High Tunnel Kale and -Temps

[Jason Townsend]

With high tunnel beds of mature kale and the possibility of subzero temps Thursday, I'm looking for advice:

 

Harvest it all before the cold front Thursday?

or

Double cover it and hope for the best?

I've never experienced negative temps this early, with mature kale.

Thanks!

Jason

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Jason Townsend

315-790-0328

Kingfisher Farm

She says "You can't repeat the past"

I say "You can't? What do you mean you can't? Of course you can"

-Bob Dylan

[Brian Luton]

What a different start to the winter season than recent years! 

I’d say it depends on your overall objectives with the kale.  If you have a market for it now - its quality will never be better - and you can free yourself from the winter management ahead.(and prevent yield and quality loss that is going to come from extended HT holding). 

If you can’t move it all now and have winter markets that you would like to try serve with Kale then double cover it as best you can and let it ride.   Also try to close up as tight as possible.  I run straw bales or use old row cover along doors, etc and wiggle wire the curtains closed on the prevailing wind side.  If you have air leakages on the sidewalls / end walls the air movement when the kale is totally frozen will cause more damage/deterioration nearby than protected in the middle of the house, etc.  So maybe cut this weeks kale strategically too.  I start on the outsides with winter held greens as ground frost penetration creeps in through winter as well.  

I’m always crossing my fingers with overwintering greens and at some point the yield loss and management makes it a “losing proposition financially” but if it pulls/retains customers, drives/supports other sales, fulfills some crazy personal desire to have fresh greens in winter or whatever than it can be done through some pretty extreme conditions.

I’ve carried Winterbor and Red Russian kale through winter for many years now.  Red Russian succumbs sooner but with pruning can make a beautiful late winter/spring raab crop.   Quality declines….Management sucks…but the desire of these crops to persist is remarkable.

From a quality / management / psychological standpoint it kind of sucks to have such deep early cold but I think these crops have had enough cold to acclimate a bit and in reality the residual warmth in the ground at this point is much greater than it will be in another month or two (shy major warm ups).  I’ve found that early season ground warmth has a protective quality under the row covers that declines as winter deepens/progresses.  

Hoping for the best in the winter ahead! 🤞🏻

Brian

PS - if anyone’s read this far and has good storage kohlrabi available shoot me a message!  Yes you read that right someone is looking for kohlrabi!? 😂

Stones Throw Farm

3540 Makyes Road

Nedrow, NY 13120

(315)469-4225

www.stonesthrowfarm.biz

www.facebook.com/stonesthrowfarmcny

@Stones_Throw_Farm  (on Instagram)

On Dec 1, 2025, at 5:32 AM, Jason Townsend <townsend...@gmail.com> wrote:



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