How many tunnels do you need
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oldherbaceous
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Dear Mama Kali, i think this is more of a question for Allan or Johnboy.
There are an awful lot of scenarios you need to think about.
Will it be the only income.
Will you be specializing in one area, veg, plants or a mixture of things.
How experienced a grower are you.
But probably one of the biggest failures could be not knowing your market to enable you to sell your goods, there have been a lot of good growers that have been very good at their job, but have failed to tap into an outlet that will provide a decent profit.
Getting back too the amount of polytunnels or glasshouses will depend on what you are growing.
Please don't let me put you off your dream though.
There are an awful lot of scenarios you need to think about.
Will it be the only income.
Will you be specializing in one area, veg, plants or a mixture of things.
How experienced a grower are you.
But probably one of the biggest failures could be not knowing your market to enable you to sell your goods, there have been a lot of good growers that have been very good at their job, but have failed to tap into an outlet that will provide a decent profit.
Getting back too the amount of polytunnels or glasshouses will depend on what you are growing.
Please don't let me put you off your dream though.
Kind Regards, Old Herbaceous.
There's no fool like an old fool.
There's no fool like an old fool.
Hi Mama Kali,
There are so many factors involved and with the amount of information supplied it is totally impossible to tell you.
Perhaps if you care to PM me with more information I will only be too pleased to give every bit of information that I possibly can.
I look forward to hearing from you.
JB.
There are so many factors involved and with the amount of information supplied it is totally impossible to tell you.
Perhaps if you care to PM me with more information I will only be too pleased to give every bit of information that I possibly can.
I look forward to hearing from you.
JB.
Looking at the topic basically, what we did was sound
Put one tunnel up the first year, get that fit as regards soil improver and grow some crops in it. Wait until the next year to do a second one and the following year for a third. It is very difficult to cover a polytunnel in the winter, too much wind and the plastic won't stretch properly in the cold. It may be that you will eventually have a fourth tunnel so as to leave a tunnel open during winter months, the rains can then cleanse the soil.
I recommend that you have an outdoor cropping area, some low tunnels or cloches are handy for early beans, also a smaller structure which has mesh sides fir raising brassicas and onions hardily for planting outside. In conjunction with these you need a greenhouse preferably one bench with heated matting for propogation for starting the non-hardies such as tomatoes, aubergines, peppers and the cucurbits.
Regarding the practicability of making a living,there are many hurdles on the way. For a start many people have the same idea of living in the country so any property with a wortwhile acre or two is unrealistically expensive. Anything under 214 acres comes under very tight planning laws.It's not even a case of producing the stuff, the admin of packaging to accepted standards can swallow as much time as growing or picking the stuff. Then there is paperwork, tax forms, seed list, the list of jobs is endless.We have the potential for 7 tunnels when sorted out but even then I doubtif we will make a substantial profit, nowhere near minimum wage level to say nothing of ever recouping the momey already invested.
The best return is to do it then sell yourself to the media, write books and articles,courses, lectures, personal appearances.
Some people have thought that by being fully Organic you would do it, no way, too many round here have had to give up
Put one tunnel up the first year, get that fit as regards soil improver and grow some crops in it. Wait until the next year to do a second one and the following year for a third. It is very difficult to cover a polytunnel in the winter, too much wind and the plastic won't stretch properly in the cold. It may be that you will eventually have a fourth tunnel so as to leave a tunnel open during winter months, the rains can then cleanse the soil.
I recommend that you have an outdoor cropping area, some low tunnels or cloches are handy for early beans, also a smaller structure which has mesh sides fir raising brassicas and onions hardily for planting outside. In conjunction with these you need a greenhouse preferably one bench with heated matting for propogation for starting the non-hardies such as tomatoes, aubergines, peppers and the cucurbits.
Regarding the practicability of making a living,there are many hurdles on the way. For a start many people have the same idea of living in the country so any property with a wortwhile acre or two is unrealistically expensive. Anything under 214 acres comes under very tight planning laws.It's not even a case of producing the stuff, the admin of packaging to accepted standards can swallow as much time as growing or picking the stuff. Then there is paperwork, tax forms, seed list, the list of jobs is endless.We have the potential for 7 tunnels when sorted out but even then I doubtif we will make a substantial profit, nowhere near minimum wage level to say nothing of ever recouping the momey already invested.
The best return is to do it then sell yourself to the media, write books and articles,courses, lectures, personal appearances.
Some people have thought that by being fully Organic you would do it, no way, too many round here have had to give up