Hi,
We are growing greens, carrots, beets, kale, and spinach inside a low tunnel (low hoop house) here in southwestern Colorado at 6,500 feet. We have frost fabric and plastic, so although the plants freeze solid every night, they warm up enough to harvest during the day, and they are delicious.
We have been watering in the morning as soon as the plants thaw out, but in the past week, this hasn't been working well. Because the days have gotten so short, the leaves never seem to dry off, and the plants that freeze with water on them are getting leaf damage.
I am assuming we need to put some drip irrigation in place, but we are wondering if folks have experience with the drip tape and freezing temperatures. Will the freezing temperatures damage the drip tape? Does anybody have experience with any other irrigation methods for our situation?
A lot of what I've read online suggests not watering at all in the winter, but I think that suggestion was developed on the east coast. This is an extremely dry environment, and we need to water every three days.
Thanks for any help!