Evelyn, this forum is for gardening in Canada, a long way from Idaho or Montana, even if some conditions are similar. There is a garden exchange forum (and 99% of all the GW forums) that you could post to for better information, though of course everyone is welcome to post here.

Lucy,

I beg to differ. This forum is not restricted to Canada but is rather for anyone gardening in zones colder than "garden-book" normal.
Anyone accepting the challenge of gardening in the colder zones should feel welcome.
I realize that many of my postings are in the Far North forum (zone 3 and colder) but I do monitor this forum as it addresses many of my concerns.

Ian

I live in north Idaho, You'll find that anything you grow where you are will grow up here. Did you know lewiston has a paper mill there? You should check into it for health reasons. Moscow is a very nice little town though.
The growing season is a bit shorter than where you are at now but with a little reaserch you can find out the frost dates. I grow alot of cabbage family, roots and squash myself with fair results.

I live in Missoula, zone 4. If you are in zone 8, you are in for an unpleasant surprise. Spring is usually damp and cool, summer very hot and dry. The soil dries out quickly so I mulch to keep things alive.
The soil in my area is 100% clay although there are some areas with better soil.
I don't know how veggiecanner does it, but I certainly can't grow a lot of stuff that grows in zone 8. Melons, okra, artichokes will probably not produce, even with cold protection. The season is barely long enough to get tomatoes, green beans, and peppers. Squash, potatoes, onions, cabbage, beets do well.
It's a completely different climate here. I really learned that when I showed off my foot-high zucchini plants around the 4th of July to a friend from California and he showed me his two-week old videotape of his zucchini at 4-5 feet tall. According to frost dates that I have found, you have a 3-4 month longer growing season than I do.

I just found this on Google:
Zone 8. Average dates the last frost - 28 February to 30 March. Average dates the first frost - 30 October to 30 November
Zone 4. Average dates the last frost - 1 May to 30 May. Average dates the first frost - 1 September to 30 September.

Plus, MT can have some wild tempurature swings in the same day. The brutal sun and lack of rain fall can be tough. More so than the cold weather.

I live in northern Idaho, but farther north than Lewiston or Moscow. You definitely CAN'T grow everything here that you can grow in zone 8. If veggiecanner is referring to root veggies and cruciform veggies (cabbage, broccoli, kohlrabi etc.), yes, those work just fine, although they grow more slowly here. The real heat-lovers like tomatoes, peppers, cucurbits (melons, cucumbers, squash, pumpkins) may get you a crop, but it will be a lot slower and smaller than where you are now. The growing season is much shorter and colder - especially the nights - and yes, temperature swings can be wild, from 40-100 in one day here. The season is way shorter, and the nights much colder, so it's best to get fast-growing varieties of practically everything except potatoes, carrots and radishes - they seem to do just fine. Many herbs do well also.

Lewiston and Moscow are a little warmer than I am here, but not by much! Try to avoid buying land that is a cold sink - microclimates can be severe. For instance, my growing field is a cold-sink zone 4, whereas my house garden, up on a hill a few hundred feet away, is zone 5. Midsummer light frosts aren't unusual in my cold-sink area, although I think Moscow and Lewiston probably don't get those. Missoula is definitely a harsher climate, both colder and dryer.

Soil varies a lot. It can be volcanic, rocky, gravelly, thin, deep, very alkaline, very acidic, clay, or well-drained. The one thing it all lacks is lots of nutrients - unless you buy a former feedlot! Be prepared to amend.

July and August are generally very dry. You will need to irrigate then, and possibly earlier and/or later. There is a lot of variation. For instance, this last year, spring was so dry, I started watering in early May. That was followed by a wet and cold entire summer. It's best to be prepared for anything. Spring and Fall are long, cold, and wet, in general. Rot-prone plants often succumb then. If you get a place out on the Palouse, you might need to factor in the constant wind. Snow cover is not reliable. Mulching helps, but the cold, wet spring often causes rot if you don't get the mulch off early. Some folks dig up their glads for the winter, some don't, but they risk losing them. Dahlias MUST be dug up for the winter, but they aren't the best performers, anyway - they don't like the cold nights.

Lilacs, peonies, tulips, narcissus, sugar maples, and delphinium thrive here. Zinnias, celosia and salvia don't.

e-mail me if you want to hear more. Bear in mind that I'm in a slightly colder area, but not by much! I've been gardening here for 7 years.

Jeanne

Here!!!! I live in Billings, MT - "the banana belt" ;-) So you may want to reconsider your options - haha.

I had been looking for the "Montana area" of these forums. Guess I found it??

Diana

Wow!! Didn't know that there were so many Montanans here. YEA! I'm in Big Timber and all I can say now is WIND!!! But there are lots of folks here who have great success with a summer flower and veggie garden. Keep us up on where you'll be moving!

Hi there,
I'm up in Cocolalla, Id, between Jeanne In Idaho and Sandpoint. I listen to Jeanne's tips as she has been in the area far longer than I, and I live in one of the micro climates up here on the mountain. I too am from CA in the south Santa Clara Valley.

Hi Evelyn, I garden in North Idaho, near Rathdrum, Idaho. I am also plagued by deer, drought, gophers, mosquitoes and of course the usual weeds. The good news is that when you live somewhere where there is such a short growing season, you just take what you get and make the best of it. My local nursery sells Liquid Fence, it seems to work on the deer problem. I haven't been able to rid my yard of gophers or moles or groundsquirrels, whatever it is that is making tunnels in my yard..so I just ignore them. Some of my favorite plants that do wonderfully in our northern climate are: Black eyed Susans, liatris, Echinaceas, Daylillies, Hardy geraniums,most all campanulas, coreopsis,salvias, Lavenders,Russian Sage..these last two are drought tolerant..you'll want to use those since our summers can be very hot and dry...Have fun!!

Howdy! I realize this is a rather old thread; just 'rediscovered' this site and have been searching for other Idaho folks! I am in Idaho Falls, where the wind ever blows (high plains desert). I grew up in the temperate south where gardening year round is a no brainer. Though we all face issues with soil, wind, and cooler arid climates... embrace the challenge!
I never needed to know much down south, just throw a seed on the ground, spit in its direction, blink and wow! a big 'ol flower, veggie, tree, whatever. Now I NEED to learn the science of my soil and more, in order to protect my gardens. The learning has been fun and you sure do appreciate every leaf, every bloom, and especially every tree!
Good luck to you-

Small world, drgnflyz! I live in Soda Springs, west of Pocatello. It's a bit colder here on top the mtn. but I still manage to have pretty good flowers and veggy garden. I do plant my tomatoes in the greenhouse and there they stay all summer, but everything else grows outside.

Howdy mla2ofus! I emailed a site administrator to try and find out how to get Idaho listed under individual states- no response so far. Do you have any idea how to go about it? There certainly seem to be quite a few of us and though our zones may vary it sure is good to chat with someone in your home state.

It would be awesome if they did. This is the only forum I've found that just deals with cold climates and short growing conditions. Combine that with heavy alkaline clay soil and it is an adventure to try to grow anything. On other forums I get depressed seeing pics of gardens that are on the west coast or southern areas. My daffs are just open when they are showing gardens in full bloom.

Yea, but the waiting make the flower smell sweeter!

I guess I will try emailing the 'contact us' link again. I have looked thru FAQ's and can't find anything that references trying to add our state- if anyone has knowledge on how to do such a thing please help us Idaho folks get our state listed- thanks!

I live in Missoula, Mt. We have 3 zones; 5 in Big Flat area, 4b-4c in the valley, and 3 in upper Rattlesnake area. My backyard is a 4b, while my front garden bed is 5 (South facing against the house). I grow kale, beets, spinach, swiss chard, radishes, bunching onions, leaf lettuce, peas, green beans & cucumbers from seed, bulb onions from sets, & squash, pumpkin, tomatoes, & peppers from greenhouse plants in my backyard garden. The soil is heavy clay, so I build on top of it by either the "Lasagna" (layered) method or in raised beds using the Ruth Stout "No Dig Gardening" method. I also grow many perennial & annual flowers. We have a great Master Gardener course here that will teach you all you need to know. Email me if you move here; I will be glad to help & welcome you to our beautiful city.

I tried over a life time to have young people understand that they must challenge ALL writings. It heartens me to see many Americans also were given the same warnings when I read the reactions to the notice,"This exchange provides a place for Canadians to trade seeds and plants within Canada. If you do not reside in Canada, please check one of the other exchanges." As Michael's Palin's relative stated,"I can see the Excited States from here." All in fun folks and a chance to again use my Basilian teachers'lecture notes.R Squared

Back in the old days of garden web, before y2k.The Spike days.North was one of the first created for those of us who whined enough about our unpredictable northern zones.Gads it is interesting to come back and visit.Still the same ole, no wonder Spikey used to kick my butt off now and then.
There were a few of us from MT and Id, more so Minnesota then Canadian. Many of us now use the rocky mountain forum.That said I know this is an old post and did not plan on responding until I noticed the it pop up.
So Myself I garden in Northwest Montana.South of Kalispell and Glacier park.About a half our from my old location where I ran my organic gardens, greenhouse and landscaping business.
M aka jwj