Summary - Florida Greenhouse Vegetable Production Handbook, Vol 1¹

G. J. Hochmuth²

It should be keenly apparent to the prospective greenhouse vegetable grower that some formidable difficulties exist. Greenhouse vegetable production involves much expense and a great amount of risk. During the decision process, the potential new grower must understand and decide if the risks are manageable.

The production of greenhouse vegetables involves dealing with specialty horticultural crops that have some exacting requirements. If the production phase of greenhouse vegetable culture can be characterized, it would certainly include the descriptors intensive, timely, managerial-dependent, detail specific, and expensive.

Greenhouse vegetable production, however, can potentially be a high-return enterprise. Along with the potential for high return, comes the potential for great losses because of the high level of risk involved with this enterprise. There are many factors that need to be thoroughly investigated prior to entering the business of greenhouse vegetables. Depending upon how well a greenhouse operator can identify and manage all of the variables, the operator may have a highly rewarding enterprise or a financially frustrating one. Hopefully, this publication will help keep the prospective grower from facing the latter option.

For growers who decide to pursue greenhouse construction and crop production, information on those topics is available in succeeding publications (volumes 2 and 3).

More Information

For more information on greenhouse crop production, please visit our website at http://smallfarms.ifas.ufl.edu.

For the other chapters in the Greenhouse Vegetable Production Handbook, see the documents listed below:

Footnotes

This document is HS773, one of a series of the Horticultural Sciences Department, Florida Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida. Original publication date December 1990. Revised January 2001. Reviewed January 2012. Visit the EDIS website at http://edis.ifas.ufl.edu.

G. J. Hochmuth, professor of Soil and Water Science, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida. The Florida Greenhouse Vegetable Production Handbook is edited by George Hochmuth, professor of Soil and Water Science, and R. C. Hochmuth, Extension agent IV, Suwannee Valley Agricultural Extension Center, Cooperative Extension Service, Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences, University of Florida, Gainesville, FL 32611.

The Institute of Food and Agricultural Sciences (IFAS) is an Equal Opportunity Institution authorized to provide research, educational information and other services only to individuals and institutions that function with non-discrimination with respect to race, creed, color, religion, age, disability, sex, sexual orientation, marital status, national origin, political opinions or affiliations. For more information on obtaining other extension publications, contact your county Cooperative Extension service.

U.S. Department of Agriculture, Cooperative Extension Service, University of Florida, IFAS, Florida A. & M. University Cooperative Extension Program, and Boards of County Commissioners Cooperating. Nick T. Place, Dean.

Summary - Florida Greenhouse Vegetable Production Handbook, Vol 11

More Information

Florida Greenhouse Vegetable Production Handbook, Vol 1

Florida Greenhouse Vegetable Production Handbook, Vol 2

Florida Greenhouse Vegetable Production Handbook, Vol 3

Footnotes

Summary - Florida Greenhouse Vegetable Production Handbook, Vol 1¹