finding good soil for cultivation in WY

[WyoNewk]

I seem to recall a winery from the Lander area a few years back....

[harryglos]

Thanks guys that is really good news. I just took a look at elevations and they are Sheridan 3964', Lander 5320'. I'll be moving to Powell at 4374' so elevation shouldn't be an issue. It was interesting to see that Ten Sleep at 4534' is one of the few places in Wyoming where fruit trees grow. I guess being in a valley has something to do with that. Thanks again for the good news on grapes! Harry

[harryglos]

BTW do any of you know of a web site where you can see the average wind speed per Wyoming city? I'm sure I've seen one listing all cities and the average wind per month, but could not find it doing a Google search. Thanks, Harry

[sunsprit]

Originally Posted by harryglos

BTW do any of you know of a web site where you can see the average wind speed per Wyoming city? I'm sure I've seen one listing all cities and the average wind per month, but could not find it doing a Google search. Thanks, Harry

try a search for "average wind energy density" maps of the area. There's lot of folk who post this information and historical data, especially now that wind powered electrical generation is such a big deal in the region.

[sunsprit]

windpowermaps.org has a commonly referred to color chart of the wind energy densities in Wyoming

[plowman]

I don't live in Wyo. but visit SE Wyo. often. I'd say that those bragging about their garden "hobby" making thousands of dollars should thank the Lord they're in SE Wyo. and have access to Cheyenne. In other parts of Wyo., you'd be hard pressed to grow your truck garden and if you did, you'd need a market.

Anyone knows that for a "farmer's market" to thrive, you need to be near a large population center with "health conscious" dare I say, "Yuppy types" who are willing to "pay" for fresh garden produce.

I live in SD. I've no problem growing a garden, but our distance to farmer's markets is prohibibitve and I don't have the health conscious yuppy crowd to cater to, but we are able to keep ourselves in all the vegies and fruits we want, yet we are not able here to make thousands of dollars a week as most folks have their own gardens or get plenty of stuff from neighbors who are giving the stuff away. My greenhouse is made from old storm windows. When I sell produce, people aren't interested in the 'wonderful heirloom" stuff but are more interested in buying by the bushel to can, and then they want cheap, and uniform.

Anyone thinking they could make a living truck gardening in Wyoming, I'd love to see it done. I know it doesn't work here unless you have volume. My grandfather was a truck gardener for decades and his patches were measured in acres, not rows or plants.

[sunsprit]

Plowman, as one who does sell here in SE WY in a local farmer's market ... we've gotten to know our clientele pretty well. Cheyenne is no "boulder, colorado" or even a "fort collins, colorado".

Our main clients are not "yuppy types" at all. There's very few of those types of people here in the area.

Rather, our clients are those who appreciate wholesome quality food grown locally. That's what's driving the "local harvest" marketplace. The "organic" aspects of our production are secondary to that.

We don't make our primary income at our weekly sales, but the few hundred dollars per week certainly helps our family cash flow. Add to that our poultry and lamb production, and it's a means of paying for a lot of our personal food consumption, helping with our overhead expenses for our farm/ranch, and a payback on our farm land investment ... which gives us our privacy and scenery for our home.

BTW, I'd bet that the Lander area would be a viable location for seasonal vegetable production and sales, too. There's quite a sizable nursery there, with a number of high tunnels that were locally fabricated from readily available materials for minimal cost.

Similarly, I'd bet that a Farmer's Market would do well in the Belle Fourche through Rapid City area. All it takes is an easily accessed available parking lot area ... and a bit of marketing. The interest is there in local harvest food goods, and I know that's not a "yuppy" area. Even Lead would draw clients for a Farmer's Market.

[plowman]

Yeah, but Belle is the only place you'd have water. I lived near Sturgis for years. The only way to grow a garden was to use so much chemical you wouldn't want to eat the stuff.
Spearfish used to be the garden spot, lovely orchards and gardens, nice little roadside stands. Then the yuppies from the west coast moved in and the farms got pushed out. In fact, people we know who'd lived at Spearfish all their lives have had to move to Belle, just because they can't pay the taxes.
However, I'm 300 miles from there so surely wouldn't pay to start a farmer's market and haul stuff to Rapid to sell to the yuppy crowd but I'm sure it would go. In fact, some character from the west coast is trying to set up a raw goat milk dairy which has now brought about the state coming down on those of us who've milked & sold a little milk to the neighbor for 40 years and now the raw milk bottling law will allow the rich to open a bottling plant but incriminates the rest of us.