Cold Climate

by Kathy Purdy on April 15, 2005 · 15 comments

Enough with the self-pity! Gardening in a cold climate isn’t more difficult than growing in other climates, as long as you grow plants suited to the climate and the soil. I’d rather put up with a long, cold winter than a long, hot humid summer. Now if you want to make it harder on yourself, try growing plants that need more heat, a longer growing season, sandy soil if you’ve got clay, or need acid soil when you’ve got alkaline. Some people like a challenge. Some people just want someone to point the way. Which are you?

That’s what I thought.

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Almost anything you do in the garden, for example weeding, is an effort to create some sort of order out of nature's tendency to run wild. There has to be a certain degree of domestication in a garden. The danger is that you can so tame a garden that it becomes a thing. It becomes landscaping.
Stanley Kunitz

{ 15 comments… read them below or add one }

1 Bridget @ Bulbblog.com June 4, 2009 at 5:41 pm

Great site and awsome picture – I’m going to try and get some new pictures frommy garden this weekend as it’s hard getting all year blooms in WI.

Feel free to checkout my gardening How-To blog.
http://www.bulbblog.com

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2 Andrés August 1, 2008 at 8:46 pm

gardening in high altitudes is not easy. because of that, I built a big hothouse, my home y at 10.300 feet (live ina mountain near Bogotá in Colombia)

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3 Margaret June 21, 2008 at 9:15 pm

Twitter: @margaretroach

I have always been interested in the work collecting tomatoes in Siberia that High Altitude Gardens has done…maybe worth a look? They were in the Rockies at 6,000 ft for years, now in N. Arizona I think.

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4 wendy June 20, 2008 at 9:18 pm

We all talk about “Northern Climate” gardening but when you get to Zone 1 – you have mt amazement and congrads about whatever success you have. I have a sibling from Whitehorse – who loves her gardening and growing plants in home until the seedlings are killed off by a long term power failure.

You go for it Girls – you are amazing.

Friend from alberta

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5 Guiniveve April 29, 2008 at 3:20 pm

Does anyone know of a site that focuses on very cold climates? I’m in the Yukon (next to Alaska) and we’re Zone 1. Thanks in advance.

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6 Palema April 9, 2008 at 4:28 pm

Kathy –
I just read your wonderful piece in the May 2008 issue of Horticulture/northeast regional edition. Beautiful!
Wordsworth notwithstanding, it brought tears to my eyes.
I hope you and yours are all okay!

Pam

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7 Danielle Ernest April 9, 2008 at 1:46 pm

Kathy -

Trying to email you at kathy@coldclimategardening.com, but my email just got rejected saying that the host or domain name could not be found. Please forward me your current email address. Thanks alot

Danielle Ernest – Proven Winners ColorChoice meet at GWA in OK

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8 katelyn March 5, 2008 at 12:00 am

im trying to grow fruit seeds from seed for selling. I live in Oregon and want to know how to keep these seedlings alive. i have a green house ten feet tall so i can keep them in there untill they are about four years old. my problem is i want to know some growers secrets. thank you XD.
(go OSU)

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9 Kristin February 3, 2008 at 6:34 pm

Finding what will grow is certainly the most fun part of gardening! If we knew it would come up perfect every time, what fun would it be? :)

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10 Jim January 14, 2008 at 4:00 pm

I found your listing on Blotanical – you’re in Chenango Forks. I’m from Binghamton, the east side. Although I’ve been in Buffalo since coming here to college in 1980. I’m president of our Garden Walk.

My family has a cottage on a small lake out your way, outside of Greene, near Page Brook & Quinneville.

I have family scattered all around you (don’t be afraid) from Ballyhack Road to Whitney Point. I went to Chenango Valley High School myself.

As I was starting my own gardening blog, Elizabeth from Garden Rant pointed me in your direction as a good blog to read.

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11 Steve Lowry September 22, 2007 at 10:12 am

I totally enjoy my zone 4 garden and have over 1 1/2 acres of raised beds. I have over 40 different trees and enjoy each season with a combination of color, shape, and hardscape to compliment the type of weather we have. I love the snow covered mornings of December and the autumn contrasts of the changing leaf color.

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12 Charles July 30, 2007 at 2:08 pm

Coming from Scotland i can understade the cold climate problems
our summers are not much better than our winters.
Charles
http://www.everythingforthegarden.co.uk

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13 Toni July 29, 2007 at 5:35 am

Lovely blog, kind of gives one an idea of how beautiful your gardens must be. Toni

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14 Gregg & Patty Taylor June 19, 2007 at 5:47 pm

We have just planted our Veg’s & Herbs in our homemade earthboxes and would like to prepare a room inside for our earthboxes before winter comes. Need suggestions on lighting, warmth…etc. Thanks

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15 Anne April 21, 2007 at 9:19 pm

I live at 8800 ft. in the rocky mountains ( yes, we have had snow recently also) and want to garden. I did not get 1 tomato last summer because nights are cold.–although my flowers and herb pots did well. This year I have cut out 2 areas to do about a 300sqr.ft. garden.

Where can I get a comprehensive list of vegetables that thrive in the colder climate? At least then all I’d have to worry about is beating off the elk! ;)
Anne from Evergreen

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