Lettuce Patch Gardens

Sustainably grown artisan vegetables

Colorado Springs, Colorado

We grow our produce using biointensive methods.

Biointensive growing uses organic methods (no chemical fertilizers or pesticides are used), and focuses on sustainable growing techniques. We go beyond jus feeding plants and focus on building good soil that feeds the plants we grow.

The biointensive methods we use feed the soil, the plants and ultimately our customers in a way that significantly minimizes our impact on the environment.

Sustainable is a popular word these days, and it can mean many different things. Sustainable agriculture, to us, means using the least amount of land, water and commercial fertilizer to grow the most amount of food possible. We also believe that limiting our use of fossil fuels to grow and transport food is vital to sustainability.

	We use closely spaced plantings (we plant in "wide beds" rather than single rows of plants) which reduces our use of water.
	Our market-garden recycles all plant waste into compost. We use minimal commercial organic-fertilizers. By doing so we are striving to be truly sustainable by importing as few outside resources as possible.
	We grow not only crops to eat, but crops to feed the soil. We plant green manures (that are turned under and break down in the garden beds). We grow "compost crops" - crops that are grown specifically to make compost.
	We use as little fossil fuels as possible in our growing and production.
	We grow during the fall, winter and spring, but do not need extensive heating and cooling systems found in most greenhouse set-ups, further reducing our dependence on non-renewable energy. We rely heavily on the strong Colorado sun and biologically active soil to generate heat in our garden beds during the fall, winter and spring months.
	We use only hand tools to work the soil (not even a roto-tiller). We currently use a car to make deliveries, but hope to make deliveries via bicycle in the future.

We grow what we know best - heirloom vegetable varieties that have performed well for us. We are always trying new varieties, especially ones that are popular in European cuisine.

We also practice season extension, so that we can grow fresh food year round. We grow in mini-greenhouses that allow us to grow and harvest all year.

We have a passion for food and gardening, and have started a local Colorado Springs CSA. If you would be interested in a weekly home-delivery of our fresh produce visit our Community Supported Agriculture page to learn more about it. You can also purchase our produce at a local Colorado Springs health food store.

Cheryl, our head gardener, would like to teach others her methods, and work to expand urban market-gardening in and around Colorado Springs.

Urban gardening and urban agriculture are ideas that are becoming increasingly important as our world becomes more urbanized and developers transform agriculturally fertile lands and open spaces into sprawling suburbs. We and other urban growers are part of the solution to our current environmental problems.

We invite you to take a virtual tour of our gardens to see how we grow all this great produce.

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