Boulder Skills Foundation is offering free garden consultations to any new or existing growers.
Now is a great time to be planning and prepping your garden. The more food we have growing in town this season, the more resilient we will be to the ongoing scenario.
We can assist you with seed selection, planting schedules, harvest plans, ground prep, soil amendment tips, pest management, fencing, and irrigation recommendations, you name it!
To set up a consultation, email Elena at ehughes614@gmail.com
We’ll start with a phone consultation and can, if you’re comfortable, come check out your space, and offer on-site recommendations (keeping a safe distance, of course). Your garden consultant buddy will also be available throughout the season as you run into questions/concerns in your garden.
What We are Planting Now
(Salt Gulch)
BMGR: parsley, a few early flowers (heliopsis, love in a mist) in planted outside; carrots, radishes, arugula, beets planted in a cold frame; kale, cabbage, zinnias, echinacea, strawflower, rosemary, oregano started in flats in a cold frame
Other things to put out now: peas, onion sets, ideally with protection.
(Boulder Town Center)
Red House Farm: Spinach starts in the hoophouse, Lettuce starts in the greenhouse, Arugula and Red Russian Kale and Radish outside (pushing the envelope) under 2+ layers of agribon and peas shortly
(Lower Boulder)
Some of us are digging our beds and some are planting potatoes! (Have you ever tried dipping your cut potatoes in ash to prevent them from rotting before you plant them?)
(The Draw)
Tessa’s Garden: peas, oats, radishes, spinach (most of these covered for now with agribon or something else to keep them a little warmer)
We Recommend the Following Varieties for Our Short Growing Season
(Based on our collective growing experience)
Leaf Crops:
- Cilantro
- Arugula: Astro, reseeded arugulas
- Parsley: Italian Flat-leaf
- Basil: Sweet Basil, Genovese
- Kales: Red Russian, Scarlet Curley, Dazzling Blue Dinosaur, Blue scotch curled
- Chards: Rainbow, Fordhook Giant, Bright Lights
- Spinach: Winter Bloomsdale (Fall), America (Spring)
- Lettuces: Merlot Red, Butternut Bibb, Flashy Spotted Trout Romaine, Red Iceberg, Crispina Iceberg, Red-tinged Looseleaf, Pirat Butterhead, Buttercrunch
Cruciferae:
- Cabbages: Golden Acre, Mammoth Red, Early Jersey Wakefield, Blue Chinese, January King
- Broccoli: Waltham 29, Piracicaba
- Cauliflower: Snowball
Legumes:
- Beans: Provider Bush, Jade Bush, Dragon Langerie Bush Wax, Kentucky Wonder Pole, Tiger’s Eye Shell/Dry, King of the Early Dry, Pintos and Anasazi (classic Dry Beans here)
- Peas: Oregon Giant Snow, Sugarsnap Peas, Super Sugarsnap Peas
Root Crops:
- Carrots: Scarlet Nantes, Nantes Fancy, Red Core Chantenay, Shin Kuroda
- Beets: Cylindra, Chioggia, Early Wonder Tall Top, Detroit Dark Red
- Onions: Patterson Winter Storage, Rossa Lunga di Tropea Red Summer, Cabernet Red Summer
- Leeks: King Richard
- Potatoes: Russet, Yukon, Kennebec, Colorado Rose
- Turnips: Gold Ball
- Radishes: Cherry Belle, French Breakfast, White Icicle, Daikon, Pink Lady Slipper
Flower Crops:
- Calendula
- Nasturtiums
Fruit Crops:
- Tomatoes: Bison, Bellstar, Bloesser Pink, Aosta Valley, Cherokee Purple, Sungold Cherry, Galina Cherry, Green Zebra, Golden Jubilee, Pink Brandywine, Black Cherry, Anna Russian, Valencia Orange, Celebrity
- Tomatillos: Purple Bush
- Peppers: Jalapeno, Hungarian Hot Wax
- Eggplants: Pintung Long, Rosita Bell-shaped
- Cucumbers: Silver Slicer, Marketmore 76, Painted Serpent, Suhyo Long
- Zucchini: Black Zucchini, Cocozelle
- Summer Squash: Saffron Yellow, Early Summer Crookneck
- Winter Squash: Table Queen Acorn, Spaghetti Squash, Red Kuri Kabocha, Burgess Buttercup, Lower Salmon River, Waltham Butternut, New England Pie, Blue Hubbard, Pink Banana
- Melons: Desert King Orange (storage), Blacktail Mountain
Winter Food Storage Crops:
- Winter Squash: Blue Hubbards, Red Kuri Kabocha, Lower Salmon River, New England Pie
- Blue Hopi Dry Corn
- Potatoes: Russet, Colorado Rose, Yukon, Kennebec
- Onions: Patterson
- Beets: Cylindra, Early Wonder Tall Top
- Carrots: Red Core Chantenay, Scarlet Nantes, Shin Kuroda, Nantes Fancy
- Turnips: Gold Ball
Our Favorite Seed Suppliers:
- Fedco Seeds
- Baker Creek Heirloom Seeds
Johnny’s Selected Seeds
Boulder Seed Collective – Stay tuned for a seed swap & sale! - Joseph Lofthouse Landrace Seedsman
- Grand Prismatic Seeds
- Delectation of Tomatoes
- High Mowing Organic Seeds
& Resources for Starts & Supplies:
- Boulder Community Market – (2020 plan TBD)
- Bob Emerich – Fruit Trees, Native Plants, jobodan@color-country.net
- Eric Feiler – Compost Consultant (435) 335-7393
- Escalante Home Center (Starts, Seeds, Seed Potatoes, Onion sets, Chicks, Chicken feed, Organic Compost by the cubic yard & Trees & Shrubs) 826-4004
- Delectation of Tomatoes – Start Order placed! Delivery est. 5/20
- Late Bloomers (Lyman) – (Starts)
- Pet’s & Stuff (Richfield) – (Starts)
- Boulder Seed Collective – (Starts swap TBD)
- Brian Farm Service (Soon – Starts, Seeds, Seed Potatoes, Onion sets, Chicks, Chicken feed, Organic “mulch” by the yard (sounds very broken down though) (435) 836-2884.
Local Produce Suppliers
Now:
- Hills & Hollows
- Griffins Grocery
Upcoming:
- Red House Farm
- Corry & Kandace Johnson
- Fire Rock Farm (Escalante)
Sincerely,
Boulder Skills Foundation
(Brynn, Constance, Pam, Eric, Jennifer, Dan, Elena, Tessa, & Jane)
Have Questions?
Send us an email at boulderskillsfoundation@gmail.com and we will try to answer your questions in our next newsletter.
Instagram & Facebook: @boulderskillsfoundation