KINGSTON, Jamaica — As the Atlantic Hurricane Season approaches, greenhouse farmers are being encouraged to prepare their farms to withstand storms.

The encouragement came from the Managing Director of Abbey Garden Farm and the Caribbean’s Young Farmer of the Year for 2023, Diandra Rowe.

Rowe, who has been farming for over a decade, shared that her greenhouse farm suffered damage of $40 million during the passage of Hurricane Beryl last July.

With that experience, she stressed that hurricane mitigation should begin the moment farmers decide to construct a greenhouse to help them protect their investments.

“It is important to think of your greenhouse structure and your design. When erecting your greenhouse, you should consider where it will be placed. It’s always best to construct your greenhouse in an area where it’s protected from heavy wind and it’s not prone to flooding,” Rowe outlined.

For farmers whose holdings are unavoidably in flood-prone areas, the champion farmer advised that they dig trenches around their greenhouses to channel water away from the structure.

Another consideration that should be made prior to the construction of greenhouses is the type of material that will be used.

“I also suggest that you select durable materials or weather-resistant frame materials such as galvanised steel over constructing your greenhouse with wood and plastic. Also, consider using locking profiles to secure plastic and insect screens to greenhouse frames for faster and easier removal and reinstallation,” Rowe suggested.

When there is a storm on the horizon, additional preparations need to be made to protect screens and roofing materials, according to Rowe.

“In preparation for the hurricane, we normally lower our mesh or the insect screen on the sides of the greenhouse. So, that mesh is basically buried at the foot of the greenhouse. We roll the mesh down and then use weighted objects to keep it in place. It’s also recommended that you remove the plastic from the top of your structures,” Rowe said.

For larger farms with multiple greenhouses, where the removal of plastic roofing may not be possible, Rowe noted that another option is to cut slits in the plastic.

She said this will allow air to flow through the material during a storm/hurricane and minimise damage to the structure.

“When you have those tight plastics stretched on the roof, it doesn’t allow for the wind to pass through…; what it does is it twists all the infrastructure. So, it’s better for you to lose the plastic and the mesh than to lose the structure itself,” the Abbey Garden managing director explained.

As it relates to their farm surroundings, Rowe urged farmers to remove all potential projectiles, such as solar panels and cooling fans that can blow around in the wind and cause damage.

“It’s important also to cut down all trees in close proximity to your structure.  Cut down all the trees, make sure you fill up all of your water tanks to avoid them being tossed around or being damaged,” she said.

Another key step prior to a hurricane or storm is for farmers to move their seedlings and other material that can be damaged by rain or wind to a secure area indoors.

Rowe also suggested stocking up on seeds, fertilisers, pesticides and insecticides, as these items tend to be in short supply immediately after a storm.

“It’s very important to make sure that you have your chemicals, because after you would have taken off your mesh and your roof [from your greenhouse], your plants would be exposed to the different elements. You’ll have to treat for any insects that would have entered your growing space and any fungus. Spraying is important. It’s always good to stock up on those items,” she advised.

The champion farmer noted that a plan must be put in place to protect mature plants, fruits and vegetables.

“For all the plants that we would have on trellises, we would take those off and lower them. Allow them to lie flat on the ground, and then you’d cover those plants with whatever plastic you would have removed from your roof, so they don’t get too much water damage,” she outlined.

“In addition, it would be wise to reap all your mature fruits, ripe and unripe. Once they’re mature, just harvest them, and if you have a storage [facility], store them appropriately,” the farmer advised.

Rowe added that while it is important for farmers to prepare, they must also expect things to go wrong, as storms are unpredictable and they will likely sustain some damage, regardless of how much preparations are made.

“It’s very important for us to do what we can as it relates to preparations but it’s also important not to stress yourself too much about it. Sometimes you prepare and the preparations that you make… no matter what you thought the outcome would have been, it’s really and truly up to God what will happen. So, just do the best that you can,” she encouraged.

Rowe was among several panellists featured on the Caribbean Community (Caricom) webinar series, “Preparing for the 2025 Caribbean Hurricane Season”, recently.

The webinar was held under the theme “Disaster Preparedness: Crops – Open Field and Protected Systems”.

— JIS