Growing Food at High Altitudes

Rocky Mountain Gardening Elective

Yes, you can grow food in the mountains despite wind, hail, deer, ground animals, bears and extreme temperature fluctuations. Learn from seasoned experts who have been growing organic food at 8,120 feet since 1992. This course is designed to help all Colorado gardeners overcome growing at any altitude in the Intermountain West. Learn about the many great foods that thrive in the mountain climate. Nurture and protect your garden with wind-proof season extenders, hail guards, raised bed preparation, bio-intensive growing, bear-less compost, crop rotation, companion planting, succession planting, vegetables for the shade, mulching, seed starting, seed saving and more. Can't you just taste those fresh, mountain-grown succulent greens, beans, squash and yes, even tomatoes, sweet corn and pumpkins? Join us for a day of learning and inspiration.

Price: $126, $102 member

Instructors: Penn and Cord Parmenter

Penn and Cord are high-altitude food and seed growers. When they began homesteading in 1991, the Parmenters were told tomatoes don't grow in the mountains. Today, they work with 250 varieties of tomatoes at 8,120 feet in the Wet Mountains. They apply a multitude of techniques to overcome the challenges of growing tomatoes in the high country. They own Smart Greenhouses LLC, a sustainable greenhouse design and build company, and Miss Penn's Mountain Seeds, providing regionally adapted seeds for extreme climates. They are celebrating over three decades of growing seasons in the Rockies!