Gardening At High Altitude
The Platte Canyon Area Chamber of Commerce invited me to give a class on high altitude gardening on Feb. 18, 2015. This website is a companion information source for the class.
I am a retired software engineer who has been gardening at 8,150 feet since 1989. My gardens consist of a large vegetable garden situated ideally in a south sloping meadow and several very hot and dry rock gardens. To see more information on Gardening At High Altitude, you can visit my website website and,if you have any quesions, you can .
High Altitude Gardening Society
The High Altitude Gardening Society, better known as the HAGS, is a small group of gardeners who meet every month to discuss gardening, tour local gardens and garden centers, and invite speakers to learn more about Gardening At High Altitude. The HAGS created and maintain the flower gardens at the Pine Post Office as a public project. You can see the evolution of the gardens here.
I am a member of the HAGS and serve as a Co-Coordinator this year.
High Altitude Gardening Room Forum
at Pinecam.com
Pinecam.com is a website dedicated to bringing local information to Bailey, Pine, Conifer, and Evergreen in Colorado. For those interested in Gardening At High Altitude, the High Altitude Gardening Room forum has an active set of gardeners always willing to share ideas such as plant varieties, basic gardening, greenhouses, and so much more.
You do not have to be a member of the Pinecam.com board to read the many topics but, if you want to ask a question or join the conversations, you will need to register. Just click on "register" in the gray menu bar below the banner image and you will be guided through the process.
I am a member of the Pinecam.com Board of Directors and post on Pinecam.com as TillerBee.
The Class
Vegetable Gardening. It is possible to grow many vegetables at high altitude. As you will see, you do not need a greenhouse to do so.
Flower Gardening. Along with the many wildflowers that grow up here, you can grow beautiful cultivated flowers.
Container Gardening. If growing plants in the ground is not your interest, you can successfully grow flowers, herbs, and vegetables in containers. And you can be very creative with containers, as one of the gardens will show you.
Critters Versus Gardens. While beautiful to watch, we gardeners must contend with the critters up here if we want to harvest any vegetables or have flower gardens.
Hardscaping. We're called the Rocky Mountains for a good reason - there's a lot of rocks up here. But they can be used to create interesting garden features.
Weather. Always a major factor up here so you need to be prepared for the worse. Some years are great for gardening and some are not so good.
Conclusion. Here are several topics that did not fit into the above categories such as composting, watering, and a rose.