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In this week’s Nibbles, I stop fantasizing about my summer patio garden and go shopping at Boulder’s remarkable seed house.
Plus: Finding free seeds, Okinawan doughnuts and upgraded local frozen pizza.
Readers: I’m looking for The Untouchables, the dishes that have been on Boulder restaurant menus the longest. These are the appetizers and entrees customers would scream about if they were ever replaced. Which local dishes are your permanent flavor features? Let me know: nibbles@boulderreportinglab.org.
— John Lehndorff
I’m not afraid to admit that I do a lot of fantasizing. It’s in my nature as a writer. Some daydreams are your garden-variety romantic, but as I sit on my townhome patio on an unnaturally hot March day, I frankly fantasize about germination.
I am a longtime patio gardener. I bet many of you are, too.
We don’t have (or necessarily want) an expansive backyard garden with self-watering raised beds. At our Boulder County apartments, condos and multiple units, we grow crops in pots, containers and window boxes on patios, balconies, porches and decks.
I am one of the lucky ones. It’s stunning how much stuff you can grow on a sun-drenched, south-facing patio like mine.
Gardening can be inexpensive, but I don’t do it to save money on tomatoes. Watching plants grow boosts my mood. I end up in a cat-like relationship with these growing individuals. They need just enough attention … not too much water.
Over the years, I’ve grown lots of tomatoes, chilies, herbs, sunflowers and morning glories and a few oddities. I’ve had some spectacular failures, see broccolini, and some amazing treats: endless shishito peppers.
Every spring, the new seed packets catch my eye with their pretty illustrations that murmur: “Grow me. How hard could it be (on a patio in Colorado)?”
I’m no dirt nerd. I garden largely by instinct, much the way I cook — minus recipes — so I try to go shopping for September’s tomatoes where I get some practical advice, too.
Visiting Boulder’s cool Seed House
The Seed House at MASA Farm is one of Boulder County’s most remarkable gardening and agricultural resources.
The walls of the historic 1923 farmhouse are filled with several hundred glass jars of brightly hued native and heirloom GMO-free seeds adapted to the sun, water, soil and wind conditions of the Front Range.
Visitors shop for an array of potential vegetables, herbs, flowers, grasses and grains, though not all of them can be grown on a patio, according to Tyler Ellison, MASA’s nursery manager.
“Solar exposure is one of the most important things to know. Some plants, like chilies, love sun and southern exposure. Others need at least partial shade,” he says.
“Some plants like corn, root vegetables, pumpkins and melons take up too much space and need a lot of sun.”
While pumpkins aren’t ideal, I always grow a zucchini plant or two. “Summer squash grow fast. It’s best to pluck the blossoms early on,” Ellison says. Stuff those blossoms with ricotta, dip them in egg and panko crumbs, and fry in olive oil for an easy appetizer.
Ellison also recommends looking for bushy varieties of vegetables ideal for pots, including plum tomatoes, sweet peppers, pickling cukes and string beans.
If nothing else, plant a salad and herb container. Sprinkle in mint, thyme, oregano, flat-leaf (Italian) parsley, cilantro, dill, chives, baby lettuces and greens. Basil usually needs its own pot.
I’ve learned a few things about soil, composting, leggy seedlings, overwatering and pests. This season, I promise to mulch.
“Even for pots or containers, we recommend a one-inch layer of mulch on top — either straw or alfalfa are best. It cuts down on evaporation,” Ellison says. Without a hose on my patio, I haul hundreds of gallons between the kitchen and patio.
Porches and patios can offer a certain amount of insurance and protection against blistering sun, high winds and hail, and the vegetable destruction that follows. Pots can also be moved around as the sun shifts through the season.
According to Colorado tradition, you shouldn’t put your plants in the dirt until Mother’s Day. However, “it also might snow the next week,” Ellison says.
I’ll start my seeds and fill much of my “acreage” with plant starts available in May from local farms.
Gardening gives me a hint of hope, a daydream about a tastier future. And there is nothing quite as fresh as harvesting salad from your porch for a summer dinner.
Locally adapted seed sources
MASA Seed Foundation: The Seed House at 1367 75th St., just south of Arapahoe Ave., is open 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. Tuesday through Saturday. MASA Seeds are also available at The Trident, Nude Foods Market, Moxie Bread Co., McGuckin Hardware and Blackbelly.
Botanical Interests Seeds, Broomfield, available at many local outlets.
Seed Libraries: Check out a pumpkin
Free garden seeds are also available through many public libraries, including those in Lafayette, Longmont and Boulder. The Boulder Public Library hosts a seed exchange on March 22.
Local garden info, recycled pots
Colorado State University Extension Service
Resource Central Boulder: Recycled materials including gardening tools, pots and fencing.
Classes for green thumbs and tomato newbies
Classes on gardening — from soil building to pruning — are available in Boulder at Harlequin’s Gardens and at Growing Gardens. The Boulder Public Library hosts a Master Gardeners class in garden planning on April 14, and Benevolence Orchard & Gardens hosts an April 11 session in its orchard on “Learning To Grow Your Own Fruit Trees.”
Wine-centric dining, upgraded frozen pizzas
Wine Spectator recently highlighted metro restaurants offering exceptional food and wine, including Tomás Zatloukal’s Vinca in Boulder and Broomfield and Azafran, an Indian eatery in Broomfield owned by Rishu Chhabra and Saurav Mehta. Others on the list include Barolo Grill, Mizuna, Rioja and Tavernetta, all in Denver.
Frozen pizza just got a serious upgrade. Lucky’s Market has introduced take-and-bake pies from Boulder’s award-winning Audrey Jane’s Pizza Garage. Audrey Jane’s also offers its pasta sauces in bottles.
Opening
Okigiri Cafe has opened at 629 28th Street. The Okinawan and Taiwanese menu features noodle dishes, Taiwanese doughnuts and onigiri, sandwich-sized rice pockets filled with teriyaki beef, Spam and eggs, shrimp or pulled pork with jalapeno.
Coming attraction
Scoops on the Corner, a new ice cream shop, will open at 1844 N. Hover Street in Longmont.
Museum of Boulder curator Elizabeth Nozek leads an in-depth tour on March 21 exploring Boulder’s historic culture of wellness and natural foods, featured in the current Boulder Eats exhibit. Tickets here.
The Boulder Farmers Markets’ new Field Trip Program offers guided farm tours starting April 8 at MASA Seed Farm. Get tickets.
Slow Food Boulder County and the Museum of Boulder team up for a family-friendly tour of Growing Gardens on May 11. Tickets available.
(Get your upcoming food event, festival or class listed free on Boulder Reporting Lab using the self-submission form here.)
“As long as the sun still shines and people still can plan and plant, think and do, we can, if we bother to try, find ways to provide for ourselves without diminishing the world.” — Michael Pollan
Want more Boulder bites?
Five decades of change at North Boulder’s Broadway shopping center — now Pekoe café is leaving
After more than five years as a neighborhood gathering place, the tea and coffee shop is leaving the North Broadway Shopping Center amid corporate expansion and increasing lease costs. Continue reading…
Last call at the Dark Horse: After 51 years, a Boulder institution closes its doors
Patrons lined up one last time outside the legendary bar and grill, sharing stories of cheap beers, crab races and decades of late nights as the property prepares for redevelopment into housing. Continue reading…
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