Shade House Farming, Types of Shade Houses

Introduction to Shade House:

Today, let us discuss details of Shade House Farming.

What is Shade House? Well, a Shade House is a design which is being surrounded by the agro nets or a material which is woven so that it can make the sunlight, humidity air and moisture to flow through the gaps in the material. Due to this, there would be an environment created for the plants to grow.

Uses of Shade House farming:

• This type of farming helps plants foliage plants, medicinal plants, spices or any other kind of vegetables.
• It helps to dry the different types of agricultural products with quality.
• The plants can be protected from the attack of predators like pests.
• This type of farming also protects the plants from several weather conditions such as wind, heavy rain etc.
• It helps to produce grafted plants and increases the lifespan of the plants when the temperature is hot.
• The plants which are tissue cultured are hardened by Shade House farming.

Suitable Location for the Shade House:

Before planning to construct, you need to first analyze the things like the type of plants which you are planning to grow as per the environmental conditions in the locality and the materials which are available. There should be an opportunity to expand the farm in the future.

The location of the Shade House should be in such a way that it is very near to the market so that the inputs required, will be easily available and even the selling of the plants can also be easy. There should not be any big trees or buildings near the Shade House farm so that there would not be any pollution from the vehicles or industries. Drainage should be away from the location of the Shade House farm. Power and water should be available at the Shade House farm in an abundant way. There can be an arrangement of windbreakers from the site or location of the Shade House farm. The distance of the windbreakers from the farm can be up to 40 meters.

For the orientation of the Shade House, there are two criteria to be considered. One is that the intensity of light in the Shade House should be uniform and the other is the direction of the wind. The structure which is Single spanned should be towards east to west or north to south direction and the structure which is multi spanned should be towards North to south so that the intensity of light will be uniform.

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The Shade House structure is made up of frame and cladding material. The frame of the Shade House is designed in such a way that it gives support for the cladding material protects the house from wind and other natural calamities. If anti-rust treatment is done on a regular basis for the Shade House,    The mild steel angle frame of the shade will be up to 30 years. The structure of the house made with bamboo will be up to four years. The shade nets which are made with agricultural products will be up to six years and this completely depends on the environmental conditions. The shade nets will be of different percentages such as 25%, 45%, 35%, 60%, 90% etc.

For the design of the Shade House, the people involved should have a very good skill in engineering. In the areas which possess heavy rainfall, the designs of gable, Quonset, or arch is highly recommended.

Note: Shade net can be used outdoors, backyards and even fro terrace gardening.

Types of Shade Houses:

 Type I:

This design is prepared by using the ms angle which is of 40mmx40mmx10mm and the structural frame involved would be bamboo. The MS angles will act as foundation posts so that there would be a chance for the grip below the structure and to hold the bamboo at the top, there would be a clip which is U shaped. Bamboo will be used as the structure of the roof and also purlin. The site of the Shade House is levelled by following the plan’s layout.  Pits will be dug for the foundation works to take place. These pits are then filled with sand and are compacted. The next step would be to fix foundation posts into these pits by using cement concrete. These should be aligned properly in parallel rows. After everything dries up and cured, bamboo is sized to correct dimension and is used as purlin which is a good arch structure and is tied accordingly with proper care. The door frame and the end frame which is fabricated before are attached to the structure which is designed and this is done with the help of nuts and bolts. Then the agro shade net which is of percentage between 30% to 35% is attached to the frame which is to the side of the structure. The end frames, which are inside the structure are also covered with the shade net. Then, the mid-pavement and the boundary line are constructed by using the brick masonry.

Type II:

This type of structural design will be making use of the ms angle with dimensions of 42mmx42mmx8mm for laying the foundation and also the end frames. Even the door of the structure will be done by making use of the ms angle. The MS flat will be used as hoops in order to support the cladding material. The foundation posts will have a chance to get fixed with purlin by using nuts and bolts. Levelling and the layout are done according to the previous type of Shade House. The pits are dug and the foundation posts are fixed in the pits with the help of concrete cement and the curing will be done for a week. The purlin, end frame, door frame, and the hoops are made with the help of bolts and nuts.

Difference between Shade House and Greenhouse:

Shade Houses will be like greenhouses in look, but they will have a shade cloth over them, which protects the plants from overheat and light. The Shade Houses have the cloth which is available in different colors and sizes so that they would protect the plants from heat, moisture, etc. It also provides protection to the plants which love to be in shade and help them in their growth.

The greenhouse is completely opposite to Shade House. The greenhouse is made up of plastic or glass material. The roof and sides of the house are used to allow solar radiation from the sun. This is used to warm the plants and soil inside the greenhouse building.

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