At Santa Fe Community College a 26’ Growing Dome greenhouse is an integral part of their course offerings. This state-of-the-art facility isn’t just a greenhouse; it’s a living laboratory powered by aquaponics, where students dive deep into the future of agriculture and environmental stewardship. Aquaponics in a Growing Dome The Growing Dome greenhouse creates a...
Pollinator Week is a time to celebrate the vital role these insects play in our environment. It's also an opportunity to reflect on our practices to be sure we're doing our best to help them thrive.
Here you will find a list of plants to grow for food bank donation and how to find a local food bank to donate to during the holiday season.
The technologies behind what make our product one of the best greenhouse options on the market are not rocket science. They are Dome science! You might already be familiar with our seven features, but if not we are going to get down to the basics so that you can understand how they work and why they make the Growing Dome Greenhouse the best greenhouse option for you!
Without water, the west has a number of problems. We need to be thinking about the “new normal”, the best ways that we can conserve water, and how we can stabilize our own food systems. Our proposed solution is to go back to our roots, bring back the kitchen garden, and fight food insecurity in our own backyards.
The first recipient of our urban farming grant is Black Nickel (Hustlaz 2 Harvesters, & Garfield Terrace) in Washington DC. Black Nickel’s mission is to redevelop and revive neglected community farms and gardens in DC, and throughout the nation, and create a prototype of local farmer’s markets owned by minorities and people of color. Their goal is to implement training and education programs for children and young adults, helping foster their relationship with STEM and agriculture.
Malik is originally from Iowa where he graduated from the University of Iowa with a Bachelor's in Enterprise Leadership and a Psychology minor. His passion for gardening and growing food flourished during his time in the Grow: Johnson County apprentice program. It was clear after spending just a short period of time with Malik that he is passionate and dedicated to educating others about the importance of growing your own food.
Paula & Keith Rigby’s 26’ backyard greenhouse in Kamiah, Idaho sits on their retirement property nestled in between the new home they are building and Keith’s workshop. Yes, they did in fact build the greenhouse first.
The Elder's, Jerilyn, Jay, Maddog, and Samantha, got their 33' Growing Dome with the hopes of generating enough food for themselves and others in the community. In just a year, their Dome has become so much more than a year-round gardening space. The Dome has acted as a getaway location for the entire family during the pandemic. Jerilyn called the expanse "the perfect place to slow down and veg out." It is truly their dream greenhouse garden getaway.
Michael and Susan are both educators committed to making the world a better place whenever they can. In June of 2013, they purchased an 18' Growing Dome. Their dream was to create a sustainable greenhouse that balances natural and man-made environments while growing food year-round.
We wanted to take a moment and show our appreciation to five outstanding non-profit charities that are actively fighting food insecurity. Navajo Nation, Mattersville Vets, Urban Growers Initiative, GoFarm Coop, and the Food Coalition 4 Archuleta County and the GGP are all working to improve the health and nutrition of the people in their respective communities. See what Growing Spaces is doing to support these great causes, and learn how you can help. We are also excited to announce a new Urban Community Garden Grant opportunity for 2021!
Udgar and I founded Growing Spaces in 1989. The process of selling it was like looking for the right partner to pass on the baton in an exciting marathon. Preparing for that moment took extra energy. Our team had become our community as we developed the agility together to master all the moving parts of an evolving company. After retiring, we decided to travel in order to mark the change and to distance ourselves from our results-driven habits.
Commit to reducing your Carbon Footprint by 10% with a Growing Dome. As most of us are spending the 50th Anniversary of Earth Day in our homes, the Earth is getting a breather.
Optimize micronutrients by eating fruits and vegetables immediately after harvest. There are so many benefits to eating vegetables fresh from the earth. Taste, nutritional value and saving trips to the grocery store. Food travels hundreds, if not thousands, of miles before it makes it to the grocery store shelves and loses critical nutrients along the way.
Winter or early Spring is a great time to clean your panels as vegetation is generally reduced, allowing easy access to the polycarbonate surfaces. According to Claudia Stover, long-time Growing Spaces dome owner and greenhouse gardening teacher, not only does regular cleaning of the polycarbonate panels increase the sanitation of the greenhouse but “keeping the dome panels clear of pollen and plant debris also helps reduce disease and pest pressure on your plants.”
Growing Spaces is pleased to announce a partnership with GoFarm, Community Supported Agriculture, in Golden, CO. Growing Spaces has donated the use of a 26' Growing Dome Greenhouse for GoFarm's Farmer Incubator Program. The construction of the greenhouse was finished in August 2019 by a wonderful group of local volunteers, and the dome is being farmed by GoFarm Incubator apprentice Shannon Harker. Shannon will gain valuable experience with greenhouse farming and the City of Golden will gain a new, hyper-local food source. The greenhouse uses sustainable and renewable energy technologies and helps extend the short Colorado growing season and provide fresh produce for the community year-round.
These non-profits are working to increase access to locally grown organic food in their communities There are many challenges facing our planet’s agricultural systems. Climate change, pesticides, GMOs, over-farming, soil health, corporate agriculture among many others. Food insecurity is also a major concern, as many communities do not have access to fresh, healthy organic food....
With help from our customers, Growing Spaces has developed an ROI calculator to determine when your greenhouse financing will be paid off! How can a Growing Dome geodesic greenhouse save you money and provide a return on your investment? The number one concern we get from gardeners interested in a Growing Dome is the cost....
Seed saving as a means to restore and promote the regenerative agricultural movement Seed saving has saved my relationship with the land. A few years into my gardening journey I felt helpless as to how my work was impacting the environment. Sure, I was growing my own produce, lowering my carbon footprint, and sharing an...
Cultivating abundance, both financially and in my garden, has been a long journey for me. When I first became interested in gardening I was convinced I needed to grow my own food because the economy was going to crash and I’d have to know how to be self sufficient in order to survive. This belief...
Reflections on Local Resiliency and Global Sustainability Independence Day begs us to ask some of the most critical questions of the century in regards to local and global sustainability. Such questions demand that the rising leaders in sustainability choose a path that honors the freedoms the Constitution deems important. One of these freedoms speaks to...
Cara Barnes of Hollyhock Farms in Aspen Colorado talks about sustaining a whole food plant based diet out of her Growing Dome Greenhouse
Cloud City Farm: From Superfund Site to Community Gardens, Thriving High Altitude Farm and Year-Round Growing Dome Greenhouse With only 28 frost free days a year, and living 10,000 feet above sea level, they are growing what at first might seem impossible. Cloud City Conservation Center (C4) Cloud City Conservation Center (C4) is a non-profit 501(c)3...
Growing Gardeners and a Local Foodshed with a Growing Dome® at the Pine River Community Garden Instead of garlic from China and avocados from Mexico, the Pine River Garden Club in Bayfield, Colorado, cultivates their own local foodshed, grows gardeners and teaches how to harvest what you thought wouldn’t grow here. Pine River Garden Club...
Welcome to the Wonderful World of the Growing Dome® Insulated Greenhouse The Growing Dome is a net-zero, energy-efficient, insulated greenhouse. You can grow year-round with no heater, even in cold climates. A unique system that truly revolutionized the greenhouse industry. How is that possible? It’s always fun to have Udgar mic up and wander out to the...
As I think about my experience shopping yesterday, as everyone prepares for the holidays in our town, I am struck by the Holiday energy, thoughts about ending 2017, and affirming what will be healthy for the New Year. The offer of a “21 Day Pilates Holiday Slimdown” reminds me of the urge to improve in...
It’s the middle of November, and I walk outside into the crisp coldness that reminds me winter is closer than it appears. Our backyard has Growing Domes and entering one of these is like transporting yourself into another world. It’s warm and a bit humid inside, completely opposite from the outer world I just left....
Off-Grid Tiny House Paradise in British Columbia, Canada Grows Year-Round With Three 42-foot Geodesic Dome Greenhouses This episode of Living Big in a Tiny House features the ultimate tiny house off-grid paradise, complete with three 42-foot Growing Spaces Growing Domes! Situated on 380 acres of spectacular lake-front property in BC with private hot-springs and abundant...
Save Money, Combat Climate Change, and Power Ahead When the Rest of the World Grinds to a Halt The electricity went out. The lights flickered overhead, the computer shouted a loud Kapoof! and turned off completely. I turned it back on, not thinking much of it. A little later the lights flickered and another Kapoof! from the computer. A...
The Garden Project of Southwest Colorado “Growing your own food is a revolutionary act.” -Vandana Shiva Gardening is Revolutionary. Your garden is significant. Gardening creates a better world, bringing health to your body and health to the planet. It cultivates a quality of beauty that merits direct experience for full appreciation. Even a humble backyard garden plot...
In 2014, the fine folks at Littleton Academy, in Littleton, CO, were awarded the Growing Spaces In-Kind Grant Award. The mission of their project, in their own words: “to create an environmentally efficient and sustainable greenhouse that can be funded after inception by the revenue generated from the selling of seeds, flowers for Mother’s Day, organic...
Growing Domes and Mission: Wolf A Living example of Sustainability and Stewardship “A wolf in a cage is good for one thing…to teach people NOT to put wolves in cages.” Mission: Wolf I applaud the work of our friends over the mountains in Westcliffe, Colorado. Mission: Wolf You won’t believe how they are raising the...
Just over a week ago, Pagosa Springs received some much needed snow. Overnight, more than a foot of wet snow blanketed trees and mountains surrounding our little town. It’s unusual for Colorado to receive such wet, heavy snow, and much of the town actually shut down for a snow day! Although county employees and teachers...
The Snow and Cold are Here! Until a few weeks ago, the Growing Spaces team and all of Pagosa Springs, CO was still waiting for our first big winter snow. Impatience for this important seasonal event ended just a few days before the Christmas holiday when the clouds finally dumped a good amount of fluffy...
It’s winter vegetable harvest time, and we hope to make it a holiday tradition. The long awaited snow and winter cold has finally arrived in Southwest Colorado, but our lush garden in the 15′ Growing Dome continues to produce yummy, nutrient-rich greens. The longer season crops we planted in October are also coming along nicely,...
Welcome back to the 15′ Growing Dome! We are glad you’ve decided to join us again. Following along with our project will continue to provide you with valuable gardening tips and information, as well as show how, really, anyone can grow fresh, nutritious food in a Growing Dome, all year-round! Thinning vegetable crops is a...
As I begin this Newsletter greeting, I was just watching wild turkeys outside our window scratching for food. I always feel wonder that they return every year and surround our cabin with their good energy, reminding me of the pilgrims and Native American’s offering gratitude. I am preparing a surprise turkey dinner for a friend and...
Welcome back to the 15′ Growing Dome! The Growing Spaces team is excited to share how well all of our cool season crops are growing, even as the weather continues to get colder and the days get shorter here in Pagosa Springs, CO. November is the time of year when most everyone is putting...
We are very excited to announce the completion of the 26′ Growing Dome for the 2014 Growing Spaces Third Place Grant Winner – Eva’s Village. The innovative homeless shelter greenhouse is located next door to Eva’s Village at Wayne Auto Spa owned by Rob Burke. The new indoor garden will produce food for the teaching...
It’s October 1st, and we’re planting seeds! At the beginning of our new project in the 15′ Growing Dome, we heavily amended the soil in the outer growing beds, where we direct seeded many greens and vegetables. As we constructed a new interior bed to increase growing space with the goal of maximizing production in...
Pagosa Springs, CO – Growing Spaces of Pagosa Springs will be recognized Thursday, Oct. 2, 2014 at the Denver Center for the Performing Arts for achievement of Bronze tier environmental leadership by the Colorado Department of Public Health & Environment. At the 15th Annual Colorado Environmental Leadership Awards, Growing Spaces will join other Colorado companies...
Grant Awards Announced We are pleased to announce the three winners of this year’s Growing Spaces In-kind Grant Awards. Each of these well deserving organizations has diligently planned and raised funds for their school and/or community gardening program that will include a Growing Dome® greenhouse. It is with great joy that we join the movements...
Boulder community unites for hands-on, year-round garden education Boulder, CO March 10, 2014 – On Friday students, parents and staff at Columbine Elementary are holding an “Open Greenhouse” – the first chance for the community to check out their recently constructed 33 foot-diameter geodesic Growing Dome Greenhouse. The new greenhouse is considered a pilot for...
When we started Growing Spaces LLC in 1989, our effort was to build a socially responsible business based on the values and practices we are living. One of them was the idea to “Celebrate Everything.” For me that means the attempt to shift inside, and see the potentials in every experience as well as to...
Why are we a Socially Responsible Company? Like so many environmentally aware people, I was really affected by the reality of the unusual super-storms of the past few weeks as the hurricane in the Philippines and the recent tornadoes here in the United States, took away lives, homes, and livelihoods. The Climate Reality project states...
A few years ago I was privileged to be on a panel of CEOs at our annual SW Colorado Women’s Business Conference and asked “How do women do business differently than men?” Although the moment called a response from the three of us that invited us all to recognize that we all possess masculine and...
Solar Living Institute Update: Unfortunately due to COVID the Solar Living Institute closed it’s doors in October 2020. They are still offering on-line classes. Recently we received an update from the Solar Living Institute in Hopland, CA of the 26′ Growing Dome greenhouse built in 2012. “The Growing Dome is one of the main attractions...
We are pleased to announce the top three winners of this year’s Growing Spaces In-kind Grant Awards. Each of these well deserving organizations has diligently planned and raised funds for their education programs that will include a Growing Dome® greenhouse. It is with great joy that we join the movements to contribute to and support...
We are so impressed and amazed to see how the school garden concept is infusing rural and urban communities across the country. The next generation honestly has so many opportunities to connect back with their food and the land. It’s also stunning how technology has quickened the pace of this movement far beyond what anyone...
Freeman Public School students in Nebraska are just now settling into their new 33 ft. diameter Growing Dome greenhouse classroom. Over the course of about nine months they were able to write grants and receive enough funding to purchase the greenhouse classroom. The main contributions were grants from DuPont Pioneer and Farm Credit Services of...
Examples of how some communities have used garden grants to build a community garden greenhouse Community gardens create a wonderful space where neighbors and families can spend time outdoors, get good exercise and good food, and, most importantly, connect with each other. They also provide access to gardening for people who might otherwise not have...
This is the time of year that my inner child delights in the music, Christmas lights and spirit of giving. My excitement is an appreciation for the turning inward of the shorter days, the relief of cozying our home and coming inside for more reflection. A reverence for inwardness symbolized by the Solstice, as well...
Growing Spaces co-owner, Puja Parsons, subscribes to a number of e-newsletters that keep her abreast of current trends in healthy eating, wellness and sustainability. Many Mondays we come to work and find delicious email forwards in our inboxes with links to great articles. Most recently via Puja’s subscription to DailyGood.org, she shared with us a...
Last week, we posted a testimonial video from Truckee Community Farms‘ co-owner Bill Kelly and manager Susie Sutphin talking about their project and how they’re using their Growing Dome. These two, along with the other co-owner Kevin Kelly, have been awarded the Your 2 Cents Program Grant. “The Rodale Institute’s $5,000 Your 2 Cents donation...
On August 9th, 2012, our hometown of Pagosa Springs, CO is hosting a professional collaboration to explore economic growth, renewables, geothermal development and sustainable agriculture. The goal is to move Colorado mountain towns into a sustainable future. We are excited to lend our sponsorship and support to this great endeavor and are looking forward to...
We recently constructed a 26′ Show Growing Dome to join the four other Growing Domes at our facility in Pagosa Springs, CO. The 26′ diameter is our most popular size and we’ve been planning this build for that reason for a couple of years. Since we have plenty of gardening space for ourselves in the...
We love to help our community eat locally and be a vibrant hub for business and innovation. We share our knowledge of organic gardening, green corporate practices, and healthy lifestyles with individuals, communities and educational institutions. We are a Made in America manufacturing company. We love where we live and give back all we can...
We spend a lot of time talking about our greenhouse kits and what they can do. Next, we highlight our vision of a sustainable world, and lastly, we sometimes happen to mention who we are. The increasing attention paid to goods made in America has caused us to think back to who we are as...
Did you realize that Growing Spaces is a solar powered business? The solar panels installed outside our workshop provide enough to run our shop and offices while leaving power left to send back into the grid. Our staff also participates in energy saving activities that help us make the most of the sun power we...
We’ve been mentioning and following the Farm-to-School program run by the USDA (United States Department of Agriculture) and are very excited about an upcoming webinar they are hosting next week. It is in celebration of the upcoming “National Farm to School Month“ in October. Here’s what’s in store for those attending the webinar: “USDA will...
In a world grappling with economic challenges and environmental concerns, Pagosa's Geothermal Greenhouse Project stands as a testament to community resilience and sustainable living. Embracing the 'going local' movement, this initiative is not just about cultivating plants; it's about cultivating hope and kinship within the community. Drawing parallels with the Eden Project and the transformative vision of the Aspen Institute, this project symbolizes a shift towards a sustainable, eco-friendly future. Join us as we explore how this project is shaping Pagosa Springs into an eco-destination, celebrating human ingenuity and a sustainable way of life.
As the world turns towards sustainable solutions, the Eden Project in Cornwall, UK, stands out as a beacon of hope and innovation. This visionary project, transforming an exhausted quarry into the world's largest conservatory, exemplifies how communities can come together to create impactful, eco-friendly spaces. Its blend of education, tourism, and social enterprise inspires visitors globally, subtly promoting ecological awareness. In Pagosa Springs, we draw from this example, envisioning our own eco-destination with the Geothermal Greenhouse Project. Join us as we nurture this dream, planting seeds for a sustainable future and inviting you to share your green community stories.
Living just 100 feet from the freeway, the Dervaes family lives a self-sufficient life in the middle of LA. They grow enough organic food on their 1/10 of an acre of available “farm” land on their 1/5 of an acre of property in Pasadena, to live year-round without going to the grocery store for food....
Rewinding to 2010, Growing Spaces embarked on an inspiring journey, aligning with Jamie Oliver's mission to transform global nutrition. Our collaboration reached a pinnacle during Oliver's American Road Trip, where we donated a Growing Dome to the Navajo Nation, fostering sustainable living and native plant wisdom. Oliver's dedication to educating on healthy eating resonates with our ethos. His efforts, from cost-effective meals for world leaders to tackling obesity in America, echo our commitment to 'choosing life' through sustainable practices. As Oliver's influence continues to spark change, we invite you to explore his vision for a healthier world and our shared dedication to a sustainable, nutrition-focused future.
I am writing after the Japanese Tsunami, the upset in Madison, the revolution in Egypt, and many other newsworthy events. It is a time of questioning and a time of “upset” I am sure, to most of us and we all have to integrate new fears, like the potential for Nuclear Fall-Out from the power...
Greenhouses a growing interest amongst Colorado Janet Urquhart The Aspen Times Aspen, Colorado Greenhouses like the new dome behind Roaring Fork High School in Carbondale, Colorado could become a more common sight in the Roaring Fork Valley. Pitkin County is contemplating code changes to better accommodate greenhouses. With community gardens cropping up around the Roaring...
