Home gardening in Boulder County is often depicted with perfect people tending self-watering raised beds set up in spacious sunny backyards. In reality, most residents live in apartments, condos and multi-family housing units that offer limited, if any, sunny garden space.
That hasn’t discouraged locals with green thumbs and an urge to feed themselves. They are growing vegetables, berries, herbs and flowers in pots, containers and window boxes on patios, balconies, porches, decks and roofs.
“Container gardening really is a growing movement here because so many people around Boulder can’t afford to live in a single-family house with gardening space,” says Eve Reshetnik Brawner.
The veteran gardener has co-owned North Boulder’s Harlequin’s Garden with her husband, Mikl Brawner, for more than 30 years. Harlequin’s Garden is a sustainability focused nursery and garden center offering seeds, trees, cacti, gardening classes and plant starts.
“You don’t need a big backyard,” Reshetnik Brawner says. “Using containers and pots, you can grow big crops of a lot of vegetables, herbs and flowers.”
Here comes the sun
The first step for gardeners is to gauge the solar and shade exposure for their patio or deck. The growing season may be a little shorter here, but there’s no shortage of sunny days.
“Our sun is much stronger at this altitude than it is in most other places where people garden,” Reshetnik Brawner says. “Generally speaking, a half day of sun here is worth a day of sun in Maryland.”
“Tomatoes, peppers and eggplants do best with a lot of sun. So do Mediterranean herbs like thyme, lavender and rosemary.”
Growth formula
Colorado’s solar upside comes with a danger, according to Reshetnik Brawner.
“It’s so arid here that plants dry out quickly, evaporating water out of their foliage,” she says. “Your container needs to be big enough to hold enough soil to keep it hydrated.”
Most local garden soils need to be amended with compost because they tend to be compacted. Pots need to drain well so roots don’t get soggy: A saucer under the pot can hold drained water that the plant can absorb on long, hot days.
Container considerations
Avoid metal containers because they heat up too rapidly. Ceramic pots are fine, but uncoated terra cotta tends to dry out quickly.
“You can use other containers, bins or old wooden crates,” she says. “There are also new fabric smart pots or grow bags with strap handles that are light and easy to move.”
Recycled containers are often available at garage sales and by searching the Craigslist Farm + Garden section.
Tomatoes, not potatoes
Certain crops like tomatoes, chilies, cucumbers, beans, peas, squash, strawberries, herbs and greens do very well in Boulder, according to Reshetnik Brawner. However, other vegetables need to be out in a garden where they have enough space.
“I don’t recommend broccoli, cauliflower or most root vegetables like potatoes in containers,” she says. “The same with melons and pumpkins. There are some dwarf carrot varieties that do well.”
By far the easiest crops to grow in a container are greens, according to Reshetnik Brawner.
“Leafy greens like lettuce, Swiss chard, kale, arugula, spinach — those are all really doable in pots grown from seed, and also many herbs like cilantro and parsley,” she says. “I only grow my basil in pots because you can plant a lot close to each other and get a big harvest.”
Worth the expense and effort
According to Reshetnik Brawner, the question isn’t whether you can buy cheaper tomatoes on sale at a supermarket than you can grow at your townhome.
“It’s so worth it, because you have a relationship with these plants. You harvest it fresh before dinner from your patio,” she says. “The greens are so much more tender. They weren’t bred to withstand being shipped on a truck for a few days. It’s like having your own farmers market without the crowds.
“Gardening can be a small investment, but the tools and pots are going to last years and years. It gets cheaper over time.”
Resources
Local, low-cost or free seeds
While vegetable seeds are not the major gardening expense, free seeds are also available through some Boulder County public libraries. Library users can check out or exchange seeds.
- Boulder Public Library: library.org/seed-to-table
- Lafayette Public Library: lafayetteco.gov/2462/Seed-Library
- Longmont Public Library: longmontcolorado.gov/library
Reshetnik Brawner suggests ignoring the seed displays at big box stores and growing acclimatized, non-GMO seeds that have been propagated locally. Harlequin’s Garden offers seeds from Boulder’s MASA Seed Foundation (masaseedfoundation.org) and BBB Seeds (bbbseed.com), Broomfield’s Botanical Interests (botanicalinterests.com) and an Iowa seedbank, Seed Savers Exchange (seedsavers.org).
Low-cost and free advice
Classes on vegetable gardening and gardening advice is available in Boulder at:
- Harlequin’s Garden: harlequinsgardens.com
- Growing Gardens: growinggardens.org
- Free local gardening information is available through:
- Denver Urban Gardens: dug.org/vegetable-planting-guide
- Colorado State University Extension Service: extension.colostate.edu/garden. CSU’s volunteer gardening experts answer questions at 303-678-6388, or email [email protected].
Foraging 101
Boulder resident and Gov. Jared Polis recently signed a bill naming the Agaricus Julius, or Emperor Mushroom, as Colorado’s official state mushroom. It is an edible mushroom that grows at high altitude.
The hills and fields may be full of edible and medicinal plants, fruits and fungi, but novice foragers in Boulder County are strongly advised to take a class before they gather anything. Veteran foragers lead forays where groups learn where — and how — to identify and gather.
For more Colorado foraging information at facebook.com/foragecolorado. The Boulder Weekly offers a recent overview of local foraging resources: boulderweekly.com/food/nibbles/forage-boulder-county-dos-donts
Garden Calendar
Friends Farm Foraging Walk
10 a.m. to noon May 31
The Herbiculture Hub Farm, 9722 Empire Road, Louisville
Tickets: $25-$35, bit.ly/FriendsFarmForage
Earth Day Yard + Garden Sale
9 a.m. to 5 p.m. April 22
Resource Central, 6400 Arapahoe Road, Boulder
22% off yard and garden essentials, including recycled and reclaimed landscaping rocks, planters, pots, yard tools and accessories.
Words to Chew On
“The single greatest lesson the garden teaches is that our relationship to the planet need not be zero-sum. As long as the sun still shines and people still can plan and plant, think and do, we can, if we bother to try, find ways to provide for ourselves without diminishing the world.”
— Michael Pollan
John Lehndorff is a veteran patio and window gardener in Louisville. Comments [email protected]