Jun

Garden Talk: picking starter plants for the garden – peace. love. quinoa

Jun 11

One of my biggest challenges with gardening (so far) this year was deciding where to buy the starter plants for the garden. It was really important to me that the starters were grown locally and organically.

As soon as I learned that I’d have a garden this year, I turned to people who have lived in Colorado for several years to give me recommendations on which nurseries to shop here in Denver. I only found one that I was willing to shop, Urban Roots. Before committing to a purchase, I asked the staff a lot of questions and found out that they themselves actually visit all of the farms where the plants come from to ensure they are being grown organically.The staff was also very helpful in guiding me through what I will be most successful growing here in Colorado in the space that is available to me.

I wasn’t able to find all of the herbs and veggies I wanted at Urban Roots, so I turned to the Farmers Market where I found everything I was looking for (and then some).

At the Boulder Farmers Market, I was able to find 6-7 different local Colorado vendors selling starter plants, there was a huge variety. The only reason I didn’t start at the Farmers Market in the first place is because I didn’t know it existed until after I’d been to Urban Roots.

When I lived in Chicago, I always turned to the Farmers Market for all of my starter plants. The farmers are always full of information and I’ve learned a lot from them.

Many people purchase their plants from places like Home Depot & Lowes but I would never. First off, I’ve seen gardens planted with plants from Home Depot and they never look as healthy as my plants are. Also, the staff at Home Depot has very little knowledge on all of the plants they sell so if you don’t know what you’re doing or looking for, there is no one to help you.

If you don’t have a Farmers Market available to you, check out Craigslist for local farmers who are selling starter plants. Before I knew about the Farmers Market here in Colorado, I found a few locals that had plants for sale. I never did go visit them because I was able to gather everything I was looking for at Urban Roots and the Farmers Market.

Tagged with → Boulder • Colorado • Denver • farmers market • garden • gardening • starter plants • urban