Covertan PRO, A G R O POLY ? Why?, rather than bare soil.

• Increased soil & air temperatures (cool climates)
• Decreased soil & air temperatures (hot climates)
• Greater yields
• Earlier crops (Spring)
• Later crops (Fall)
• Airborne insect protection
• Deters birds & game
• Improved soil moisture & less erosion
• Enhances appearance of produce

Suntex CP Products & Services. First Class Plasticulture Products.
Agricultural Crop Covers

Protective systems have been used for decades to insulate crops from both killing frosts and long periods of sub-optimal growing temperatures. The simplest of devices was the large glass jar (hence the word - cloche) inverted over individual plants. Thousands of these jars were used in Europe in the late 19th century and in the New England area after WWI. They served the purpose but were cumbersome, subject to breakage, and relatively expensive.

Hotbeds, cold frames, and greenhouses have long been used to modify the environment and after WWII, flexible plastic became widely available for use as ground mulches, greenhouse covers, and row-crop covers. Vegetable growers in S. California pioneered the extensive use of row covers in the late 60s and early 70s. With the advent of slitted and punch perforated row covers in the late 70s protected cultivation of outdoor vegetables became more popular, specially in regions with a short growing season.

Then in the early 80s the non-wovens entered the agricultural picture as a new generation of crop covers. These lightweight fabrics were first tested on horticultural crops in 1981 at the University of New Hampshire, with parallel research in Europe and Asia. The results were positive and research on non-wovens has continued.

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