 ± 8.6 µg/m(3) respectively.

The Economics of Low-cost High Tunnels for Winter Vegetable Production in the Southwestern United States

Relatively little season extension research has been conducted in the southwestern United States, particularly with low-cost high tunnels or hoop houses for small-scale farmers. In this study, the economics of winter production of two leafy crops [lettuce (Lactuca sativa) and spinach (Spinacia oleracea)] in high tunnels in two locations in New Mexico were investigated, first using a simulation analysis in which yields were stochastic variables followed by a sensitivity analysis to examine returns from the high tunnel designs more closely. The returns examined in the sensitivity analysis were net of high tunnel materials, crop seed cost, and electricity. Two planting dates were tested and three high tunnel designs were examined: a single layer covering the house (SL), a double layer inflated with air (DL), and a double layer inflated with air and containing black water barrels to store heat (DL+B). The SL and DL designs appear to be the more appropriate technology for both locations for spinach, whereas for lettuce the DL+B model might be a reasonable option in Alcalde, a more-northern location. Overall, the SL and DL models provided adequate protection for growing crops, were less expensive to build, provided more interior growing space, and resulted in higher probabilities of producing positive returns, compared with the DL+B design. The DL design performed similarly to the SL design, but required running electricity to the structure to power the inflation fan, adding to the cost. As a result, expected returns in all cases were higher using the SL design based on the results of the sensitivity analyses. Combining the risk and the sensitivity analyses provides growers with a unique evaluation process to make high tunnel design, planting date, and crop choices.

From Hoop Houses to the Hospital – Let Food Be Thy Medicine

A century ago, farmers worked the land where 5 1. Joseph Mercy Hospital's 341-acre campus is now located. While the hospital stands firmly in the 21st century with its newly rebuilt, state-of-the-art patient towers, the surrounding land has come full circle to agrarian times.

Ammonia and hydrogen sulfide emissions from swine production facilities in North America: a meta-analysis (2013)

Ammonia (NH3) and hydrogen sulfide (H2S) emissions from swine production facilities receive considerable attention due to human health and environmental implications. Accurate quantification of farm emissions is essential to ensure compliance with regulatory requirements. The objectives of this study were to provide a review of the literature on NH3 and H2S emissions from swine production facilities in North America with a meta-analysis that integrates results of independent studies, including measured emissions data from both swine houses and manure storage facilities as well as concentration data in the vicinity of swine production facilities. Results from more than 80 studies were identified through a thorough literature search, and the data were compiled together with results from the 11 swine sites in the National Air Emissions Monitoring Study (NAEMS). Data across studies were analyzed statistically using the MIXED procedures of SAS. Median emissions rates from swine houses were 2.78 and 0.09 kg/year per pig for NH3 and H2S, respectively. Median emissions rates from swine storage facilities were 2.08 and 0.20 kg/year per pig for NH3 and H2S, respectively. The Emergency Planning and Community Right-to-Know Act (EPCRA) require reporting of NH3 and H2S emissions that exceed 100 lb/d. The size that may trigger the need for a farm to report NH3 emissions is 3,410 pigs based on median NH3 emissions rates in the literature, but the threshold can be as low as 992 pigs based on 90th-percentile emissions rates. Swine hoop houses had significantly higher NH3 emission rates than other manure-handling systems (P < 0.01), whereas deep pit houses had the highest H2S emission rates (P = 0.03). Farrowing houses had the highest H2S emission rates, followed by gestation houses, and finishing houses had lowest H2S emission rates (P < 0.01). Regression models for NH3 and H2S emission rates were developed for finishing houses with deep pits, recharge pits, and lagoons. The NH3 emission rates increased with increasing air temperature, but effects of air temperature on H2S emission rates were not significant. The recharge interval of manure pits significantly affected H2S but not NH3 emission rates. The H2S emission rates were also influenced by the size of the operation. Although NH3 and H2S concentrations at the edge of swine houses or lagoons were often higher than corresponding acute or intermediate minimum risk levels (MRLs), they decreased quickly to be less than corresponding chronic or intermediate MRLs as distances from emission sources increase. At distances 30 to 1,185 m from emission sources, the average ambient concentrations for NH3 and H2S were 66 ± 66 ppb and 3.1 ± 6.2 ppb, respectively.; Swine Day, Manhattan, KS, November 21, 2013

Bunching Onion Culture in Greenhouse and Hoop House

Extending the season can provide opportunities for vegetable producers. Bunching onion, or scallions (Allium fistulosum L.), is a crop that can be a candidate for protected production used to extend the growing season. The cvs. Evergreen Hardy White (white), Deep Purple (red), and Nabechan F1 (white) were sown at monthly intervals from Sept. 2010 to Aug. 2011 in containers under greenhouse and hoop house conditions at Lane, OK. Days to harvest and yield variables were determined. Crop failure occurred in a greenhouse for all plants sown in July, for ‘Deep Purple’ sown in August, and for those sown in a hoop house in February and March and May through August, days to harvest was generally less for plants sown in the greenhouse, and for ‘Deep Purple’, but all plants took longer to reach marketable size than is indicated for field production. Yields for plants grown in the greenhouse were higher than for those grown in the hoop house. Greenhouse production provides more flexibility and protection from environmental conditions so that bunching onions can be grown for extended season production. However, environmental controls under greenhouse conditions need to be refined to reduce length of growing season while maintaining, or improving, yields of optimally sized plants. Programs to improve nutrition in school systems and introduction of “Farm to School” and “extended season” initiatives present opportunities for production of some vegetables including bunching onion, or scallions. “Farm to School” programs allow the use of fresh, locally grown foods to be incorporated into school menus. Bunching onions can be used fresh or prepared items. Use of protected culture in greenhouses and hoop houses may allow for extended season production of these onions so that they can be used during non-typical growing periods especially, when locally produced field-grown crops are not available.

Comparison of pork quality and sensory characteristics for antibiotic free yorkshire crossbreds raised in hoop houses.

The objective of this study was to compare pork characteristics and to determine consumer acceptability of pork chops from antibiotic free Yorkshire crossbreds sired by Berkshire (BY), Large Black (LBY), Tamworth (TY) or Yorkshire (YY) boars and reared in hoop houses. The experiments were conducted at the North Carolina Agricultural and Technical State University (NCA&TSU) Farm in Greensboro, NC and the Cherry Research Station Center for Environmental Farming Systems (CEFS) Alternative Swine Unit in Goldsboro, NC (source of antibiotic free Yorkshire sows used at both places). Twenty-four sows were artificially inseminated at each location in each of three trials. Litters were weaned at 4 wks old, and reared within deep-bedded outdoor hoop houses. To compare pork characteristics, 104 randomly selected animals were harvested at a USDA-inspected abattoir at approximately 200 d of age. Variables measured included pH, color score, L*, a*, b*, marbling score, drip loss, hot carcass weight, backfat thickness (BF), loin muscle area (LMA), and slice shear force. Sensory panel tests were also conducted at two time periods. The data was analyzed with GLM in SAS 9.01 including location, trial, and sire breed as fixed effects. Backfat thickness, LMA, color score and a* were different among breeding groups (p<0.05). The LBY pigs had thicker backfat and smaller LMA than the other breed types. The TY and YY had less backfat than all other breed groups. Color score was lower for YY than BY and LBY but intermediate for TY. The a* was lower for TY than other breeds except LBY which was intermediate. For one sensory panel test, YY pork was more preferred overall as well as for juiciness and texture compared to BY and LBY (p<0.05), but no impact of breed type was noted for the other test, with values similar for BY, LBY, TY and YY pork. This information may help small farmers make decisions about breed types to use for outdoor production.

Growth and Physiological Response of Fraser Fir [Abies fraseri (Pursh) Poir.] Seedlings to Water Stress: Seasonal and Diurnal Variations in Photosynthetic Pigments and Carbohydrate Concentration

Four-year-old seedlings of Abies fraseri [(Pursh) Poir] (fraser fir) were grown in semicontrolled conditions in hoop houses with five watering regimes (0.00, 0.62, 1.25, 2.50, and 3.70 cm/week) with the goal of determining the seasonal variation in the physiological response to drought stress. Drought stress was monitored by measuring predawn (Ψpd) and midday (Ψmd) potentials in a subset of plants from each treatment. Physiological variables monitored were chlorophyll fluorescence (Fv/Fm), Chl a, Chl b, total carotenes, and total carbohydrate concentrations. Morphological characteristics including height growth, root collar diameter, and terminal shoot growth were also measured. Predawn stem water potential values were generally higher (–0.8 to –1.9 Mpa) than midday values (–1.3 to –2.9 Mpa). Irrigation consistently increased Ψpd and Ψmd compared with non-irrigated treatments. Photosynthetic pigments (Chl a, Chl b, and carotenes) decreased midseason (14 July) and increased toward the end of the season (25 Aug.) in predawn and midday measurements. There was a significant effect (P &lt; 0.05) of drought stress on photosynthetic pigment concentrations in predawn and midday samples in the late-season measurements (25 Aug.). These results were accompanied with a similar significant difference in Fv/Fm between non-irrigated and irrigated trees. We concluded that significant effects observed on photosynthetic pigment concentrations in some of the treatments did not affect carbohydrate concentrations. Exposure of A. fraseri to water stress did not cause a reduction in supply of metabolic carbohydrates; consequently, the decline and mortality in water-stressed plants can only be the result of hydraulic failure caused by xylem cavitation leading to cessation of water flow in tissues, desiccation, and cellular death. Further studies are needed to confirm these preliminary conclusions.