This was a great fall/early winter to grow under low tunnels. Low tunnels work great over raised beds like in your pic. In my zone, I use frost cover and add plastic when the temps get colder. I still have a little lettuce, but I am getting mine ready for early spring plantings. I know of a guy who is still transplanting lettuce and spinach into low tunnels. (he has a year round farmers market near him)

I just finished the chard, same setup as the OP. I will pick the cabbage this week end.

The radicchio will probably last another ten days. The onions are for next spring. The collard and lacinato will be the only one going through the winter.

We just used the last of the cabbage for cole slaw. Very satisfying to still have some this time of year. It's been a very warm fall.

That lettuce looks wonderful! I still have 3 Catskill Brussels Sprout plants in one garden that are slowly sizing up, and a few dozen lettuce plants growing in my basement some of which are ready for the first harvest. We are having 60 degree daytime highs this week but the rain that the NW is receiving now is supposed to arrive this weekend and then we will be back to more normal temps for December. I just recently ordered a 250' roll of Agribon 19. I plan to have some winter greens going this time next year.

When did you start covering? Still had a lot of chard in raised beds growing and the weather was tricky - too warm in the sun/midday but frost at night, with some stormy days in between.

I put a light fabric row cover on beginning in October, depending on the night time temps. Then I put a heavy layer on top of that beginning mid-november. I'm going to try to keep everything going straight through winter! We'll see what happens

Good luck with your tunnels this winter!

I've been growing in tunnels, cold frames also, for several years through the winter in zone 5. To get through the winter I use greenhouse film over my hoops and also agribon row cover over the plants when night time lows start dipping below 10F. I doubt that row cover alone would get me through a Colorado winter.

Thanks! I'm trying the fabric only so I won't have to vent them on sunny days. Just picked some turnip, radishes and some more greens. Here's a pic. Anyone else have winter harvest pics?!

November 7th

November 21st

December 5th

This also doesn't include all the between market sales.

I am working on picking for my next market on December 19th this week. Got 120+ pounds of carrots (purple, orange and yellow) dug tonight, still need to harvest Spinach, Kale x3 varieties, Collards, Lettuce x4 varieties, Swiss chard, bok choy x2 varieties, napa cabbage, arugula, tatsoi, dill, cilantro, green onions and what ever else I forgot. I am sure the picture will look just like the last three (minus tomatoes and peppers).

Jay

I wish I could come volunteer and learn how to do that.

Come on over, I am heading out in 15 minutes to pick by headlamp in the high tunnels. It is warmer now than it will be on Wednesday night.

Do you do farmers market full-time? And do you really sell all of that stuff? What do you do with the unsold product?

No I am a full time teacher who farms full time too. The winter markets this season have been a little on the down side. If you look at my display, half of it or more is storage root vegetables and carrots. These keep, so if I don't sell them I just put them back into the walk in cooler. The greens, we try to sell and we have resorted to selling produce bundles after the market in my hometown. Our main winter market is about 45 minutes away. We end up selling most of it, but I could do better. We have a market every 2 weeks.

Here is a produce bundle. We have been selling them for $20, a little less than regular prices, but it is easier to sell it for $20 and not have to worry about change.

Thanks for the info. It would be awesome to garden full-time

Your stuff looks amazing, Jay. Here in east central Kansas, the Farmer's Market is still going strong. We have a few people who are hoop gardening to great success and lettuce is going well. It's so nice to have them. My garden is down for the winter since I don't have hoops, but it sure is nice to go to the Farmer's Market. I might try hoops on one of my beds next year. I also need to figure out how to keep my Italian parsley going inside of some kind of cover. It's just in a large pot on the patio and surprisingly enough, is still producing, even after our recent ice storm. Thanks for the great pictures. Enjoy your winter break. I am a retired teacher.

Merry Christmas!

The Sparx had rusty spines but the Muir was perfect!

Merry Christmas to you too, Peter. Beautiful looking carrots.

Thanks -- they are totally delicious - very sweet. I was totally not expecting them -- the greens are much smaller than usual with the Fall harvest. They were not covered or anything, but of course for the most part it has been unusually warm.

Awesome Tigrikt!!

Thanks jrslick -- happy I left it growing, and harvested it now.

Nice harvests, you guys!

And nice PJ's, too :)

Happy New Year!

We had a salad from my 'basement garden' with our Christmas dinner. I also used the last of my fall carrots in the salad. Steamed up some frozen broccoli from the garden and roasted some tiny Brussels Sprouts that I picked Christmas morning. It all went very well with the standing rib roast I made with a little home grown horseradish sauce on the side.

As a side note. I put in my online order at Johnny's on Wednesday December 23. I expected it would not arrive until today at the earliest, but the mailman delivered it on Saturday. Three days from Maine to Kansas City with one of the days being Christmas!

Sunday I started 6 each of Muir, Breen, Rhazes, and Dragoon (thanks for the recommendation Jay!) to grow in my basement garden. I also started some King Richard Leeks and Evergreen Hardy White bunching onions for March transplant to the garden. I had to finally bring in my potted Arp Rosemary yesterday because of the snow storm and predicted lows in the teens this week. I'm hoping I can keep it alive thru the winter.

Jay That would have been a quick run, I am in TX panhandle. I admire your hard work and love the pictures.

We picked some more of those carrots today, Bolero, and they were huge (nice and wide) despite small tops and absolutely the best carrots I have ever had.

Saturday's salad

2 of my several sacks of citrus. Picked clean 1 orange tree and made no noticeable dent into the lemons. Regular grocery sacks.

Here was our harvest for the first winter market in January. It was a busy selling day. First January Winter Market in Manhattan