Ignacio Esparza opens the ventilation for a new tunnel system in Elizabethtown. •fjgu# UNITED WE STAND BFGoodricH POWER GRIP BIAS R 1 Tube Type - 4S* Tr#acf Deaton 13.6-X |lBl 15.9 x3B 6 p1y......-,. $259 18.4 x 34 6 ply $351 ' 18.4 X 38 6 ply $372 20.8X38 8 ply ...$560 Wo oro proud to support FPA 1257 Mt Holly Pike 6551 Tilghman Carlisle, PA 17013 Allentown, PA 18106 717-243-1382 610-481-0076 800-745-8069 888-772-8353 717-243-6014 Fax 610-481-0075 Fax Allen Hoover Repair Inc. RRI, Box 227 Mifflmburg, PA 17844 570-966-3821 Farm & Ranch Highlands’^|l Mar-BarTire Service 4285 Hanover Road Hanover, PA 17331 717-633-6412 (Tires "preeter" B.F. QOODRIOH' sZ|o 18.4R34* sst6 18.4R38* ss46 20.8R38* $720 Berkeley Tire 344 Green Spring Rd 1607 Gabler Road 233 North Mam St 79 State Street 17241 Chambereburg, PA 17201 Shrewsbury, PA 17361 Everett, PA 15537 717-267-3600 877-222-0051 717-267-0034 Fax 717-776-5127 717-776-4484 Fax 800-745-8214 Smith's Farm Equipment 30 Acker Road Newport, PA 17074 717-567-3562 Lancaster Grower Extends Growing Season With Tunnels MICHELLE KUNJAPPU Lancaster Farming Staff ELIZABETHTOWN (Lancaster Co.) Motorists who drive by the six bays of large plastic-topped hoops probably do not give them a second glance. To Ralph Cramer, how ever, these poly-covered in ventions are a step into a new growing and marketing strat egy. Cramer is the owner of “Cramer’s Posie Patch,” a flower and herb farm in Eliz abethtown. Although dried flowers constitute half of the operation, Cramer has also moved into wholesaling cut "Greatest" MICHELIN AGRI 818 Radial RIW, Tubeless, 45° Tread Design 13.6R28** * $469 18.4R34** srl $695 18.4R38* $642 20.8R38* $864 717-235-8789 717-235-8590 Fax 1-800-792-2888 Lancaster Farming, Saturday, May 18,2002, Grower and Marketer- flowers. A farm store on the property offers dried flowers and arrangements. In European terms, said Cramer, there are two kinds of crop protection systems. One hoop is considered a “French tunnel,” while mul tiple bays are known as “Spanish tunnels.” “What makes anything a tunnel is a single layer of poly” (plastic) and in general it is manually operated and climate controlled, noted Cramer. “It extends the season by offering protection, a warmer environment, and Ag & Industrial Prices Subject To Change 814-652-2221 800-829-4213 814-652-2936 Fax Bruce B. Gamble & Son 24159 Back Road PO Box 627 Concord, PA 17217 717-349-2670 Fax 717-349 9970 Tunnels Explained Pot-In-Pot Method ever, the largest invest ment conies in initial setup espe cially in clay soils, according to Kuhns. In such cases, trenches for the socket pots are generally dug and lined with drainage tile. Irrigation lines can be installed in the trenches after several inches have been backfilled. According to Jim Sellmer, Penn State associate professor of ornamen tal horticulture, the pot-in-pot method is one of several options available to nursery managers, including above ground pot and bare root methods as well as ball-and-burlap. The pot-in-pot method helps elimi nate soil compaction and keeps topsoil on the property rather than sending it out in root balls, Sellmer pointed out. One disadvantage of the pot-in-pot system is that trees need to be watered more frequently for about two weeks after being permanently planted, ac cording to Kuhns. An increasing number of growers have begun to use pot-in-pot in the past five years, with more than 10 per cent of the nurseries in Pennsylvania likely employing the method, Kuhns estimated. ZIMMERMAN IRRIGATION Plastic Mulch • Row Cover • Layflat • Stakes Sprinklers • Injectors • Pipe • Fittings Travelers • Pumps • Filters • Ram Guns accelerating the growth of the crop. Cramer said, “Spanish tunnels were low and small and homemade the origi nals, anyway and the hard work was inside.” “The Haygrove Company in England designed these tunnels. The owner bought and used the Spanish tunnels for strawberries and found them to be inadequate, so he improved them. They have bigger open ends for trac tors,” said Cramer, which de creased the hand labor that Spanish tunnels required. Haygrove tunnels cover more (Turn to Page 8) (Continued from Page 4) TBDCKL-EEZ Irrigation Engineering 195
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