Beyond Lawns: A Permaculture & Regenerative Resource List for Colorado
BEYOND LAWN RESOURCES
EDUCATION—DESIGN—TRANSFORMATION
NON-PROFITS
Green America Victory Gardens: Green America is a national non-profit advocating for Climate, Food, Finance, Labor, Social Justice and Green Living. Started the Climate Victory Garden campaign modeled after the World War II Victory Gardens. www.greenamerica.org
Grow Local Colorado: Barbara Masoner: Dedicated to promoting the growing of Local Food, Local Community and Local Economy. Helping churches and other organizations www.growlocalcolorado.org
Denver Urban Gardens (DUG):Brittany Pimental: Founded in 1985 now serving six metro Denver counties-180 community gardens, education, training, access to seeds and plants. DUG To Grow Boxes www.dug.org
Jovial Concepts: Di Collingwood: Mission is to empower underserved communities to thrive by creating access to high quality food, promoting healthy living, increasing self reliance and converting lawns to gardens www.jovialconcepts.org
Littleton Garden Gang: Betty Harris: Focus is on healthy soil, composting, native plants and pollinators www.littletongardengang.com
Denver Permaculture Guild: Lee Recca: Mission is to build healthy, resilient, regenerative communities. Earth Care, People Care, Fair Share www.denverpermacultureguild.org
Resource Central is an innovative nonprofit in Boulder, Colorado determined to make conservation so simple that you don’t even realize you’re doing it. Lawn removal, garden in a box, water wise landscaping. www.ResourceCentral.org
Living Systems Institute: David Braden: Provides regenerative landscaping, letting nature do the work. Understanding that we are part of our habitat.
http://www.livingsystemsinst.org/regenerative-landscaping
http://www.livingsystemsinst.org/letter-homeowners
Denver Water: Water wise landscape handbook and Garden in a box www.denverwater.org
FOR PROFITS (Land Care Service Providers):
Produce Denver-Nick Gruber- www.producedenver.com Transformed Tom Abood’s yard in 2014. Presently focusing on raised garden beds with a few larger landscaping projects each year.
The Wild Green Yonder: Adam Brock: Was involved in initial design of Tom Abood’s yard transformation. No longer doing permaculture landscape design but recommended the following:
- Creighton Hofeditz (permaculture landscape design for homeowners): creighton.s.hofeditz@gmail.com, (303) 870-8098
- United Ecology (full-service permaculture design-build for farms and institutions): averyecological@gmail.com, (908) 692-7878
- Honest Hands Landscaping (sustainable hardscaping and masonry): Honesthandslandscapes@gmail.com, (303) 241-0955
- Roaming Roots Gardening (ecological gardening services in the North metro area): roamingrootsgarden@gmail.com, (817) 913-9787
Michael Alcazar: Indigenous permaculturist, artist, designer, builder, facilitator, Master Educator with over 30 years experience www.inactionclimatebrokerage.com
Roots to Deep Waters: Eryn Joy Murphy: helps people connect to nature via their yards and implement regenerative landscaping changes. www.rootstodeepwaters.com
Remedy Permaculture Design: Jax and Lindsey: Regenerative landscape services, co creating beautiful water-wise pollinator gardens www.remedypermaculturedesign.com
All Beings Ecoscapes: Caleb Gruber: Landscape design and consultation focused on regenerative wildscape and permaculture principles https://allbeingsecoscapes.com/
Auntie M’s Garden: Specializes in veggie gardens from design and install to planting and coaching. Offer a wide range of services www.auntiemsgarden.com
Kelly Beth provides garden consultation, plants and seeds. www.kellybeth.com
Boundless Landscapes: Gayle and Fern (Boulder)-Education, installation and planting food gardens. The seeds of a new model for food, farming and resilience lie dormant in our back yards. http://boundlesslandscapes.com/
David Corollo: makes planter boxes, https://photos.app.goo.gl/FqBneF3I8szdvh9G3
Earth Love Gardens: Aaron Michael: Garden beds, hoop houses, pollinator and edible landscape design. www.EarthLoveGardens.com
Lovage Garden Company: encourages the use of herbs as landscape in yards and provides planning, design and installation. www.lovagegarden.com
Water it With Love Landscaping: Lynn- Permaculture design, installation, maintenance and education. To show families and youth the fun of growing food. www.wateritwithlove.com/resources
Bella Verde Landscape Design: Deena Lawrence: local consulting and design company, specializing in custom residential landscapes with an emphasis on sustainability and xeriscaping. bellaverdelandscapedesign@gmail.com
PLANTS / SEEDS / XERIC SOD
Native Seeds Project: Chantae Shor: chantaecreations@gmail.com Chantae is heading up the Native Seeds Project and has the following sign up
list https://docs.google.com/document/d/1JkxcHbSQ1Z1cvn3KW8Qoo- _oWhRniydIuvuZgO54RL4/edit
Plant Select: www.plantselect.org
Stepables: www.stepables.com
Local Plant & Seed Sales: DUG; Denver Botanical Gardens; Front Range Organic Gardners (FROG); Front Line Farming; Wompost (Composting); Littleton Garden Gang; Local garden centers and many, many more
Neighbors: Trading plants
High Plains Environmental Center: https://suburbitat.org
Borderlands Restoration Network: www.borderlandsrestoration.org
Colorado Native Plant Society: www.conps.org
Botanical Interests: Broomfield CO company in business since 1995 selling certified organic seeds whose goal is to inspire and educate the gardener in you. www.botanicalinterests.com
Korby Xeric Sod: 80% Black Beauty Tall Fescue and 20% of Athletic Bluegrass Blend; Eco Friendly & Drought Tolerant; Full Sun & Partial Shade; Great for Xeriscape projects where lower water rate is needed! www.korbysod.com Korby Sod, LLC Northern Colorado - 970-568- 7633
BEES:
Denver Bee Club: www.denverbee.org
Colorado State Beekeepers Assoc: www.coloradobeekeepers.org
RECOMMENDED BOOKS:
Fire the Landscaper: How Landscapers, HOAs, and Cultural Norms Are Poisoning Our Properties by Phil M. Williams
Braiding Sweetgrass: Indigenous Wisdom, Scientific Knowledge and the Teachings of Plants by Robin Wall Kimmerer, 2015 As a botanist, Robin Wall Kimmerer has been trained to ask questions of nature with the tools of science. As a member of the Citizen Potawatomi Nation, she embraces the notion that plants and animals are our oldest teachers. Drawing on her life as an indigenous scientist, a mother, and a woman, Kimmerer shows how other living beings offer us gifts and lessons, even if we’ve forgotten how to hear their voices. She shows the reader how awakening a wider ecological consciousness requires the acknowledgment and celebration of our reciprocal relationship with the rest of the living world. Only when we can hear the languages of other beings can we understand the generosity of the earth and learn to give our own gifts in return. https://milkweed.org/book/braiding-sweetgrass
Pretty Tough Plants: 135 Resilient, Water-Smart Choices for a Beautiful Garden: by the Experts at Plant Select. Plant Select is the brainchild of a partnership between Denver Botanical Gardens and Colorado State University in the 1980s. Plant Select is now the country’s leading brand of plants designed to thrive in high plains and intermountain regions.
SURPLUS GARDEN PRODUCE
Fresh Food Connect www.freshfoodconnect.org Helen Katich CEO helen@freshfoodconnect.org
COLORADO STATE UNIVERSITY EXTENSION RESOURCES
Soil solarization: https://extension.colostate.edu/topic-areas/agriculture/soil-solarization-an alternative-to-soil-fumigants-0-505/
Composting: https://extension.colostate.edu/topic-areas/yard-garden/composting-yard-waste 7-212/
Vegetable gardening: https://growgive.extension.colostate.edu/
Creating Pollinator Habitat: https://extension.colostate.edu/topic-areas/insects/creating pollinator-habitat-5-616/
Lawn care: https://extension.colostate.edu/topic-areas/yard-garden/lawn-care-7-202/
Native trees:
https://extension.colostate.edu/topic-areas/yard-garden/native-trees-for-colorado-landscapes-7- 421/
Native shrubs:
https://extension.colostate.edu/topic-areas/yard-garden/native-shrubs-for-colorado-landscapes 7-422/
Native perennials:
https://extension.colostate.edu/topic-areas/yard-garden/native-herbaceous-perennials-for colorado-landscapes-7-242/
Please visit https://arapahoe.extension.colostate.edu/ for links to research-based gardening information.
Contact the Master Gardener volunteers via e-mail at mastergardener@arapahoegov.com or via phone 303-730-1920. Trained volunteers are standing by to help answer your questions.
ACKNOWLEDGEMENTS:
Thank you to all who support and enrich the Living for Our Future workshop series with your participation, curiosity, and goodwill. A special thanks to those who contributed to this resource list:
Green First Task Force of First Universalist Church of Denver; GrowLocal Colorado; Denver Permaculture Guild; Colorado State University Extension; Slow Food Denver; Adam Brock; Chantae Shor.