The Southern Colorado Gardener's Guide To Summer Planting

Colorado is known for its beautiful and temperate weather almost all year-round, but summers hold a special place in the hearts of gardeners and landscaping enthusiasts. Those who have been successful with planting in the Mile High State know that starting and maintaining a vegetable garden requires a lot of know-how and devotion, especially in Southern Colorado where the soil is dryer and the conditions can be fickle. However, it is possible to do!

The summer is one of the best times of year to plant vegetables along the Western Slope, from Montrose to Olathe to Telluride. So if you’re contemplating the idea of starting a garden, you can maximize the potential of your mulch by following this guide from the landscaping and planting experts at Green-Way Pro.

Know When To Grow

As every native of Colorado knows, the weather here is far from predictable. This is why our growing seasons vary in duration and time of year. Compared to other states, the Western Slope may seem to be a more difficult region to grow in. This is because its diverse territory features at least 5 of the 9 different growing zones, not to mention year-by-year variations in the dates of planting seasons for vegetables (and flowers, too!). 

For instance, Montrose and surrounding areas have an average first frost date of September 21st and an average final frost date of May 25th. In the next county over, you may find entirely different dates for the start and end of the growing season — and all of these are liable to change with the slightest shift in our ever-changing weather systems! 

Whether you’re in Crested Butte, Durango, or elsewhere, you need to know your growing zone and planting season before selecting or sowing your veggie garden seeds. You can find more information on when to plant online, or you can contact our gardening gurus at Green-Way Pro.

Select The Right Seeds

Although you may want to go all-in with a garden full of exotic vegetables and spices, there are some limitations to what can be grown in the Centennial State. Furthermore, the temperatures of each season and each region may influence the crops you can cultivate. However, there are still a vast number of delicious and nutritious vegetables that thrive in the soils of the Western Slope.

Vegetable seeds fall into one of two categories: cool season and warm season. As you might guess from their names, these seeds are planted at different times during the summer gardening sessions, which cool varieties taking the lead and “warmer” types coming in second. So what are the seeds that you can successfully plant in your Southern Colorado garden?

Cool-to-Warm Season Vegetables (listed from most to least frost-tolerant):

• Broccoli

• Kale, Spinach, & Lettuce

• Turnips, Radish, & Some Other Root Vegetables

• Parsely

• Beets 

• Carrots

• Potatoes

• Chard

• Beans 

• Corn

• Tomatoes

• Pumpkins

• And more!

Prep Your Planting Space

Any planting project requires some preparation, whether it’s an acre of leafy greens or a small plot of parsley. When you’re preparing to sow the seeds of your summer produce plot, there are a few things you’ll need to have done prior to laying the foundation of your future fall harvest.

First and foremost, the soil needs to be primed to take on the dry and hot conditions of the upcoming months. Begin by removing any weeds or plant debris from previous seasons, then till the soil until it breaks down into loose clumps. 

In the high altitude of Southern Colorado, soil loses significant moisture from water evaporation, and the “thin” air contains much less oxygen than sea-level climates. You should expect to water a bit more frequently if you live in a high-elevation area, such as Durango or Ouray, or if you are planting in raised soil beds. If the ground where you plan to plant your vegetable garden is especially dry, you may need to add a pH-balancing fertilizer or specialty mulch. 

Seeding and Future Success

Once you have your vegetable seeds selected and your garden soil tilled, mulched, and fertilized, it’s time to sow some wild oats — or peas, or spinach, or whatever you please! To maintain the success and longevity of your summer vegetable garden and surrounding lawn, it’s recommended that you perform regular groundskeeping tasks like watering (or sprinkler irrigation), aeration, pest removal, weed control, pruning, and mowing. That’s a lot of work for one individual, especially if you have a plot that’s larger than a standard backyard flower box. 

If you’re hankering for hand-grown vegetables this year but you’re not sure that you can manage all the upkeep by yourself, call in some local support from Green-Way Pro. Our landscaping, lawn care, planting, and property management services are available to more than a dozen major areas in the Western Slope, including Grand Junction, Montrose, and Olathe — yes, the same one known for its corn! To get more information about how our team of professionals can landscape and hardscape your residential or commercial property to yield this fall’s perfect harvest of produce, be sure to contact us by calling or sending a message online today!