Spring has sprung, and she invigorates us with color and light. After a dry and mild winter on the Western Slope, we are returning to our gardens for another season of bounty and connection.

This special time of year offers gardeners a perfect setting for establishing and revitalizing our relationships with the natural world. While we sow seeds, select our favorite plants and put new ideas into motion, we get to play with some exciting themes—rhythm, movement and empowerment—which helps us grow and feel joy.

In honor of the fresh beginning that springtime affords us and as we gear up for another season of creation, I want to shed light on another theme: space, and how we can use it more fully.

We create

How we utilize space sets the stage for much of our experience inside and outside the garden. Raised beds encourage movement when bending low might not feel great in the body. Pathways and shady seating areas encourage us to slow down, ponder and rest.

Each season is an opportunity to create backyard utopias—spaces in which to manifest and discover. We can always utilize the space we have more fully. Expanding our perception of the space we have available to us is the first step in creating rewarding, inspiring and bountiful spaces.

Filling the nooks and crannies

On the Western Slope, tomatoes go in the ground after Mother’s Day. Utilizing garden space means planting something in your tomato patch that will grow during the weeks and months leading up to that glorious day of tomato planting.

A thick bed of buckwheat will suppress weeds. Put out flowers for beneficial insects and fix nitrogen in the soil. Greens will protect the soil and keep it moist, while providing you with another crop to harvest as the weather warms.

As you plan your garden, consider the whole season—early spring through late fall. Warm season crops are bountiful, delicious, colorful and exciting, but they’re not the only crops we can put our energy into.

Extend your season and create a more biodiverse, lush and bountiful garden space by planting cool season vegetables and quick-growing roots and greens. Plant shade-loving plants under trees and below garden crops that grow tall in the summertime. Think of your garden space as three-dimensional—extending up from the ground into vertical space—adding depth for exploration.

Fill more nooks and crannies of your physical garden space and the length of your growing season by planting annual and perennial flowers and herbs. Blooms will attract pollinators and pest-eating bugs. The spectrum of colors, shapes and aromas that diverse garden ecosystems provide will confuse and deter pesky insects while creating habitats for beneficial bugs, toads and birds—not to mention a more beautiful space for us humans.

As you venture into another season, I encourage you to experiment with new plant varieties and planting methods. Most of all, I am excited for you to create a garden space that’s as multidimensional, colorful, abundant and alive as you are.

Send your questions to Paige in care of the BEACON, or email her directly at [email protected].

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• Plan your garden from spring to fall, filling in gaps with fast-growing crops, flowers and herbs to make the most of your garden space.
• Pull weeds; add compost or worm castings to rows, mounds and raised beds.
• Rake in cover crops or hardy greens and mulch with lawn clippings or hay to suppress weeds.
• Divide and transplant perennials before they bloom. Dig underneath the roots to lift the plant with minimal disturbance; soak the roots in water while you prepare new holes, filling holes with water and replenishing soil with organic matter; divide plant into small sections, transplant sections, pat down firmly around the base and cover with mulch.
• Direct-sow cool season plants, including arugula, kale, lettuce, mustard greens, spinach, Bok choy, chard, broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, celery, kohlrabi, onions, peas, radish, rutabaga, spinach, turnips, beets, carrots and parsnips. Cover seedlings with a thin layer of mulch to hold in moisture and protect sprouts from cold nights.
• Plant strawberries and potatoes later this month.
• Plant cold-tolerant flowers and herbs like pansies, calendula and sweet alyssum.
• Start seeds for warm-season crops indoors.

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