Happy Gardening!
Sunday, March 13, 2011
Organic Methods of Spraying Fruit Trees and Perennial Plants
This month Produce Denver went around to our clients and sprayed Horticultural oils on fruit trees and perennial plants. We use Neem oil with a emulsifier such as Doctor Bronners soap and a product called Bonide All Seasons. This works to control the dormant eggs of aphids,spider mites,rust mites, and scale insects. Aphids winter as eggs on Herbaceous perennial plants that die down over Winter. Make sure to spray kale and chard that will come back in the Spring. Cabbage aphids Winter on existing plants such as kale. You should also remove old debris and trim old asparagus plants.
Friday, March 11, 2011
Spring is around the corner, and Produce Denver is in high gear! I like many other people are starting to get the gardening itch. While it is not good to uncover the perennial garden, I have been doing a couple of Spring cleanup duties. First, Produce Denver is changing our website to update information. We're working on a project called the Urban Farmers Collaborative.
The Denver Urban Farmers Collaborative (UFC) envisions the establishment and success
of urban farming micro-enterprises, utilizing vacant land within the city and county of Denver to
produce food. The UFC is a partnership of organizations committed to urban agricultural
production as a method of ensuring that city residents have access to fresh organic food. The
UFC provides employment for farmers and a site for teaching individuals, particularly young
people, about farming and living sustainably. The Urban Farmers Collaborative engages with
community members and organizations in converting unused land to farms because we
recognize that local assets (people, land, knowledge, and community) are the primary building
blocks of sustainable community development.
Through urban agriculture, the Urban Farmers Collaborative:
- Stimulates the local economy by creating jobs to produce and distribute food locally
- Increases access to healthy, affordable food in urban communities
- Engages communities in living and eating more sustainably
- Supports healthier individuals and communities
- Reconnects urban dwellers with the land, facilitating a firmer understanding of the natural world and food production
- Decreases the ecological footprint of our current food system
Partners
Granata Farms, a small for-profit venture farming in backyards and vacant lots, is
advancing a model of urban agriculture that demonstrates the viability of small organic
urban farming operations in an urban setting, connecting eaters directly to the people
who grow their food through a community supported agriculture (CSA) program.
GreenLeaf (www.GreenLeafDenver.blogspot.com), a Denver-based non-profit creating
social change through urban agriculture. GreenLeaf is engaging urban youth in
transforming vacant city land into farms, paying them a fair wage to grow vegetables for
their communities and engaging youth in building just food systems in Denver.
Produce Denver (www.producedenver.com), a socially conscious for-profit landscaping
company whose goal is to achieve economic sustainability farming front yards and
creating edible landscaping, while producing food for the Denver community.
Denver Urban Gardens (www.dug.org), supports residents to “grow community - one
urban garden at a time". As a non-profit organization, DUG offers neighborhoods
essential resources for community gardens and on-going technical expertise:
securing sustainable land for gardens; designing and building gardens; supporting
garden organization, leadership, outreach and maintenance; and utilizing gardens as
extraordinary places for learning and healthy living. DUG's network includes over 90
community gardens and land partnerships across diverse neighborhoods in metro
Denver. Denver Urban Gardens (DUG) is a non-farmer partner of the UFC that is a part
of our collaborative in order to provide technical assistance to the UFC partners and
educational resources to the surrounding communities.
The Denver Housing Authority is a quasi-municipal corporation that provides affordable housing to more than 25,700 very low, low, and middle income individuals. DHA’s mission is to serve the residents of Denver by developing, owning, and operating safe, decent and affordable housing in a manner that promotes thriving communities.
DHA’s investment in the Urban Farmers Collaborative (UFC) is part of a larger community revitalization project in the heart of Denver’s historic Curtis Park neighborhood. DHA has dedicated one city block (2.4 acres) to create a pilot demonstration “Sustainability Park” that will feature programs, technology and design elements that advance DHA’s vision for healthy communities and sustainable development. Plans include a security fence with “green screen” garden walls, recycled rubbers sidewalks, and high-efficiency LED street lights. A kiosk for Denver’s award-winning bike share program ensures accessibility to this one-of-a-kind project. The UFC will use 21,000 square feet to introduce organic farming techniques, distribute fresh local produce, educate residents on urban farming practices and create green jobs for neighborhood youth and residents. Our belief is that the UFC project will become a national model for addressing food access and food justice issues.
For more information, visit www.denverhousing.org.
The Sustainability Park is located downtown Denver and will be a functioning urban farm! The infrustructure for the farm is underway and should be funtional in the Spring. Produce Denver is focusing its efforts on the site as a edible nursery.
This year is going to be exciting! Our garden maintenance program, where we grow food for families and restaurants, is starting very soon. This week we are amending the beds and aerating the soil.We are very excited to include a new customer, Queen Anne's B&B. We are going to productively landscape the grounds with edible which will supply their kitchen.
Keep checking our post for more information!
Thursday, December 16, 2010
raised garden low tunnel for squirrel protection and trellising vegetables.
Published with Blogger-droid v1.6.5
Monday, January 25, 2010
Produce Denver changes and introductions
After a great year full of learning, networking, growing, and food, we have decided to focus Produce Denver's efforts on edible landscaping. This has mostly arisen out of the need to make Produce Denver more profitable and therefore more economically sustainable. While growing for a CSA on multiple small-scale plots is rewarding in a number of ways, we found that it has some significant barriers to being economically viable in the long-term under the currently circumstances. For this reason, we are going to continue offering edible landscaping to households and property owners as a way to meet our goal of producing and strengthening local food communities.
To pick up a number of urban agriculture efforts that Produce Denver has been working on, James, Meg, and Chad Hagedorn are starting a non-profit called Sprout City Farms. Look for future posts further detailing this project and feel free to contact us if you are interested in learning more. Produce Denver will be continuing in the hands of Nick and his wife Luba. We are all really excited about this decision and plan to work together on our projects in 2010 and beyond. We hope that others will continue to join us!
Thanks for your support,
The Produce Denver Team
To pick up a number of urban agriculture efforts that Produce Denver has been working on, James, Meg, and Chad Hagedorn are starting a non-profit called Sprout City Farms. Look for future posts further detailing this project and feel free to contact us if you are interested in learning more. Produce Denver will be continuing in the hands of Nick and his wife Luba. We are all really excited about this decision and plan to work together on our projects in 2010 and beyond. We hope that others will continue to join us!
Thanks for your support,
The Produce Denver Team
Saturday, October 3, 2009
Fall/ramping up for winter pics
Thanks for all your help Miles!
Capital Hill people's fair
Meg and Miles' backyard
Not pretty per se, but very functional. Vermicomposting in the fridge!
Cold frames for winter growing.
Chicken run installation. Mobile home as coop!
?We'll get it one of these days.
Wednesday, August 19, 2009
Carrots slow dancing in the compost
The other day, I pulled two carrots out of the ground which have slowly grown in a spiral around each other. At another point in my life, I had a very specific ideal about how a carrot should look and might have been put off by the sight, whereas I now tend to treat their many shapes and sizes with excitement and awe at the diversity of what the garden can produce. I brought it out like some sort of prize and for a brief moment I realized how my aesthetic reactions to the world around me have changed over the years.
Like many bored Peace Corps volunteers, I became obsessed with composting. There were probably in the range of twenty to thirty piles surrounding my house. Some of these were made for demonstration purposes, but most were the result of discovering that I could play an active role in life by encouraging the decay from which it sprung. One day I decided to go get some cow pies for composting from a nearby cattle-stall. The kids were following me as usual, waiting to see what the crazy azungu was doing; and of course I forgot the shovel, so I was left to awkwardly trying to pick up the pies with two sticks. Then a very absurd thing happened; once the children understood my intentions, they began bringing me cow pies from all corners of the field, and using only their hands to do so! I started laughing with the joyous confusion that life can present as our pile of poo quickly overwhelmed the burlap sack. I thought about how funny this was. I couldn’t bring myself to pick up a pie but the children did so with no hesitation. I thought it was gross and wrong; they laughed and ran about. Actually, I observed many instances where Malawians would move poo about using their hands. And yes, I’m sure they washed their hands afterwards, but just the fact that they were able to touch the shit is enough for me to question the significance of my own aesthetic understanding of the act, but not enough to cause me to leave my shovel at home again.
I remember making it back to the States equipped with all sorts of new understandings about how I wanted my relationship with food and land to be; I wanted to be a farmer! And every good farmer needs a truck! Right? Just watch a TV or glance through a magazine and you’ll know what I mean. So, I bought a Dodge Dakota and drove out to California. And along the way, I had glimmers of how ridiculous my actions were. I felt so great in my truck; it was the key to my simple life on the land. What’s a couple gallons of gas in support of my calling? I thought. Everyone else is driving their cars about and they’re obviously not as noble as I. No, I was on my way to the real world and my badass truck was going to be the means by which I did so.
Sarcasm aside, these two memories are meant to be contrasting examples of the absurdity, and also the importance of aesthetics in the world; one that stopped me from being able to touch excrement, and one that justified a purchase. Both ran contradictory to a great deal of my “rational” understanding. I understand my hesitation in picking up the cow pies as the result of being raised in a culture that flushes our own smellys down the toilet; follows our dogs around with doggy bags; doesn’t compost - out of sight out of mind. I understand that I don’t need a truck to get where I’m going, but the powerful vision that I saw of myself behind one’s wheel overrode most of my unease. This behavior comes from all kinds of historical and ecological arrangements; a reaction to the cholera epidemic over two hundred years ago; the rise of the automobile as a socio-economic mainstay of twentieth century America. Now, it is difficult to see a supermarket that isn’t growing SUVs in the parking lot, a house without conventional toilets wasting our waste, or anything but “perfect” carrots lining the produce aisle. But let's remember where we have come from, and appreciate all shapes and sizes of veggies and the cycle they are a part of!
James
Like many bored Peace Corps volunteers, I became obsessed with composting. There were probably in the range of twenty to thirty piles surrounding my house. Some of these were made for demonstration purposes, but most were the result of discovering that I could play an active role in life by encouraging the decay from which it sprung. One day I decided to go get some cow pies for composting from a nearby cattle-stall. The kids were following me as usual, waiting to see what the crazy azungu was doing; and of course I forgot the shovel, so I was left to awkwardly trying to pick up the pies with two sticks. Then a very absurd thing happened; once the children understood my intentions, they began bringing me cow pies from all corners of the field, and using only their hands to do so! I started laughing with the joyous confusion that life can present as our pile of poo quickly overwhelmed the burlap sack. I thought about how funny this was. I couldn’t bring myself to pick up a pie but the children did so with no hesitation. I thought it was gross and wrong; they laughed and ran about. Actually, I observed many instances where Malawians would move poo about using their hands. And yes, I’m sure they washed their hands afterwards, but just the fact that they were able to touch the shit is enough for me to question the significance of my own aesthetic understanding of the act, but not enough to cause me to leave my shovel at home again.
I remember making it back to the States equipped with all sorts of new understandings about how I wanted my relationship with food and land to be; I wanted to be a farmer! And every good farmer needs a truck! Right? Just watch a TV or glance through a magazine and you’ll know what I mean. So, I bought a Dodge Dakota and drove out to California. And along the way, I had glimmers of how ridiculous my actions were. I felt so great in my truck; it was the key to my simple life on the land. What’s a couple gallons of gas in support of my calling? I thought. Everyone else is driving their cars about and they’re obviously not as noble as I. No, I was on my way to the real world and my badass truck was going to be the means by which I did so.
Sarcasm aside, these two memories are meant to be contrasting examples of the absurdity, and also the importance of aesthetics in the world; one that stopped me from being able to touch excrement, and one that justified a purchase. Both ran contradictory to a great deal of my “rational” understanding. I understand my hesitation in picking up the cow pies as the result of being raised in a culture that flushes our own smellys down the toilet; follows our dogs around with doggy bags; doesn’t compost - out of sight out of mind. I understand that I don’t need a truck to get where I’m going, but the powerful vision that I saw of myself behind one’s wheel overrode most of my unease. This behavior comes from all kinds of historical and ecological arrangements; a reaction to the cholera epidemic over two hundred years ago; the rise of the automobile as a socio-economic mainstay of twentieth century America. Now, it is difficult to see a supermarket that isn’t growing SUVs in the parking lot, a house without conventional toilets wasting our waste, or anything but “perfect” carrots lining the produce aisle. But let's remember where we have come from, and appreciate all shapes and sizes of veggies and the cycle they are a part of!
James
Wednesday, July 22, 2009
Volunteer recognition
Produce Denver would like to thank Andy Dyrsten for all of his hard work volunteering with us!
Monday, July 20, 2009
eggplant is a pretty, fragile plant
Thought it was about time for a bit of an update:
First, we have been harvesting a lot of food and only plan on more as tomatoes, peppers, gourds, and onions start to come around. Actually, we were able to donate 10 pounds of food to Same Cafe last week and plan on donating more to DUG for their youth farmers market programs. Yay! Starting the weekend of the 25th we are going to have 3 more weekly food shares available. We are charging according to household income as follows:
less than $20,000 (per year): $60
$20,000-40,000: $70
$40,000-75,000: $80
$75,000-125,000: $90
$125,000 and above: $100
We harvest on Saturdays, expect the monthly fee upfront, will most likely be able to drop it off, and includes all sorts of goodies. Please let us know if you or anyone you know are interested.
We have also been in touch with a farm in Kersey Colorado about distributing all natural holstein beef to those that are interested. It is a bit leaner than regular beef but really great for you and a sustainable use of resources being that the meat is usually used for dog food. It is not fatty enough for us Americans! Ha! Trust me, it is good. What a paradoxical food system we live in. Let us know if you are interested and we'll send you details.
Thanks to Adam Sikorski, we are going to have Produce Denver t-shirts available in the next couple of weeks including a couple child sizes, S, M, L, XL. They are a simple sand color with a green imprint of our logo on the front. 10 buck a pop to pay help pay for those we give away to volunteers. Thanks to John for the logo.
Check out Satchel's Market in Park Hill and Beet Box at south pearl street or highlands farmers market for some great food that may just have some of our produce wrapped up in the sweet goodness.
We have updated some pictures and our blog a bit on our website if you have the time to check it out.
Lastly, we are looking for more edible landscape projects to keep things moving along for us. The fall is a great time to move on getting ready for a bountiful spring. Our labor is also based on household income. Please spread the word for us!
Thanks so much for everyone's support!
Produce Denver Team
james.hale@producedenver.com
First, we have been harvesting a lot of food and only plan on more as tomatoes, peppers, gourds, and onions start to come around. Actually, we were able to donate 10 pounds of food to Same Cafe last week and plan on donating more to DUG for their youth farmers market programs. Yay! Starting the weekend of the 25th we are going to have 3 more weekly food shares available. We are charging according to household income as follows:
less than $20,000 (per year): $60
$20,000-40,000: $70
$40,000-75,000: $80
$75,000-125,000: $90
$125,000 and above: $100
We harvest on Saturdays, expect the monthly fee upfront, will most likely be able to drop it off, and includes all sorts of goodies. Please let us know if you or anyone you know are interested.
We have also been in touch with a farm in Kersey Colorado about distributing all natural holstein beef to those that are interested. It is a bit leaner than regular beef but really great for you and a sustainable use of resources being that the meat is usually used for dog food. It is not fatty enough for us Americans! Ha! Trust me, it is good. What a paradoxical food system we live in. Let us know if you are interested and we'll send you details.
Thanks to Adam Sikorski, we are going to have Produce Denver t-shirts available in the next couple of weeks including a couple child sizes, S, M, L, XL. They are a simple sand color with a green imprint of our logo on the front. 10 buck a pop to pay help pay for those we give away to volunteers. Thanks to John for the logo.
Check out Satchel's Market in Park Hill and Beet Box at south pearl street or highlands farmers market for some great food that may just have some of our produce wrapped up in the sweet goodness.
We have updated some pictures and our blog a bit on our website if you have the time to check it out.
Lastly, we are looking for more edible landscape projects to keep things moving along for us. The fall is a great time to move on getting ready for a bountiful spring. Our labor is also based on household income. Please spread the word for us!
Thanks so much for everyone's support!
Produce Denver Team
james.hale@producedenver.com
Friday, July 17, 2009
Monday, July 13, 2009
Update
Things have been very busy with Produce Denver! The harvest has been great so far and has included lettuce, kale, chard, collards, chives, oregano, basil, sage, roses, carrots, peas, beets, radishes, turnips, potatoes, broccoli, and zucchini. We have actually had a lot of excess which has been sold to Beet Box (serves great vegan food at Highlands and South Pearl Farmers Markets) and Satchels Market in Park Hill. Additionally, we donated 10 pounds of chard, kale, and radishes to SAME Cafe last week.
We set up a new beehive last week with a swarm from one of our friend's hives. They seem to be doing well so far. Looking forward to some honey!
Nick and Meg went to the DBG Rooftop Garden Symposium in June. They learned a lot and have already begun to use some of the methods at the rooftop garden at 1515 restaurant. Thanks to DBG for hosting the event.
We are currently planning for our fall planting, preparing for weddings and
harvest 
events, doing tax/business nonsense, looking for BIG pieces of land, collaborating with some folks as the Denver Urban Farmers Collaborative, and taking on and looking for more edible landscaping projects. Please hit us up if you can help!As usual, thanks so much to the volunteers and those that have been letting us give their plants new homes.
Sunday, May 24, 2009
First Harvest
We had our first harvest yesterday including: radishes, lettuce, spinach, collards, broccoli, oregano, sage, and chives. It was a good time and felt great to see the fruits of our labor. Thanks to the volunteers who helped and our shareholders for making this possible!
Saturday, May 9, 2009
Swarm of pictures
So many pictures to share. Here are a few more for now:
"Stonemason Jon" getting it done at Leah's edible landscaping project
Swarm of bees staging for a new home
Check out that pollen!
Work of artTuesday, May 5, 2009
BEES!
Jesse greets bees
Jesse dances with bees
Queen bee: "Jesse, get me out of here!"
Jesse queens the bees
Worker bee: "we heart you Jesse"Saturday, April 4, 2009
Snow gardens
Little by little, we are preparing our sites, starting seeds, and designing and installing edible landscapes. We also had a very nice season kickoff potluck complete with a variety of local foods. Everybody went all out and we can't wait to do it again. Great to see everyone who came!
Thanks to all of our volunteers for making this more possible with every wheelbarrow and shovel! Additionally, thanks to our truck "Regulator" for withstanding our abuse!
Sunday, March 1, 2009
Busy Busy
Nick and I have been moving forward on many aspects of Produce Denver. We have been planting seeds, building cold frames, working on site designs, and putting together this year's farm plan. We also have a new addition to our team! Megan Caley will be helping us in a variety of ways and is currently working on landscape designs for some clients. She has a wealth of skills and we are very excited to have her working with us!
We are also seeking out someone interested in being our lawyer so please contact us if you know someone who may be interested.
James
We are also seeking out someone interested in being our lawyer so please contact us if you know someone who may be interested.
James
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Building capacity
The "eat here now" food panel was an overwhelming success last week with nearly 200 people cramming into a little room at the Mercury Cafe. It was great to see so many people interested in strengthening our local food system! Thanks to everyone on the panel and Transition Denver for organizing this event. We made some great connections and will be setting up a number of home visits once Nick returns from a much needed vacation.
We have also had a number of individuals and organizations come forward who are interested in working with us including beekeepers, a city council member, a fundraiser, a number of non-profits, and two interns. These connections will undoubtedly help us realize our vision and we are very thankful to those willing to collaborate on projects with us. We are in the process of assembling an advisory board to further anchor us in work being done around Denver.
Our website (www.producedenver.com) is finely up and it would be wonderful to get feedback from anyone who feels so inclined. A large number of people are already finding us so it seems to be serving its purpose thus far. Hopefully we can get some better pictures as things move along this year!
James
"Whether we and our politicians know it or not, Nature is party to all our deals and decisions, and she has more votes, a longer memory, and a sterner sense of justice than we do. " -Wendell Berry
We have also had a number of individuals and organizations come forward who are interested in working with us including beekeepers, a city council member, a fundraiser, a number of non-profits, and two interns. These connections will undoubtedly help us realize our vision and we are very thankful to those willing to collaborate on projects with us. We are in the process of assembling an advisory board to further anchor us in work being done around Denver.
Our website (www.producedenver.com) is finely up and it would be wonderful to get feedback from anyone who feels so inclined. A large number of people are already finding us so it seems to be serving its purpose thus far. Hopefully we can get some better pictures as things move along this year!
James
"Whether we and our politicians know it or not, Nature is party to all our deals and decisions, and she has more votes, a longer memory, and a sterner sense of justice than we do. " -Wendell Berry
Monday, January 5, 2009
"Eat here now" panel discussion
Thanks to Transition Denver and SPROUT, James will be sitting on the "eat here now" panel discussion at 7pm on January 13th at Mercury Cafe. For more information you can go to http://transitioncolorado.ning.com/events/eat-here-now-a-panel-on. Hope to see you there!
Sunday, January 4, 2009
Exciting times!
"We can't solve problems by using the same kind of thinking we used when we created them." ...Albert Einstein
Since starting down this new path in November, we have been overwhelmed by the possibilities of what Produce Denver's future may hold and are now at a point to get things started. It is very exciting. Over the past month, we have been busy meeting with individuals working to strengthening food systems and Denver, researching other organizations doing similar work across the country, building our website, meeting with potential funders, contacting initial clients, and writing on our business and farm plans. We will be ordering seeds in a couple of weeks and plan on building a hoophouse to start our seeds in early February. There are a number of ways to get involved listed on our website (www.producedenver.com). Please contact us if you or someone you know may be interested.
I want to thank those who have taken the time to share insights and experiences with Nick and I over the last few weeks. Starting a project such as this necessitates feedback and it has been wonderful to connect with you all. Also, we would like to thank John Pechacek for our logo and design advice. He has been outstanding to work with, and if you are interested in contacting him about your own design needs, you can check out his website at www.johnpechacek.com.
Best,
James
Since starting down this new path in November, we have been overwhelmed by the possibilities of what Produce Denver's future may hold and are now at a point to get things started. It is very exciting. Over the past month, we have been busy meeting with individuals working to strengthening food systems and Denver, researching other organizations doing similar work across the country, building our website, meeting with potential funders, contacting initial clients, and writing on our business and farm plans. We will be ordering seeds in a couple of weeks and plan on building a hoophouse to start our seeds in early February. There are a number of ways to get involved listed on our website (www.producedenver.com). Please contact us if you or someone you know may be interested.
I want to thank those who have taken the time to share insights and experiences with Nick and I over the last few weeks. Starting a project such as this necessitates feedback and it has been wonderful to connect with you all. Also, we would like to thank John Pechacek for our logo and design advice. He has been outstanding to work with, and if you are interested in contacting him about your own design needs, you can check out his website at www.johnpechacek.com.
Best,
James
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