Understanding Front Range Soil

People moving to Colorado from other parts of the country are often surprised at how hard it can be to get plants to grow well here. Our windy, short-season semi-arid climate is obviously a major contributor to plant problems, but an even more important factor is the condition of the soil. Soil properties and the condition of the soil are the most common inciting factors to plant disorders on the Front Range, yet soil is the resource we usually know the least about.
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MacArthur ‘Genius’ David Montgomery Speaks: Real Dirt on Soil

When gardeners dish the dirt, they may speak of soil, either their own or the soil they wished they had.  It really is the bed in which you make your garden lie.  So 2008 MacArthur ‘Genius’ award recipient David Montgomery, author of  Dirt: The Erosion of Civilizations, is the perfect speaker to help peer into our soil’s soul and see what sustainable means to the planet’s soil.

Speaking at March 4th’s Down and Dirty: the Scoop on Soil, Dr. David Montgomery will share his thoughts on the human relationship with soil. Today’s gardeners interested in growing food, enjoying beauty and living sustainably have many of the same challenges that humans have faced throughout history.  Plant nutrition, soil erosion, healthy harvests, sustainable production all have underground dimensions: any garden’s foundation is literally the soil.
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