IU researcher gets grant to study lengthening growing season for farmers

One Indiana University professor will try to answer that question, thanks to a $128,000 grant from the Indiana State Department of Agriculture.

For his research, IU School of Public Health assistant professor James Farmer will study high tunnels, which are often mistaken for greenhouses. High tunnels (or polytunnels, as they're sometimes called) are long tunnels placed over crops. Unlike glass greenhouses, which are generally permanent heated fixtures that cost more money to operate, high tunnels use passive sunlight to heat plants and can be taken down during the regular growing season.

"You can really increase your yield per square foot under high tunnels," said Farmer.

So, Farmer said he hopes his research findings contribute to greater food security and provide economic gains.

Some research already exists to support the benefits of high tunnels, said Farmer, but Indiana growers have mixed experiences with them. So the researcher will survey growers to find out the most successful ways they can be implemented.