Presentation Library-021117
- 1. HIGH ALTITUDE FOOD GARDENING Yeah, we can grow that here. Evergreen Library • 11 Feb 2017
- 2. Me Margaret Rode Evergreen CO • Gardens at 7200ft • Makes a mean batch of pesto Expert? CO Master Gardener Community Gardener Real Food Lover Garden Geek Frugalista Introvert
- 3. Why I Do This LIKES: Food that tastes great Food that hasn’t lost most of its nutrition Food that isn’t making me sick Being outdoors and staying healthy Sharing/swapping what I grow with other folks DISLIKES: Never knowing what’s in/on the fruits & veggies I eat Paying a zillion dollars for organic brussels sprouts Eating food that tastes like cardboard So much plastic, so much pollution, so much waste
- 4. Why I Do This A University of Texas study analyzed 43 fruits and vegetables from a 50- year period and reported reductions in vitamins, minerals, and protein. Using USDA data, they found that broccoli, for example, had 130mg of calcium in 1950. Today, the identical quantity has only 48mg of calcium. What's going on? The farming industry needs to grow bigger vegetables faster. The very things that speed growth — selective breeding and synthetic fertilizers — decrease produce's ability to synthesize nutrients or absorb them from the soil.
- 5. Why I Do This Transporting produce degrades nutrition even more: •Several days of storage where it’s picked. •Several days being transported to distribution center. •Days or weeks of storage there. •1-3 days on display at the grocery store. •Storage in your fridge before consumption. 10-80% of certain nutrients (like vitamin C) can be lost in the process, according to several studies.
- 6. Why Would You Do This?
- 7. Preview Quiz: Which Should YOU Grow? “Moskovich” Season: 55-60 days Indeterminate Very cold tolerant “Black Sea Man” Season: 75-80 days Determinate Sensitive to Frost “Yellow Brandywine” Season: 90-100 days Indeterminate Heat/drought tolerant
- 8. What’s Going to Work Best for… …Our Ridiculously Short Growing Season: Our USDA Hardiness Zone: 3-4 Avg Last Frost Date: June 13 Avg First Frost Date: Sept 8 Typical Frost-free Season : ~87 days …Our Ridiculously Unpredictable Conditions Late and early cold & frosts Late and early snow Mid-summer hailstorms Drying or damaging winds Hungry wildlife all around us …And if you have a sloping, half-shady gardening area under a pine tree with rocky, alkaline soil…what to do, what to do?
- 9. This is not our garden.
- 10. Not this ……….........but this
- 13. Not this ……….........but this
- 14. Not this ……….........but this
- 15. It’s not better or worse. It’s just different. It takes a different mindset and a different skill set. And we can all do it.
- 16. First: Know What You’re Up Against… Know YOUR Climate: https://garden.org/apps/calendar COhighaltitudegardener FB Group Local nurseries Evergreen Garden Club Evergreen Community Garden Foothills Organic Gardeners Know YOUR Soil and Sun: Test your soil: $15+ and okay (Home Depot kit) $35 and precise (Jeffco) Eyeball: Too hard and rocky? Is anything growing there? Get to know your sun patterns…where’s the sun and when? And most of all: Know what your goal is: What do you want to have/see at the end of the day, and How hard are you wanting to work?
- 19. The Formula for Growing Here Know your space, and know how you’ll defend it. Choose the right place, and make the soil rich and fertile. Build raised beds or use innovative containers. Start early and finish late with weather protection. Use thermal mass like milk jugs full of water, bricks, walls-of-water, or even black rocks. Choose the right varieties – the tough little prizefighters that do well in cool conditions. Don’t slow them down. Transplant gently, protect them, mulch them lightly to conserve water.
- 20. Time for Some Overview Qs
- 21. 1. Secure Your Space They’re coming for you. Make no mistake.
- 22. 1. Secure Your Space They’re coming for you. Make no mistake.
- 23. 1. Secure Your Space First line of defense: Fencing, preferably 7’ or higher, or electric. We use 7’ game fence. You can also use creative enclosures like dog kennels, single-wire fencing, hoop houses made of cattle panels, etc. Anything that simulates a barrier. Second line of defense: Sprays and repellants, applied constantly Third line of defense: Choose the plants they don’t like as much, and don’t get too attached! What have you used?
- 24. 1. List of Elk-Proof Plants
- 25. 1. Elk and Deer Strategies Exclusion (tall fencing) Exclusion with deterrents (dogs, electric wire, repellants, motion detectors, etc) Containers caged or well out of reach Caging individual beds with hoops Try hiding edibles behind undesirable plants
- 26. 1. Dealing with Voles Eliminate all hiding places, including tall brush, lumber, junk, dead branches, firewood, every safe haven. Screening underground and around your garden area. Repellents with castor bean oil – away from food crops. Grow in raised beds with screened bottom. Grow in large containers like livestock tanks. Research traps of various kinds – we use live traps.
- 27. 1. Dealing with Voles Buy 2’ x 6’ or 2’ x 4’ Drill ¼” holes all around the bottom Use a 2” layer of gravel or rocks in the bottom Fill with organic planters mix or container mix
- 28. Time for Some Critter
- 29. 2. Pick Your Spot(s) and Improve the Soil Choose a place, if you can, that gets at least 4-6 hours of direct or dappled sunshine per day. If it gets less, search for “shade-tolerant plants”. Most edibles will do poorly with less than 4 hours of sunshine. Different plants have different requirements; try to match the different spaces you have with what you want to grow. Garlic Garlic in unfenced sunny area (elk won’t eat it, so growing it here leaves room in fenced garden bed for more vulnerable plants)
- 30. 2. Pick Your Spot(s) and Improve the Soil Test your soil. It may be completely inappropriate for what you want to grow, or you may just need to do minor changes to make the difference between 2 tomatoes and 50! Soil test kits are available from the Jeffco Extension Office at the Fairgrounds, and major nurseries like Jared’s (Littleton) and Echter’s (Arvada). They will tell you the composition of your soil and will make specific recommendations for amending it to make it grow more flowers & food.
- 31. 2. Pick Your Spot(s) and Improve the Soil
- 32. Time for Some
- 33. 3. Start Your Plants Early (or buy) Early starting is a key to having a good gardening season. Fluorescent growing lights can be easily found at big box stores, online, or on Craigslist. Four-foot shop lights with full spectrum bulbs can start a lot of seedlings! Use sterile seed starting mixture, peat disks, or coir (coconut husk fiber). Start seeds at the temperature the want to start at, and keep them close to the lights as they grow. See pubs online like http://www.aces.edu/pubs/docs/A/ANR- 1061/ANR-1061.pdf Transplant GENTLY & water with kelp solution for shock.
- 34. 3. Start Your Plants Early For your soil For your seedlings
- 35. 3. Start Your Plants Early
- 36. 4. Protect from the Weather There are many ways to protect your plants from late/early frosts and freezes, hail damage, and wind.
- 37. 4. Protect from the Weather There are many ways to protect your plants from late/early frosts and freezes, hail damage, and wind.
- 38. 4. Protect from the Weather There are many ways to protect your plants from late/early frosts and freezes, hail damage, and wind. 24” rebar ½” + Black PVC sprinkler host cut into lengths + 6 mil plastic from the paint department Total cost ~ $3.00/bed
- 39. 4. Protect from the Weather There are many ways to protect your plants from late/early frosts and freezes, hail damage, and wind. 24” rebar ½” stakes + 10’ Electrical conduit + 6 mil plastic from the paint department
- 40. 4. Protect from the Weather For early and late frost protection, try frost blankets too. Search for “frost blanket” on eBay.com for cheap ones.
- 41. Time for Some
- 42. The Search: Choosing the Right Plants WHAT’S YOUR PLEASURE? Seeds or Plants? Many seed catalogs/companies now sell transplants, as well as seeds, so you’re no longer limited to what you can get at the local nursery! Organic? Non-GMO? Heirloom? Open-Pollinated? Hybrid? Treated? Or Untreated? What’s important to YOU?
- 43. What Do I Want to Grow? (My Process)What do I buy most in the produce section? OR What do I love to eat? What do I love enough to work a little? Can I grow it here? { And by the way, how hard do I want to work? } What’s my “short list” – and do I have a space for it all? What are the best varieties for my garden’s unique conditions?
- 44. Planning for a great season (food): • Avocado • Bananas • Basil • Beets (Golden and Red) • Blueberries • Broccoli • Cabbage (Red) • Carrots • Celery • Cilantro • Corn • Garlic • Ginger • Greens (Collards, Asian, etc) • Kale (Curly and Lacinato) • Lettuce (Romaine and Mixed) • Onions (Dry) • Onions (Green) • Oranges • Peas (Sugar Snap & Snow) • Peppers (Hot and Sweet) • Potatoes (White) • Potatoes (Sweet) • Strawberries • Summer Squash • Tomatoes • Winter Squash (Butternut, etc.) What do I love to eat? What never goes to waste? (initial list)
- 45. Planning for a great season: • Avocado • Bananas • Basil • Beets (Golden and Red) • Berries • Blueberries (perennial) • Broccoli • Cabbage (Red) • Carrots • Celery • Cilantro • Corn, Sweet • Cucumbers (pickling) • Garlic • Ginger • Greens (Collards, Kale, etc) • Lettuce (Romaine and Mixed) • Onions (Dry) • Onions (Green) • Oranges • Peas (Sugar Snap & Snow) • Peppers (Hot and Sweet) • Potatoes (White) • Potatoes (Sweet) • Strawberries • Summer Squash • Tomatoes • Winter Squash (Butternut, etc.) What actually grows here (outdoors, no greenhouse)? What do I love enough to fuss with? (space, sun, cost, TLC)
- 46. Planning for a great season: • Asparagus (perennial) • Basil • Beets (Golden and Red) • Berries • Broccoli • Cabbage (Red) • Carrots • Cilantro • Corn • Cucumbers (pickling) • Garlic • Greens (Collards, Kale, etc) • Lettuce (Romaine and Mixed) • Onions (Green) • Parsley • Peas (Sugar Snap & Snow) • Peppers (Hot and Sweet) • Potatoes (White) • Potatoes (Sweet) (sneaking in) • Summer Squash • Tomatoes • Winter Squash (Butternut, etc.) THE SHORT LIST
- 47. Planning for a great season: • Maximilian Sunflower • Red Poppy • Hollyhock • Yarrow • Russian Sage • Iris • Hyacinth (Reg and Grape) • Apache Plume • Lavender • Harebell • Echinacea (immune booster) • Valerian (sleep aid) • Hops (privacy screen) • Comfrey (compost plant) • Borage (bees love it) • Thyme (groundcover) • Oregano (groundcover) ORNAMENTAL/MEDICINAL/POLLINATORS
- 48. Preview Quiz: Which Should YOU Grow? “Moskovich” Season: 55-60 days Indeterminate Very cold tolerant “Black Sea Man” Season: 75-80 days Determinate Sensitive to Frost “Yellow Brandywine” Season: 90-100 days Indeterminate Heat/drought tolerant
- 49. Which Pepper Should I Grow? “King of the North” “Heirloom. The best red bell pepper we know for northern gardeners where the seasons are cool and short.…. Great sweet flavor. Stock from Waterville, Maine. 70 days from transplant.” “Miniature Chocolate Bell” “Heirloom. Short, stocky plants covered with lovely 2" long miniature bell peppers with an excellent fresh flavor. Family heirloom from Ohio…..Great for salads. 95 days from transplant.”
- 50. Which Corn Should I Grow? “Candy Mountain” “Open-Pollinated. Matures: 70 Days. Montana. A super-sweet offspring perfect for mountain gardeners. This is the only non-hybrid supersweet we know of…Tender golden kernels on impressive 8-10'' ears.” “Golden Jubilee” “Hybrid. Matures: 90-105 days. The grandpa of hybrid corn. Golden Jubilee is …excellent for late summer enjoyment. Stalks reach 6 feet tall, and the 8 1/2-9” inch ears have deep, tender yellow kernels.”
- 51. Which Carrots Should I Grow? “Danvers Half Long” “Heirloom. 75 days. Market gardeners in Danvers, MA developed this variety in 1886. The root is a rich, dark orange and is 6-8" long. A first- class carrot for all soils.” “Interceptor F1” “F1 Hybrid. 120-125 days. Long and slender Imperator-type carrot, will grow to 12" or more in proper growing conditions. Roots stay slender … and will not crack. Good resistance to storage diseases. A real standout. ”
- 52. Too Overwhelmed? TRY THE WWW.SEEDSNOW.COM SEED FINDER Not perfect, but useful, and kinda fun…
- 53. Evergreen Community Gardens Buchanan Park garden built in 2013 Buffalo Park garden built in 2016 All plots are reserved for 2017, but both gardens are maintaining a waiting list Contact them: Email: garden@evergreeneasy.org Facebook: Evergreen Community Garden
- 54. Evergreen Community Garden at Buchanan
- 55. Buffalo Park Community Garden
- 56. Some Terrific Seed Sources: Foothills Organic Gardeners Seed Swap March 17, 2017 • 6:30pm • Bergen Park Fire Rescue http://www.pennandcordsgarden.com/mountain-seeds-for-sale.html http://seedstrust.com http://groworganic.com http://highmowingseeds.com http://botanicalinterests.com http://territorialseed.com http://sustainableseedco.com http://rareseeds.com http://potatogarden.com (Colorado organic seed potatoes) http://thegarlicstore.com (Organic seed garlic)
- 57. Some Terrific Seedling Sources: Front Range Organic Gardeners Seedling Sale Saturday May 20, 2017 • 9am to 1pm • Denver Presbytery Center Denver Botanic Gardens Seedling Sale Friday-Saturday May 12-13, 2017 (free Gardens admission too!) Penn Parmenter, mountain garden goddess Saturday-Sunday May 6-7 classes at DBG, will bring seedlings Farmers’ markets Local (higher-altitude) nurseries Natural Grocers (tomatoes/tomatillos/peppers) Your neighbors
- 58. You can do this. Thanks.