Fruit Trenches: Cultivating Subtropical Plants in Freezing Temperatures
lowtechmagazine.com
Fruit Trenches: Cultivating Subtropical Plants in Freezing Temperatures
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Re: Fruit Trenches: Cultivating Subtropical Plants in Freezing Temperatures
#2I oddly really want to do this, but I live in California so that would be quite pointless and most likely detrimental.
Re: Fruit Trenches: Cultivating Subtropical Plants in Freezing Temperatures
#3If the temps are below 0f, it seems like none of this is preventing your free from dropping below freezing. Maybe it’s really more about the varieties they cultivated.
With modern crisper I bet you could Make some amazing frui trees.
Re: Fruit Trenches: Cultivating Subtropical Plants in Freezing Temperatures
#4I oddly really want to do this, but I live in California so that would be quite pointless and most likely detrimental.
Unless you want to grow plants that fare better in colder climates. Just cover them over in the middle of summer and make sure they have some sort of cool air flow through the trenches.
Re: Fruit Trenches: Cultivating Subtropical Plants in Freezing Temperatures
#5There was a similar article shared here a few months ago on Fruit Walls:
https://www.lowtechmagazine.com/2015/12/fruit-walls-urban-fa...
Re: Fruit Trenches: Cultivating Subtropical Plants in Freezing Temperatures
#6Super awesome!
I imagine that most of the time, you don't even need to dig giant trenches, though.
Sepp Holzer grows citrus in the freezing alps above ground. Their average temp is 5C.
Re: Fruit Trenches: Cultivating Subtropical Plants in Freezing Temperatures
#7Climate-controlled cultivation will likely become a necessity for food production as climate change intensifies. Spain, South Africa, many Middle Eastern and other countries are already heavily reliant on greenhouses.
Also given that megadroughts, floods, and hurricanes are likely to be the new normal, sufficient capacities of solar-powered desalination will be important to sustain food production levels. My main immediate concern with climate change is that greater numbers of and more intense storms will destroy infrastructure and food production, leading to wars and/or pan migration.
Re: Fruit Trenches: Cultivating Subtropical Plants in Freezing Temperatures
#8The soviet's probably would have liked this man's geothermal greenhouse which is a modern version of their trenches: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IZghkt5m1uY
Also, I'm wondering if the citrus grown in Russia ended up ripening in fall rather than in winter or whether they had to harvest the fruit in the middle of the winter. Also, I'm not sure how citrus would work being dug up every winter. Did these trees ripen in the spring? This is all fascinating and something I'd love to try in the US. I'd bet the premium on locally grown foods isn't enough to sustain a northern citrus farm, but it could be a good hobby.
Re: Fruit Trenches: Cultivating Subtropical Plants in Freezing Temperatures
#9Thanks for the heads up. Have you got the printed books version? If so, are they good?
Re: Fruit Trenches: Cultivating Subtropical Plants in Freezing Temperatures
#10Super awesome! I imagine that most of the time, you don't even need to dig giant trenches, though. Sepp Holzer grows citrus in the freezing alps above ground. Their average temp is 5C. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5GMXqgQIU9c
Sepp <3