Two years ago we installed a 75 foot hoop house in a high wind area to grow Sunflowers, Lisianthus, Eucalyptus and of course a whole lot of tomatoes. It was a huge success and crops were plentiful. The tomatoes nearly reached the top of the 8 foot high tunnel by the end of the growing season. Our favorite tomato variety for the hoop house is Sungold which has a sweet flavor and good firmness. They are however prone to splitting. We almost always sell out of cherry tomatoes at the market.

In the Fall of last year a large storm blew the plastic right off of the tunnel and ripped holes near the far end. Learning from our mistakes we have since retied the ends and realized it is important to do this yearly because the plastic stretches over time.

Overall, the tunnel was a small investment with huge impacts on our flower production throughout the season.