Jay Sleichter Jay’s Jellies Produce and More Clay Center, Kansas
Our Farm We live on 4 acres north of Clay Center. We have currently 1 acre in production. We started experimenting with High Tunnels in 2008 and built 2 in 2009. We built 3 more tunnels in 2010 with two being movable. In 2011 we replaced our smallest tunnel with a much larger model a 30 by 48 ft. In 2014, we built our largest high tunnel a 26 by 72ft. In 2017, we dismantled one of our original homemade high tunnels and built a 12 by 24 passive solar greenhouse attached to a 16 by 24 multi-use shed. Over the winter in 2018/19 we built another 30 by 48 tunnel. We sell in Manhattan and Clay Center Farmers Markets. We also have a 20-30 share CSA/Market Basket delivery service.
My Family My wife, Linda and I have 5 kids a freshman at KSU to 1st grader. Linda is a RN and works at the hospitals in Clay Center and Manhattan. I am a full time middle school math, science, Intro to Ag and Natural Resource Management teacher at Wakefield.
What we will cover • • • • • • •
Why Season Extension and winter growing? Tools Necessary What crops do we grow and store? How? Planting dates Pests Different Issues Disasters
Why year around growing with High Tunnels? • Maintain important sales outlets and help stay connected to your customer • Spread out cash flow • Spread labor more evenly over the year • Sell products at higher (out of season) prices • Provide customers with greater diversity of products
Why High Tunnels, Season Extension and Winter Production? • Fresher and more nutritious produce • Produce higher gross sales and higher income per unit of area • Creating a more regional/local food system • Changing peoples ideas about where their food come from and help them to eat seasonally • Grow customer base
Our High Tunnels • We have 6 high tunnels, 2 movable – 2, 30ft by 48ft Manufactured by Stuppy and Farmtek – 1, 26ft by 72ft Manufactured by Farmtek – 2, 16ft by 32ft Movable Tunnels, Manufactured by ME! – 1, 18 ft by 45 ft Manufactured by ME! – 1, 12 by 24 Passive Solar greenhouse
Homemade PVC and Metal
Stuppy
Farmtek
One Tunnel, Multiple Spaces
Movable Tunnels
“GreenShed”
Low Tunnels
Pro-Tip- Use a pipe wrench to
push low tunnel hoops into the ground.
Low Tunnels
Outside, ½ or ž inch EMT conduit to support the row cover. These were bent by hand using a quick hoop bender from www.lostcreek.net
Video: Frozen Low
Low Tunnel Tomatoes Low Tunnel
No Low Tunnel
How? • Crop Selection • Planting Dates • Succession Plantings
What Crops Do We Grow? Fall/Winter/Spring- Arugula, Beets, Carrots, Swiss Chard, Leeks, Lettuce, Mizuna, Mustard Greens, Green Onions, Bok Choy, Radishes, Spinach, Tatsoi, Haikuri Turnips, Napa Cabbage, Kale, Kohlrabi, Fennel, Collard Greens, Garlic and more
Spring/Summer/Fall- Beets, Carrots, Chard, Leeks, Lettuce,
Green onions, onions, bok choy, radishes, spinach, turnips, Napa cabbage, Kale, Kohlrabi, Fennel, Collard Greens, Cucumber, Tomatoes, Cherry Tomatoes, Peppers, Zucchini, Summer Squash, Sweet Potatoes, Winter Squash, Okra, Green Beans, Garlic,
Winter Storage crops: 4 types daikon radishes, turnips, beets, winter squash, sweet potatoes, and carrots
Crop Selection • Select crops that – Grow well in your climate – Sell well in your markets – Are highly productive per square foot – Select anticipated crops as a loss leader to gain early customer loyalty until field crops come in Good Choice: Tomatoes, Cucumbers, Peppers, Cut Flowers, Herbs, Spinach, Lettuce Poor Choices: Sweet Corn, Pumpkins, Okra
Crop Selection Planted March 28th June 13th April 24th
Cherokee Purple
Crop Selection: Tomatoes
Oct 17th
Varieties: Cherokee Purple, Cherokee Carbon, Polbig, Florida 91, BHN 589, BHN 871
Crop Selection: Cherry Tomatoes Varieties: Apero, Favorita, Rojito, BHN 874, Sweet Gold, Sungold, Black Cherry, Golden Sweet, Five Star Grape, Golden Sweet, Mountain Magic, Clementine, SunPeach, SunOrange, Nova
Zucchini and Cucumbers
Zucchini: Partenon, Golden Glory Cucumber: Saber, Vertina Must select Parthenocopic varieties(do not need pollination)
Start late March/early April and transplant 3-4 weeks later.
Crop Selection: Bell Peppers
Varieties: Red Knight, Revolution, Tequila, Gourmet Lunchbox, Jalapeno, Sweet Banana, Hot Banana, Shishito, Anahiem
Peppers
We grow lots of peppers. They make a beautiful fall display.