Right now, Noy and Rick Farrell have a drab-looking garden in their backyard near Lakeside Amusement Park. The soil is bare, as are the branches of their trees.

But a few garlic shoots and pea sprouts are popping up here and there. In another month, after the danger of frost is over, the couple will see carrots, cucumbers, peppers, eggplant, broccoli and cilantro begin to cover the ground.

Rick's gardening experience goes back three generations.

"My grandfather was a florist in Massachusetts and I kind of grew up in greenhouses," the 55-year-old says.

Noy, a native of Thailand, used to garden year-round in the northern part of her country, raising food for her family.

The two also own Taste of Thailand at 504 E. Hampden Ave. Herbs, flowers and seasonal produce from their backyard garden make it into many of their dishes. When friends visit their home, they are served a glass of water topped with a snippet of fresh-blooming jasmine for fragrance.

"I pinch the leaves off the vine a lot, and they flower more," says Noy, 51.

"Our garden always appears to be a little snipped up because we don't always wait for things to mature," Rick says. "Thais use plants at every stage of development - tender broccoli leaves, young green pumpkins, garlic buds, squash vines and cilantro seeds."

Garden begun: 1990

Cost: $200 a year for plants. The hardscape and raised beds are built out of recycled stones and timbers.

Favorites:

Herbs - basil, mint, lemon balm, tarragon, pak pai (Vietnamese cilantro), garlic, lemon grass, chives, lovage, sage, garlic chives, dill

Leaves - broccoli, celery, cabbage, Swiss chard, pak boong (a broccoli-like leaf) turnips and bok choy

Blossoms - squash, pumpkin, chives and jasmine grown indoors.

Biggest challenge: "Insects are always a battle," Rick says. "We don't use pesticides, so it is always a matter of where to plant things from year to year.

Best gardening tip: The Farrells compost vegetables peelings, eggshells, shrimp shells, coffee grounds and tea leaves from their restaurant, and work it into the soil along with manure.

Why they love to garden: "We always grew things at home and if we wanted to cook something we just picked basil, garlic, onions," Noy says.

"I kind of think of it as a cycle," Rick says. "There's a warmth that comes from seeing people enjoy food we've grown ourselves, fertilized by scraps from the restaurant."

lehndorffb@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-2792