Healthy Archuleta is working to help educate the community of Archuleta County about growing and eating healthy food.
For the past few years, Healthy Archuleta has held a series of gardening education classes that focus on growing different types of fruits and vegetables. These classes, offered in both English and Spanish, have been led by expert local instructors with years of gardening and farming experience who want to share their knowledge with anyone who wants to learn about growing food in a high mountain climate. By offering these classes and partnering with two local community gardens and other types of gardening activities, Healthy Archuleta hopes to engage the community individually and as a whole in supporting local agriculture.
To kick off the garden education series this year, classes will be held at both community gardens: two classes at Vista Lake Community Garden and two classes at Pagosa Springs Community Garden. Please visit Healthy Archuleta’s website or Facebook page for more information on dates and times.
Community gardens
There are two community gardens in Archuleta County: the Pagosa Springs Community Garden, located downtown along the San Juan Riverwalk, and the Vista Lake Community Garden, located uptown at the Pagosa Lakes Property Owners Association (PLPOA) office and Vista Lake outdoor recreation area. These two gardens operate independently but in partnership with Healthy Archuleta.
Community gardens provide more than just a space to grow vegetables and flowers. They offer an area where community members can gather and share their experiences in gardening, seek out advice from more experienced growers, and spend time with their neighbors. Growing the vegetables that they love to eat, flowers that brighten their moods, and herbs that flavor their dishes all bring these gardeners together as a group wanting to expand their knowledge and improve their health.
Pagosa Springs Community Garden
The Pagosa Springs Community Garden, located in the downtown area off 5th Street, has been an ongoing part of Pagosa Springs for a number of years. Situated along the San Juan River walkway, just west of the Geothermal Greenhouse Partnership domes, this community garden is a space that is made available by the Town of Pagosa and offers free garden beds to anyone wishing to hone their gardening skills. The garden is in a fenced area to dissuade most wildlife from accessing the raised garden beds, a nicely trimmed shade tree in the center, an area for composting (and soon a newly installed composting system), and a few benches and chairs for relaxing.
The current management team of the garden is enthusiastic about gardening and looks for ways to involve the community by holding various events to attract visitors. Some of the activities planned for the 2025 growing season include building a three-bin composting system, seed starting, amending and planning the beds, and improving the layout to allow for more space for gathering. They have plans to host several open houses throughout the growing season where you can meet the gardeners, ask questions, and participate in a fun activity. To learn more about the Pagosa Springs Community Garden, contact PagosaSpringsCommunityGardenCo@gmail.com.
This year, again, Healthy Archuleta will have a presence at the Pagosa Springs Community Garden. Beginning in May, “Conversations in the Garden” will be held twice a month on Saturday mornings, from 9:00 to 10:00am. Discussions will include weed management, watering, composting practices, fertilizing, harvesting, and cooking lessons. These events are free to the public, and sign-up is not necessary. Just bring a chair, a favorite beverage and enjoy the sparkling conversations. Look for upcoming details on Healthy Archuleta’s website and social media blasts. Dates scheduled are May 17 and 24, June 14 and 28, July 12 and 26, August 9 and 23, September 13 and 27.
Vista Lake Community Garden
The Vista Lake Community Garden (VLCG) is located in the Pagosa Lakes Property Owners Association and Vista Lake Recreation area, just off Port Avenue. Healthy Archuleta, in partnership with community members and PLPOA and with funding support from the Colorado Health Foundation, helped develop the Vista Lake Community Garden in 2019. Today, this garden is an environment where the community comes together to grow food and to advance connections and relationships. The efforts of this garden are led by the Vista Lake Community Garden, now a subcommittee of the PLPOA Board of Directors.
There are two separate gardens at VLCG. The upper, or older garden beds, are being used by the VLCG to grow food for the community via the local food pantries. Fruits and vegetables are grown in the beds, harvested, and taken to the Food Distribution Center, operated by Healthy Archuleta, and then distributed to the pantries. The beds are maintained by the members of the VLCG. However, they are looking for volunteers to assist with gardening activities such as weeding, planting, and harvesting. To volunteer for this project, please contact Toni at toniagallegos21@gmail.com. It is not necessary to be a PLPOA resident to volunteer.
The new garden is located near Vista Lake and the outdoor recreation area and pergola. In 2020, raised beds were constructed and offered to residents of the PLPOA for a small fee. The garden area is fenced to keep out wildlife; beds are 3 feet by 6.5 feet and have access to a drip irrigation system, a tool shed, and a greenhouse. During the growing season, special events are held for PLPOA residents and youth, which include potlucks, children’s activities, summer holiday events, and harvest activities. There are currently 26 beds for rent, and demand is usually high, with most of the beds being spoken for quickly. However, the VLCG committee plans to build more raised beds within the garden to accommodate more gardeners. A handful will be built this year, with additional ones constructed in the future. To learn more about renting a bed in the VLCG, contact Jen Pitcher, PLPOA, at jenp@plpoa.com.
To learn more about the efforts of Healthy Archuleta, please visit our website at www.foodcoalition4archuleta.org or send us an email at fsfearchuleta@gmail.com