Hoop Houses Extend Growing Season

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NMU Hoop House and MQT Food Co-op Partner to Teach Others About Growing Food in the U.P.

written by Savannah Mallo

Marquette, MI – The sound of blenders filled the Northern Michigan University Jacobetti Building Lobby Tuesday, Nov. 18 during a green smoothie and hoop house workshop. The workshop titled, “What the Kale Do I Do with All These Vegetables?” was organized by the PR 432 Environmental Campaigns class in partnership with the Marquette Food Co-op. Abbey Palmer, Special Projects Coordinator at the Marquette Food Co-op, demonstrated how to make a green smoothie and brought samples for everyone to taste.

Ingredients for making the delicious green smoothie samples that were given out at the NMU hoop house event. (photo by Kelly McCommons)

“After seeing how easy it is to make a tasty snack from local greens, I hope those who attended share the recipe with their friends and family. I hope that they remember the spinach plants still thriving under frost blanket in the hoop house – evidence that we can grow healthy, fresh food for more of the year in the UP and have greater food security through supporting the local food system,” Palmer said.

Abbey also led a short tour of the NMU Hoop House which she manages year round. A hoop house is a structure that extends the UP’s short growing season from four months of the year to about nine. Covered in greenhouse grade plastic, the structure is shaped like a gothic window to help it shed snow. The NMU Hoop House is a pilot project that began in 2009 as a partnership between Northern Initiatives, NMU College of Professional Studies and the Marquette Food Co-op. The project aims “to help current farmers, potential farmers and the greater community learn more about sustainable agricultural practices and using hoop houses to extend the growing season in a northern climate.” The NMU Hoop house donates all its harvests to the NMU culinary students and local food banks.

A demonstration is given on growing food in the U.P. at the on-campus NMU hoop house. (photo courtesy of

According to Susy Ziegler, head of the Department of Earth, Environmental, and Geographical Sciences at NMU, “Many students in my Introduction to Geographic Research class were eager to attend the event as a field trip. We were intrigued to see the mint green smoothies, and I think that our Environmental Studies and Sustainability majors were especially interested in experiencing how hoop houses can help us grow food here even when it is cold and snowy.”

Ziegler reported that one of her class members is proposing ways to increase the amount of locally grown food served in Marquette schools. “At this workshop we were excited to hear that the Marquette Food Co-op would support research projects by our students who want to learn first-hand about food security and sustainable agriculture,” she concluded.

The PR 432 Environmental Campaigns class held the event in hopes of bringing in new volunteers at the NMU Hoop House this coming spring. Work days begin in April and are every Tuesday at 5 p.m. If you are interested in learning more about the NMU Hoop House or becoming a volunteer, contact Abbey Palmer at 225-0671 extension 725.