2004 Annual Report for ENE03-076
An educational program for training extension professionals and vocational agriculture teachers on high-tunnel technology
Summary
The use of high tunnel technology for extending the cropping season and in some instances even permitting year around production of certain horticultural crops continues to enable small to medium sized growers in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic region of the United States the opportunity to increase their farm income, while providing consumers and restaurants in the region the opportunity to purchase fresh, locally grown horticultural crops for a longer period of time.
The goal of this project is to develop and deliver an educational program on the construction, management and economics of high tunnels to the frontline educators who can then reach out and impact an even wider audience of growers. County Extension Educators, both at the university and county level, and Crop Consultants are certainly on the frontline in the delivery of new information and technology to growers. The Vocational Agriculture Teachers are training the agriculturists of tomorrow. These groups of educators seemed to be the ideal ones to offer training on high tunnels in an educational workshop environment. These individuals using the training they have received then developed their own educational programs and have passed on the information to growers and students throughout the Northeast/Mid-Atlantic region.
A performance target goal is that 45 of the 180 participants attending the workshops will use the information to develop: a) their own educational programs, or b) assist growers in setting up a high tunnel or c) answer questions pertaining to crop production or d) will plan to construct a high tunnel at their high school and incorporate the technology into their curriculum.
To determine if we reached our performance target, all participants will be surveyed to ascertain how many used the information obtained from the workshops to develop their own educational programs to educate /assist growers in setting up a high tunnel or answering questions pertaining to crop production or plan to construct a high tunnel at their school.
Objectives/Performance Targets
Of the 180 University/County Extension Educators, Crop Consultants and Vocational Agriculture Teachers attending the training programs, 45 will develop their own educational program to disseminate the information they gained to growers or assist growers in building a high tunnel or will provide growers with production information on horticultural crops being grown in high tunnels. The knowledge they gain from participating in the workshop and then share with growers will help growers provide fresh, locally produced healthful food products and flowers over a longer period of time to their customers. Extension of the growing season will increase grower's profitability while at the same promoting sustainability and good stewardship of resources, such as water, fertilizer and other inputs. The Vocational Agriculture Teachers from the Northeastern/Mid-Atlantic Region of the United States that will attend the training program will build a high tunnel at their educational facilities and incorporate the instruction/hands-on teaching about this technology into their curriculum.
Accomplishments/Milestones
Each of the workshops is considered a milestone. Three workshops were conducted in 2004: April 13-14, 2004 and June 29-30, 2004 workshops were held at the Penn State University High Tunnel Research and Education Facility, Rock Springs, PA. and the workshop on September 3, 2004 was held at the Woodman Horticulture Farm, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH. At the end of each workshop, participants were asked “how many of you are planning on developing an educational program on high tunnels?” This provided us with a rough idea of how we are doing toward reaching our performance target of 45 participants who actually organize/present an educational program on high tunnels, assist growers by answering questions on high tunnels, whether on construction, management of crops or economics or develop or plan to develop an on-farm high tunnel demonstration with a participating grower or if a vocational agriculture teacher they have incorporated high tunnels in their educational program, and if they are considering purchasing a high tunnel for use in their high school.
1. 14 extension educators, crop consultants and vocational agriculture teachers attended the first high tunnel workshop on April 13-14, 2004. At the workshop several participants indicated that they are going to build a high tunnel or develop an education program on high tunnels.
2. 34 extension educators, crop consultants and vocational agriculture teachers attended the second high tunnel workshop on June 29-30, 2004. At the workshop several participants indicated that they are going to develop an education program on high tunnels.
3. 30 extension educators, crop consultants and vocational agriculture teachers attended the third high tunnel workshop in August 3, 2004. At the workshop several participants indicated that they are going to develop an education program on high tunnels.
4. E-mail follow-ups are being sent to participants that attended the 2004 workshops inquiring how they have used the information and to ascertain if they have actually developed and delivered an extension educational program on high tunnels.
5. The responses to our e-mail inquiries will provide the information to see if we actually reached our performance target and increased the educational programming targeted to growers on the use of high tunnels by extension educators, crop consultants and vocational agriculture teachers and in reality reached a wider audience of growers and students in the Northeast and Mid-Atlantic region of the United States.
We have conducted one program in 2003, three in 2004 and are anticipating three programs in 2005.
Impacts and Contributions/Outcomes
The educational programs conducted in 2004 at the Penn State High Tunnel Research and Educational Facility located at Rock Springs, PA and the Woodman Horticulture Farm, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH were similar in format and content as the sample listed below. We had university and county extension educators and vocational agricultural teachers from Maine, New Hampshire, Massachusetts, Connecticut, New York, New Jersey, Pennsylvania, Delaware, West Virginia, Virginia, District of Columbia, Maryland, and North Carolina attending the workshops.
Sample Schedule and Topics for the Workshops
Day One
Registration and Coffee and Donuts at the High Tunnel Facility
Welcome and Background on High Tunnels and History of the Facility
Tips on Constructing a High Tunnel
The Production of Cut Flowers in a High Tunnel
Lunch provided
The Production of Small Fruit Crops in a High Tunnel
The Production of Vegetables in High Tunnels
Water, Soil and Nutrient Management in High Tunnels
Transitioning to Organic Production in High Tunnels
Disease Control Considerations in High Tunnels
Dinner on your own
Day Two
Coffee and Donuts at the High Tunnel Facility
Production of Sweet Cherries in a High Tunnel
The Use of Biocontrols in High Tunnels
How to Develop an Extension Programming Effort in High Tunnels
Lunch provided
Visit A Local Grower Using High Tunnels
We reimbursed the participants for:
2 nights lodging
Meals that were not provided for during the workshop
Mileage up to 500 miles at $0.375/mile
We have developed an excellent 157page High Tunnel Manual that has been provided each participant attending the workshop. This is serving as an excellent resource for the participants.
Being able to support the travel, meals and lodging of participants for these workshops is really a positive thing given the severe reduction in funding being experienced by extension services and school districts in the Northeast. Almost every extension service has experienced dramatic cuts in funding that has also eliminated personnel through early retirements packages or outright layoffs. This is a situation that is making it difficult for extension educators to attend educational programs and being able to reimburse the participants is really very positive and greatly appreciated by all the participants. We discussed this situation with participants at the 2003 workshop and at subsequent regional commodity meetings such as the Mid-Atlantic Fruit and Vegetable Conference, Hershey, PA and the New England Vegetable and Berry Growers Conference in Manchester, NH. The idea was discussed of having three educational programs in 2004, one program in the northern reaches of the SARE Region and two in the southern portion of the SARE area at our high tunnel research and education facility and doing the same in 2005. This is how we came to offer the workshop at the Woodman Horticulture Farm, University of New Hampshire, Durham, NH. This was a way we covered the region better and made it more economical for participants.
We continue to get a lot of interest in the program and we will be discussing the dates for the three educational programs for 2005 and then advertising them to extension educators, vocational agriculture teachers and crop consultants through a wide variety of media.
In follow up conversations with several of the participants of 2004 educational programs, several have held educational programs on high tunnels and have use the manual in their programming efforts and some have assisted growers in developing plans for building a high tunnel. One new and exciting addition to the educational program for the 2004 participants at our facility was the opportunity to view a 30-foot wide by 96-foot long high tunnel at the Penn State University Horticulture Farm that is heated using Plastofuel (nuggets made of used agricultural plastic waste i.e. plastic transplant containers, plastic mulch, drip irrigation tape and tubing, hay bags, silage bags, nursery pots, etc.) burned directly in a boiler unit generating hot water, that was developed in South Korea. This project is a partnership between Jim Garthe in the Department of Biological and Agricultural Engineering, and the High Tunnel Research and Education Facility and a private entrepreneur from South Korea. This utilization of this currently perceived waste material to generate heat might allow even more year around cropping options in high tunnels in the future and also allow for even earlier production of warm season tomatoes and peppers utilizing a high tunnel.