The University of Minnesota Extension's Regional Sustainable Development Partnerships program is accepting grant applications from farmers to build a farm-scale deep winter greenhouse.
RSDP is seeking one specialty crop farmer in each of its five regions to partner on passive solar greenhouse research and education, a release said. Glass Greenhouse
Deep winter greenhouses absorb heat from sunlight, providing a low-cost, low-carbon winter food production system. Heat is stored in an underground thermal mass of soil or rock and dissipates into the above-ground planting area at night.
The structure is built with a south-facing, angled glazing wall that captures heat from the sun. By relying primarily on solar heat, the farm-scale deep winter greenhouse enables farmers to grow crops using only minimal backup heating from delivered fuel or electric heat, the release said.
Versions of these greenhouses have been built in the program since 2016. So far, farmers have used the greenhouses to profitably grow a variety of salad greens that are sold to direct market consumers.
"The new farm scale deep winter greenhouse design is optimal for farmers that want to expand their growing season to produce crops for their customers throughout the winter while limiting the use of fossil fuel heating," Greg Schweser, director of the University of Minnesota Extension's RSDP program, said in the release. "This is a great way to generate revenue for your farm in what is currently the off-season."
The farmer selected in each region will receive $25,000 of the expected $48,000 to $58,000 cost to build a prototype greenhouse. In return, participants agree to share access to their structure for research projects, public workshops and demonstrations for three years.
The Northwest RSDP region serves Kittson, Roseau, Lake of the Woods, Marshall, Pennington, Red Lake, Clearwater, Beltrami, Polk, Norman, Mahnomen, Clay and Wilkin Counties as well as Red Lake and White Earth Nations.
To view the complete list of regions, visit extension.umn.edu/regional-partnerships.
This grant opportunity is supported by the Minnesota Department of Agriculture’s AGREETT program.
Heavy Duty Greenhouse To learn more about deep winter greenhouses and apply, visit extension.umn.edu/growing-systems/deep-winter-greenhouses. Proposals must be submitted by Feb. 14.