Who’s in charge? Leslie Doyle, tomato expert extraordinaire, who for around 20 years has been running her organic test garden and consulting for seed producers in the five-state area.
Mission: To make it possible for anyone to have a bountiful harvest, especially of big and delicious tomatoes—desert heat and all.
Location: 5910 Sheila Ave., 702-490-5217, sweettomatotestgarden.com.
Active season: January to March.
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Grounds: The huge plot behind Doyle’s home looks like the Garden of Eden (if Eden required elbow grease). Piles of composting dirt abut sheds overflowing with tools on the right side of the property. The bulk of the lot, though, is taken up by rows of raised beds producing every variety of vegetable imaginable. Fruit trees and a shaded area for the chicken pen complete the portrait of urban garden bordering on high-volume farm.
What grows? Tomatoes (of course), peppers, eggplant and any other summer veggies participants choose for that season, vending some weekly at the Downtown 3rd and Downtown Summerlin farmers’ markets.
Classes: The Test Garden offers 35 classes, from growing basics to how to combat pests organically. Costs range from free to $26 including supplies.
Why check it out? On the cutting-edge of desert gardening, Doyle offers students her pioneering techniques that, as she puts it, “allow you to take all the credit and feel an enormous sense of pride in the delicious produce you grow.”