Gardening at 5,000'

Well, we will shortly have a post up here to show you our efforts to coax some yummy veggies out of the ground in Laramie.  Last year we learned that this requires some effort.  However, I wanted to briefly mention that we're also taking on a decently sized garden plot here in my Fort Collins backyard (half a mile lower, where the climate is way more favorable).  You could say it was a little overgrown to begin with...

However, after a sunny Saturday of work, I got things cleaned right up and some crops in the ground.

You might be curious about what I'm planning to grow, since there are so many options in Colorado (thanks to the awesome climate...and recent changes in our laws).  Well, I can report that every plant I'm growing is legal under both Colorado AND federal law!  That said, I am experimenting with a very close botanical cousin of cannabis: humulus lupulus.  Hops!

As you can see, I'm still not quite ready to brew beer with hops that I've grown myself, but I'm excited to learn a bit about these plants firsthand once these rhizomes begin growing.  I'm testing two different varieties (Cascade and Centennial hops) that are quite popular with American brewers.  Colorado's dry, sunny climate is purportedly ideal for hop plants in general, and these in particular, so we'll see how this goes!  In the meantime, have a great week, everyone!