Raising the Roof at Westport Commons Farm

In September we began constructing a high tunnel at our midtown field. The structure will allow us to plant earlier in the spring and grow longer in the fall.

The structure is made possible through funding by the Environmental Quality Incentive Program (EQIP) from Natural Resources Conservation Service (NRCS). The program provides financial and technical assistance to agricultural producers and non-industrial forest managers to address natural resource concerns and deliver environmental benefits.

Cultivate KC’s Metro Farms & Food Systems program has provided assistance to area farmers – including several New Roots for Refugees graduates – to apply to the EQIP program and receive funding to install similar structures on their farms.

Growing in a high tunnel, or hoop house, can establish greater control over your growing environment and extend your growing season. Benefits of a high tunnel are temperature control and protection from wind, rain, disease and pests.

This hoop house is a 30 x 72’ Stuppy Powerhouse. This structure will enhance crop yield and quality by up to 50%. We expect its construction to be complete by the end of this month.