Electric blankets on grape vines an option to fans, inventor says

摘要

Growing up tinkering with electronics in the garage on the family grape farm, and going on to become an electrical engineer with a knack for innovation, provided the background for Tom Kerber's latest idea -electric blankets for grape vines. It's a guaranteed way to protect a vine from even the coldest Canadian winter, but he'll have to play catch-up to convince growers who are not already locked in to other technology. Many have already invested their crop insurance payments from three consecutive cold winters into large wind machines that can cost 40,000 dollar each. The giant fans pull warm air down to mix with colder air on the ground raising the temperature a few critical degrees to save the vine.