Want to Extend Your Harvest Season This Fall?
The low tunnels or garden row covers are perfect to extend your season at the beginning and the end of the cycle. They come with a slitted cover as shown above, or with a perforated cover. They extend your harvest season by offering frost protection of 2 to 4 degrees F. To harvest, you simply need to pull the cover up and gather your crop. Then, just stretch the cover taught again and refasten the side. In the spring they will assist you in planting early, even up to 10 days before suggested planting dates. They will help to warm the soil and protect young seedlings from harsh spring winds. The perforated covers will offer the most warmth, with the slitted covers offering the best ventilation. These covers are only meant to be left on your garden for 3 – 4 weeks. But, I have personally used these in a different manner. In the South, we plant our strawberries in the fall. We usually have to apply and remove frost protection for brief periods of time. Last year I put the low tunnel cover over my strawberries for the entire winter. I used the slitted. The biggest problem was in the spring. No bees or wind could get in to pollinate the plants. I ended up using a small paint brush and pollinating them myself. The strawberries were yummy. Actually, the covers turned out to be much sturdier than I originally thought. We have some serious winds in the winter. So, get a head start, harvest longer, or experiment with your own system with these covers.
