Alpine Garden & Hearth recently completed the installation of a 24 by 48 foot high tunnel greenhouse. The high tunnel will greatly extend the growing season in Valdez, Alaska, the snowiest city in the United States. This greenhouse features a double 6mil polyethylene cover, roll up sides and polycarbonate paneled end walls.
The semi-gable structure was purchased in Aurora, from Oregon Valley Greenhouses and trucked back to Alaska in May 2013. Oregon Valley Greenhouses builds substantial high tunnel greenhouses. The greenhouse uses a center purlin on top of the bows to keep the poly film from sagging and is designed for use in heavy snow areas. We don’t know if they meant Valdez.
Going into the fall and winter, we will be using a Wiseway Pellet Stove inside the greenhouse to see how long the greenhouse can remain in use into winter. The Wiseway stove depends on gravity for its operation and doesn’t require electrical power to operate.
Raised beds for raspberries and cut flowers are installed. The next project will be to install the drip irrigation system and an elevated tank to provide the water. Water in Valdez comes out of the ground at only a few degrees above freezing and the water storage tank will allow it to warm a little before reaching the plants.