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Most herbs enjoy 6-8 hours of direct sun. Most, except lavender, are not used for their blooms so less direct sun may be acceptable in those cases.  Herbs do best with well-drained garden or potting soil with organic matter and fertilizer.  Plants should be allowed to dry slightly before watering thoroughly. The amount of water should be proportional to the plant size.

Fresh herbs can be harvested at anytime; use fresh, dried, or process for infusions/tinctures. Never remove more than 1/3 of the plant per week. Leaves can be cool or heat dried; keep them out of the sun or humidity during this process. Or… they can go straight to the freezer for storage.

Basil
Likes to have a pot by herself! (Diva) Or better yet, plant her in the ground but protect from wind. Basil prefers warm temperatures, but not too hot. It prefers adequate moisture, not too wet, not too dry! Keep pot size proportional to plant size!

Bay
Excellent addition to any stew pot, soup, or sauce. Likes well drained soil, usually in a container since it won’t winter over. Likes cooler weather, eastern sun.

Catnip
Easy to grow in poor soil with moderate water, grows 1-2′ tall. Reseeds itself freely!

Cilantro/Coriander
Likes a well-drained soil, moderate moisture. Full to part sun. May re-seed itself. The seeds are used as coriander.

Chives
Easy to grow perennial herb in full or partial sun. Grows in poor soil. Leave and blooms can be used. Reseeds itself freely!

Comfrey
Perennial herb used for medicinal purposes and for expediting compost piles. Best grown in the ground.

Dill
Great herb to be used in salads, sauces or on meat. The bloom attracts beneficial insects and pollinators. May reseed itself. 1-2′ tall

Eucalyptus
Used primarily for its essential oils and decorative foliage. Prefers moderate moisture. Best in a container if you want to overwinter. Otherwise plant in ground to cut and harvest before frost.

Fennel
Has a black licorice flavor. A large perennial herb. Loved by Black Swallowtail butterfly larva as a food source. Blooms attract all kinds of pollinators and beneficial insects. Up to 3′-5’H x 5′-7′ spread at maturity. Reseeds itself.

French Tarragon
Large perennial needs room! Perfect for vinegar, herbed butters and Bearnaise sauce.

Lavender
Attractive gray-green foliage, with dainty blue/purple flowers. Aromatic! Used for potpourri or dried flowers. Deters moths. Old English variety ‘Munstead’ strain is hardy in this climate. Blooms best in full sun. Requires well-drained soil!!! Prefers moderate to dry moisture.

Lemon Balm
Strong citrus flavor is used in teas and other drinks or wherever a lemon taste is desired

Mint
Used as a flavoring, medicinally and as a companion plant in the garden. Growth habit is aggressive so plant in a container and then plant container in ground to help conrol roots. Runners will root and spread so trim as necessary.

Oregano
Well behaved perennial herb. Keeps low to the gound 6″-12″. Used in Italian recipes. Can grow in part shade. Prefers well-drained soil.

Parsley
Leaves are used as a garnish or in salads. Also used by butterflies to lay its eggs and as food for its larva. Parsley grows easily in a pot or in the ground. Biennial herb – lasts 2 years.

Rosemary
Used in a variety of ways for cooking. It’s considered a shrub in warmer climates but will not winter over in Colorado. Best grown in a container, with fertilizer and a well-drained soil. Prefers full sun and will not tolerate freezing temperatures.

Sage/Salvia
Culinary and medicinal uses; hardy perennial with blue spike flowers midsummer. Develops a woody stem and is considered a low shrub. Survives best in the ground. Yellow sage is more tender and has a difference smell/flavor.

Savory
Annual herb does well in cooler temperatures. Prefers well-drained soil and full sun. Wonderful seasoning for salads and meat recipes.

Stinging Nettle
VERY beneficial medicinal herb for health and healing. Should be cooked before using — see name!

Thyme
Tender perennial with dainty foliage. Prefers well-drained soil and either part to full sun. Most commonly used in meat recipes. Lemon thyme gives a citrus flavor to salads or chicken. Also used decoratively in containers.

Soil

Tomatoes are forgiving and can grow in poor soil if there’s adequate moisture and nutrition. For better production and tastier fruit, ideal garden soil is well drained with organic nutrients, microbes and earthworms: living soil! Happy Frog Fertilizer is a good additive since it provides multiple forms of organic fertilizer plus mycorrhizae for root development and nutrient uptake. Every year organic matter should be added to keep the soil healthy.

Hardening Off

Hardening off describes the process of acclimating a plant from inside to outside where the plant becomes exposed to wind, direct sun and fluctuating temperatures. For one to three days, the plant can be placed in an eastern exposure protected from the wind. If they wilt but wet, don’t water: they may be sun or wind burned. If they are dry, water them and pull them inside. For the next three to five days increase the exposure to sun up to six hours. In the Colorado Springs area, they can be planted as early as mid-April PROVIDED they are protected with a wall of water, a season extender or are covered with buckets during freezing temperatures and cold nights. Although tomatoes can tolerate 32°, they grow at 40° or above.

Planting

Before they go into the ground, remove half of the lower leaves and all blooms/fruit. (If blooms/fruit stay during transplant, the plant will attempt to develop fruit and not grow/ bloom like it should). Break up the roots so they are not in the shape of the pot and lower so bottom branches are just above soil, or you can lay in a trench with the top branches above the soil. Backfill with garden soil and water in well. The submerged stem will develop strong roots. The plant will resume vegetative growing until it’s mature enough to bloom and support fruit.

Watering & Fertilizing

Young plants in early spring require less water than a mature plant in the heat of summer. Occasionally allow the plant to slightly wilt to calculate the frequency and depth of watering. Provide enough water that is proportional to the plant size and relative to nighttime temperatures. Frequent wilting can invite stress which brings on diseases and insect problems. Also, too wet or too dry between waterings can bring on blossom end rot (brown bottoms on the fruit). Watering can leach nutrients from the soil, so in
mid-late summer add organic fertilizers (liquid or granular) for heavy producing plants. Choose a fertilizer with a slightly higher middle number to promote blooming and production and always apply according to the directions on the label.

Trimming & Pruning

Tomatoes bloom on new growth, but not all new growth. Suckers are non-fruiting growth along the main stem and larger branches. These can be removed as well as 1/3 of the lower, non-producing growth, which redirects energy to blooms and fruit development especially as they mature.

Common Pests & Diseases

Tomatoes are prone to bacterial, fungal or viral diseases. These are naturally occurring in the environment, spread by insects/ wind/ water; spores winter over in the soil.

You can prevent some problems by:
. Planting resistant hybrid varieties
. Water in the morning
. Allow the surface soil to dry
. Space plants for air circulation

Crop rotation is advised if a problem has developed. ‘Cooking’ the soil in the spring with black or red plastic heats the soil, killing some spores. Copper or sulfur can be used as an organic fungicide on/in the soil.

Plastic, cardboard, or mulch barriers on the soil when planting can reduce the spread of spores up to the leaves.

The most common insect is the aphid. Treatments are applied if the plant is infested. Otherwise natural predators take care of it. Marigolds in and around the garden help repel bad bugs and draw in beneficial insects. Treating the tomato for hornworm with bacillus, will kill the developing larva of the sphinx moth. Organic sprays applied in the evening usually kill the pest(s), but not the pollinating bees that are active during the day.

Attracting Butterflies includes fodder for the larva. With host plants, the adults will lay eggs, increasing the
population.

Butterflies and Hummingbirds are migratory and recognize the plants that should be here, so provide natives as anchor plants!

Perennials for Butterflies

Achillea (Yarrow)
Agastache
Alcea (Hollyhock)
Allium
Arabis (Rock Cress)
Asclepias (Butterfly Weed)
Aster
Baptista (False Indigo)
Buddsleia (Butterfly Bush)
Centaurea (Mt Bluet)
Centranthus (Red Valerian)
Chelone
Cimicifuga
Coreopsis
Dianthus
Dictamnus (Gas Plant)
Digitalis (Foxglove)
Echinacea (Purple Coneflower)
Echinops (Thistle)
Eupatorium (Joe-pye Weed)
Gallardia
Hemerocallis (Day Lily)
Liatris
Lupine
Malva
Monardo (Bee Balm)
Nepeta (Catmint)
Origanum (Oregano)
Physostegia
Rudbeckia (Black Eyed Susan)
Salvia (Soapwart)
Scabiosa (Pincushion Flower)
Sedum

Perennials for Hummingbirds

Alcea (Hollyhock)
Aquilegia (Columbine)
Asclepias (Butterfly Weed)
Campanula
Campsis (Trumpet Vine)
Clematis
Delphinium
Dianthus
Digitalis (Foxglove)
Echinops (Thistle)
Hemerocallis (Day Lily)
Heuchera (Coral Bells)
Hibiscus
Lobelia (Cardinal Flower)
Lupine
Lychnis (Maltese Cross)
Monardo (Bee Balm)
Nepeta (Catmint)
Papaver (Poppy)
Penstemon
Phlox paniculata
Red Birds in a Tree
Salvia (Soapwart)

Types:

Everbearing:

Produce berries late spring through fall; less in the heat.

White Strawberry – Sweet Caroline “Pineberry”:

Birds don’t recognize ripe fruit. Sweet. June Bearing: Heavy fruit production over 2-3 week period in early to mid-summer.

Growing Instructions:

Plant in fertile, well-drained soil about 12” apart, leaving room for runners to spread.

Plant in late April. Mulch with straw or aged compost in the fall; uncover the crown late spring.

Best production at 3-5 years old. Runners can replace older plants to keep production up.

Cut a narrow strip of newspaper.

Use a baggie to mix a slurry of flour and water (pancake batter consistency).

Cut off a small bit of baggie corner and dispense drops of flour mix onto paper in intervals. (1-1/2” for carrots).

Sprinkle seeds lightly over the wet drops. If they don’t stick press a few into each drop of flour mix and discard excess seeds.

Once tape is dry, lightly bury the tape. Then water as you would for regular seedlings.

Asparagus is a perennial vegetable that needs time and space to establish. 

Needs full sun to partial sun.

Does best in fertile, well-drained soil.

Plant in mid April. Dig a 10” trench; spread hairy roots, place crown up; cover with 2” soil and water.

Depending on weather and precipitation, water twice a week.

As shoots grow up to garden level, backfill with good garden soil and water weekly.

Mulch garden soil with straw or leaves to retain moisture.

Allow 1-2 years for harvest; and harvest spears only in spring.

Let foliage develop during the summer growing season to strengthen roots.

As deer watch you nurture your garden (aka their buffet), they will indulge ASAP! 

#1 Strategy to protect your garden is to curb their browsing habit.

Deterrents should be applied along the perimeter such as Bobbex DEER REPELLENT or Feather Meal.

Gardening with less tasty plants will make your yard less inviting.

Plants Deer Like Less…

Perennials

Achillea-Yarrow
Aegopodium- Snow on the Mountain
Aquilegia- Columbine
Armeria- Sea Thrift
Artemisia- Sage
Aster
Astilbe- Goatsbeard
Campanula- Bellflower
Centaurea- Mt. Bluet
Cerastium- Snow on the Mountain
Chrysanthemum sp.- Oxeye Daisy
Convallaria- Lily of the Valley
Coreopsis
Delphinium
Dicentra- Bleeding Heart
Digitalis- Foxglove
Echinacea- Purplecone Flower
Erysimum- Wallflower
Euphorbia- Spurge
Festuca- Blue Fescue
Gaillardia- Blanket Flower
Geranium
Gypsophilia- Baby’s Breath
Hemerocallis- Day Lily
Iberis- Candytuft
Kniphofia- Red Hot Poker
Lamium- Dead Nettle
Lavender
Liatris- Kansas Gay Feather
Limonium- Statice
Linum- Blue Flax
Lupine
Lychnis- Crown Pink
Mentha- mint
Monarda- Bee Balm
Nepeta- Catmint
Oenothera- Evening Primrose
Origanum- Oregano
Papaver- Poppy
Penstemon
Perovskia- Russian Sage
Phlox subulata- Creeping Phlox
Rudbeckia- Gloriosa Daisy
Salvia
Santolina
Scabiosa- Pincushion Flower
Sedum
Stachys- Lamb’s Ear
Thymus- Thyme
Veronica- Speedwell
Vinca major- Vinca Vine
Viola odoratum- Sweet Violet

Shrubs

Amorpha- Leadplant
Artemisia-Sage
Atriplex- Four Winged Saltbrush
Caryopteris- Blue Mist Spirea
Cercocarpus ledifolius- Curleaf Mahogany
Chamaebatiaria- Fernbush
Chyrsothamnus- Rabbitbrush
Cotoneaster species
Cowania
Euonymus- Burning Bush
Falluga- Apache Plume
Mahonia- Oregon Grape
Potentilla
Rhus Trilobata- Skunkbrush
Spirea
Symphocarpus- Snowberry
Weigelia
Yucca

Trees

Crataegus- Hawthorn
Picea pungens- Blue Spruce
Pinus edulis- Pinon Pine
Pinus flexis- Limber Pine
Juniper sp