I don't have a hoophouse myself, but worked on a farm with one for several years. If you have any flowers that don't quite get tall enough in the field, they will love the hoophouse. lisianthus and delphiniums do much better in the hoophouse and are just knockout, but it might be a little late to get them going this year. Basil would love the extra warmth as would peppers, you could have an extra-long season (early and late)

Thanks for the advice, I am going to put several varieties of basil in tomorrow, I think I'm going to put in a row of sunflowers too, maybe be the first one at market with suns.
Maybe I should try some snapdragons, or is to too late?

We have a smaller tunnel (14' x 48' Ledgewood) with 4 beds running lengthwise. We put in transplants of lettuce and spinach (started under lights in soil blocks) in late March and early April and direct seed arugula and radishes in two plantings. We also direct seed radishes between the spinach rows. In mid to late May we put in tomato plants. We have also had good luck with cucumbers in the middle rows trellising them on Hortnova from Johnnies.

Does it get too hot for lettuce in the hoop house?

We have found that lettuce does fine for us in the spring. It's probably too hot for it in the summer. We haven't tried it. We have it harvested out by the end of May. We drip it well during hot days and will occasionally overhead water with a wand if it looks wilty. We are about to put in a few mini-wobbler sprinklers on stakes to use on hot days. Shade cloth might be another option, but we don't want to go to that expense.

upson22, what part of MI are you in? I am putting up 4 hoop houses this year. I am going to try to grow lettuces most of the summer by using shade cloth and harvesting young.. I think it is a shame that by the time all the good salad veggies come in it is too hot for lettuce. Where does all of the lettuce we by in the store in the summer? Canada?

We are near Kalamazoo, southwest Michigan. I have read about using shade cloth on lettuce and I think it is worth a try. You are right it is hard to find good greens mid summer. One of our vendors has a hydroponic green house, they seem to have better luck with greens later in the year. You are putting up four hoop houses,good for you, are you doing it yourself, did you buy kits?

Hi neighbor! I'm 10 mins. from Kazoo. We bought the hoops years ago but just now are getting them up. My husband and a few friends are doing the work. I am going to experiement with lettuces this summer. Good luck.

Small world! Do you go to any markets in the Kalamazoo area, we do Richland and Kalamazoo.

No, I haven't done any markets. I live on a very busy road and I am going to try a roadside stand. If I don't seem to attract any sales I may try Kazoo or South Haven Farmers Markets.

high tunnel will help with the heat.

You need to make the hoop house so you can roll up the sides. kind of tricky and can be expensive. there are different ways to do this. The higher the sides the cooler inside. you want the sides probably 4 ft high if possible or higher.

Then you have an umbrella top to keep the rain off. this keeps the veggies in great shape. less mold and problems. real good for flowers etc.

With a high tunnel you do not have to use a fan to cool and they are generally set up without heat. You can use a cheap plastic for the sides since they roll up.

They work well where you get a little breeze to keep the air moving inside. The quality of the veggies inside is very high. you try to water without wetting the entire plant. try to water the soil. it keeps the morning dew off. it stays nice and dry inside. really helps.

Here is a link that might be useful: U of Penn high tunnels