[PureHarvest]

Been meaning to update here, and just saw the new activity.
Sunflowers were easy, good success. Shared a lot and brought into the house. Never intended on selling this years’ crop, just trialing.
Dahlias were a flop. The stems never got long enough for cutting. Bloom production was prolific but not cuttable.
Not sure if it was stunting from the powdery mildew early on, lack of a nutrient, not enuff water, spacing, or a combo of all.
The bottom line is that even if they succeeded growth-wise, I don’t have the time or desire to make the cuts, sort, bunch, and deliver.
The crop requires to much maintenance and then handling and delivering to make sense for my situation.
Like cole, I’m focusing back on tomato production next year. I have a new big tunnel that I’m adding heat to so that I can start very early and hit the early market from April to July when prices are high. I have a buyer at an auction that can take all I can grow and my dad is retired and wants to help with production AND do the delivery to the auction (an hour and 20 minute drive for him).
I am going to put a low intensity radiant tube heater in for heat which is goona hopfully keep the propane use half of what a forced hot air heater would cost. Nobody is doing this even though the technology has been around for decades. A local heating company is working with me on the design from the manufacturer and addressing all the concerns like fresh air intake, exhaust, safe clearances from the tube to materials or plants etc.
I will try to document that under the growing under cover section. There is only 3 documents on the entire internet that talks about radiant tubes for greenhouses, with a couple showing it being used in Europe. The 3rd is a 60 page guide from the manufacturer. If this works, you can say you knew me when lol. Besides the fuel use reduction, the heat is more correct for plants in that it heats like the sun, so surfaces are warmed and re-radiate so humidity is lower than when hot air is blown around causing transpiration into the air. Trying to warm air to warm the air is kinda weird when you think about how the sun creates heat. It warms the objects and surfaces, then they radiate.
Lastly, I am expanding my garlic further. I sold out in 3 weeks this year and saved back 300 lbs of bulbs to replant this fall. I am going to also plant some in my caterpillar tunnels to control how dry it is at harvest, and hopefully get the plants growing earlier in late feb/early March and see if that translates to an earlier or better harvest.
Garlic was and hopes to be my best money maker.