Kunc's Colorado Edition

If you decided to plant a vegetable garden earlier this spring, you’re probably already enjoying some of those home-grown tomatoes, zucchini, or peppers.   On the other hand, you may have decided that the potential benefits of growing your own food just aren’t worth the effort.  Colorado’s intense climate, elevation and scarce rainfall make vegetable gardening a challenge. But there’s hope. Cassey Anderson is a horticulture specialist with Colorado State University Extension whose mission is to help new gardeners succeed. She joined Erin O’Toole to discuss how to help vegetables thrive.  CSU Extension has a number of helpful resources for gardeners, including a seasonal planting tip sheet and this vegetable garden guide. You can also find tips on how to deal with plant diseases and insects. * * * * * KUNC is holding its first-ever emergency fundraiser because Congress recently clawed back public broadcasting funds. That’s funding we rely on to cover local news, report on critical issues, and bring you convers

Dozens of aspiring educators in Colorado are taking an unusual path to earn their teacher certificates.  They’re doing apprenticeships in public schools as part of a state program that offers an alternative path to gaining a teacher’s license and bachelor’s degree. Proponents see the program as a partial solution to Colorado’s teacher shortage, which resulted in thousands of unfilled classroom positions last school year. Teachers’ apprentices spend about four years getting experience in the classroom while taking courses on the side through Colorado Mountain College. It’s a different model from more traditional bachelor’s degrees that require years of coursework before setting foot in the classroom.    Advocates say it opens doors for those who find the traditional college route to becoming a teacher prohibitive due to lack of time and money.  Erica Breunlin is a reporter with the Colorado Sun. She spoke with Erin O’Toole about how the program works and what it promises for teachers and students in Colorado.

When we shop for food, the labels on our groceries give us guideposts, such as how much fiber, protein or fat is in that loaf of bread or jar of peanut butter.   But more than a decade after Colorado legalized recreational cannabis, the potency labeling on products at your local marijuana dispensary may be far less helpful – and less reliable. A new study from the University of Colorado Boulder found that almost half of cannabis flower products sold at dispensaries across the state are inaccurately labeled. Researchers found that flower products often contain less – or more – of compounds like THC and CBD than indicated on the label.  The findings raise questions about quality control within cannabis companies, as well as how much consumers should trust these labels, especially when they buy higher-potency marijuana. The results of the study were published earlier this month in the journal Scientific Reports. Erin O’Toole spoke with one of the CU researchers, Jonny Lisano, to learn more about the study and wh

The red admiral. The black swallowtail. And the beautiful, bright orange monarch.  Each year a network of volunteers fans out across Colorado to see how many of these, and other butterfly species, they can find. Those observations help scientists understand the health of the state’s butterfly population.  Our guest today says that work is vital because butterflies are sensitive to changes in climate and habitat. And butterflies across the U.S. appear to be declining. That’s according to a recent study in the journal Science that incorporated some alarming data from the Colorado volunteers. Shiran Hershcovich oversees the network of butterfly observers. It’s part of her job managing conservation projects for the Butterfly Pavilion in Westminster. The program has trained more than 300 citizen butterfly observers since its launch in 2013. Shiran joined Erin O’Toole to talk about the network, and what its findings can tell us. Learn more about the butterfly monitoring network and its trainings for people interest

  Since 1960, the National Repertory Orchestra has brought talented college-aged musicians to Colorado to practice the art of playing in an ensemble.  Each season, about 80 young musicians are selected to join the NRO in Breckenridge. They spend eight weeks rehearsing and performing in Summit County. Many of them go on to pursue careers in professional orchestras across the country.    To get a glimpse behind the scenes at this unusual – and influential – summer orchestra, Erin O’Toole spoke with Michael Stern, their music director and conductor. He shared what makes a summer in the National Repertory Orchestra a formative experience. Performances for the NRO’s 2025 season run through Aug. 9.  * * * * * Sign up for the In The NoCo newsletter: Visit KUNC.org Questions? Feedback? Story ideas? Email us: NOCO@KUNC.org Like what you're hearing? Help more people discover In The NoCo by rating the show on your favorite podcast app. Thanks!  Host and Producer: Erin O'Toole Producer: Ariel Lavery Executive Producer:

A few weeks back, a pair of hikers found themselves stranded on a cliff atop Quandary Peak – 14,000 feet in elevation – in cold temperatures. A rescue crew had to respond by helicopter and lift them off the mountain.    It was one of 10 helicopter hoists that Colorado search and rescue crews performed this year through the end of June. That’s a record number. These dangerous maneuvers require helicopters to get close enough to rocky peaks to lower a rope and harness to people in trouble.  And the rescue on Quandary Peak wasn’t even the most dramatic. Another recent rescue helped climbers who were struck by lightning and also set the record for Colorado’s highest-altitude hoist. Ryan Spencer, a reporter for the Summit Daily News, wrote about this spike in helicopter hoists. He told Erin O’Toole that it’s not clear why this increase in helicopter rescues is happening – but the stories about them are harrowing.   Correction: An earlier version of this episode gave the incorrect number of helicopter hoists perfor

The U.S. Senate this week will likely vote on whether to rescind about $1.1 billion earmarked to support the Corporation for Public Broadcasting for the next two years. That money ultimately funds local stations like KUNC and The Colorado Sound, along with NPR and PBS.  The GOP-controlled House of Representatives has already voted to kill the funding. President Trump has backed the cuts and threatened to pull his support from any Republicans who oppose them. Republicans occupy 53 out of 100 seats in the Senate.   Colorado Sen. John Hickenlooper, a Democrat, spoke with Erin O’Toole Tuesday morning about why he supports continued federal funding for public broadcasting at a moment when Republicans want to end it.  By the way: If you’re curious how these cuts would affect KUNC News, we talked about it recently with Michael Arnold, the chief content and audience officer for KUNC and The Colorado Sound. * * * * * Sign up for the In The NoCo newsletter: Visit KUNC.org Questions? Feedback? Story ideas? Email us: NO

In October 2009, Colorado and the nation held its breath as we waited to learn the fate of a 6-year-old who was thought to be stuck inside a silver balloon floating across Northern Colorado.  The Heene family was living in Fort Collins in 2009 when they made a giant helium filled balloon shaped like a saucer. They called police one afternoon to say they’d lost control of the balloon and that it had floated thousands of feet into the sky with their youngest son, Falcon, inside. Police and reporters scrambled to respond.  But the story broadcast on people’s TV screens quickly changed. First, it turned out Falcon had been at home in the attic the whole time. Then, people began questioning whether the whole thing had been a hoax.   The story – and its strange aftermath – is the subject of “Balloon Boy,” a new documentary episode of Netflix’s series Trainwreck. It comes out Tuesday. We talked to the director of the documentary – Gillian Pachter about why she wanted to revisit this story. If you like documentaries,

For a lot of people, July and early August in Steamboat Springs is all about tubing on the Yampa River.  People rent a tube in downtown Steamboat, hop into the river just a few steps away and float past wildlife and hot springs. Some days, tourists in brightly colored tubes stretch from one side of the river to the other. But it’s very likely commercial tubing season on the Yampa will be alarmingly short this year. The Steamboat Pilot reports that city officials may close the river to tubing as soon as next week because of warm temperatures and low water flows. To learn more about why this is happening, Erin O’Toole spoke with John Chalstrom, a writer and editor with the Steamboat Pilot and the Craig Press – who also happens to spend a lot of time on the Yampa River as a fly-fishing guide.  * * * * * Sign up for the In The NoCo newsletter: Visit KUNC.org Questions? Feedback? Story ideas? Email us: NOCO@KUNC.org Like what you're hearing? Help more people discover In The NoCo by rating the show on your favorit

A warmer, drier future for Colorado has many people wondering about their lawns. Drought and heat turn lawns brown or kills them altogether. How can we sustain a lawn with less water and less mowing? And should we keep them at all? Tony Koski is a professor of horticulture and landscape architecture at Colorado State University. He teaches a class on growing a lawn that's resilient in the face of climate change.  Tony talked with Erin O’Toole about how to create a lawn that will thrive in a hotter, drier climate. He is especially enthusiastic about one type of grass – called Bermuda grass – that he says is well equipped to survive in Colorado’s changing climate.  For advice on how to overhaul your lawn, take a look at a fact sheet from the CSU Extension that Tony co-authored.  Sign up for the In The NoCo newsletter: Visit KUNC.orgQuestions? Feedback? Story ideas? Email us: NOCO@KUNC.orgLike what you're hearing? Help more people discover In The NoCo by rating the show on your favorite podcast app. Thanks!Host

In 2025, chatbots are part of our everyday life. They pop up on your screen while you’re checking your bank account or making an online purchase.  But a few years from now, it may be just as easy to have a conversation with a chatbot who recreates a dead loved one.  That’s the idea behind a kind of technology called a generative ghost. Jed Brubaker is an associate professor in the Department of Information Science at the University of Colorado Boulder, and one of the people leading the development of generative ghosts. Jed is part of a team that recently received $75,000 from Google to study how generative ghosts could become part of our lives.  In the NoCo’s Brad Turner spoke with Jed in November about what a visit with the generative ghost of a dead loved one would feel like. We’re listening back to that conversation today. Jed also leads the Digital Legacy Clinic – a free clinic at CU to help people who want to get a deceased loved one’s digital affairs in order. We spoke with him about it earlier this yea

A tiny, green insect that bores under the bark of ash trees is spreading in Colorado.  The emerald ash borer has been making its way around the Front Range for the last decade. It damages ash trees and often kills them. And this year it’s been spotted in Denver.  Ash trees make up about one in every six trees in the urban forests along the Front Range. So what can we do to protect ash trees and even fight back against this pest? Karim Gharbi is a horticulture specialist with the Colorado State University Extension who’s been on our show before. Karim joined Erin O’Toole to talk about the emerald ash borer and give a more specific idea of what this so-called “green menace” looks like. CSU Extension offers guidance on fall and winter watering to keep ash trees strong. If you’re looking for an arborist, Trees are Good offers suggestions.  For more info on Front Range pests, listen to In The NoCo conversations about Japanese beetles and miller moths.  Sign up for the In The NoCo newsletter: Visit KUNC.orgQuestion

How does a community heal from the shock and grief of a mass shooting? And how can people who have lost loved ones find a way to move forward?  That’s the subject of a new podcast called Senseless. In it, journalist Erika Mahoney explores the aftermath of the mass shooting at a Boulder King Soopers grocery store in 2021. And it’s a deeply personal show, because Erika's father, Kevin Mahoney, was one of the ten people killed in that shooting. Over the course of the eight-part series, Erika speaks with others who lost loved ones that day, as well as police, prosecutors, and members of the community.  Erika has been a guest on In The NoCo before to talk about the trial – which ended in guilty verdicts and ten consecutive life sentences for the gunman.  She spoke with Erin O’Toole about why she felt driven to make this podcast, and about some of the impacts of gun violence that linger after the news coverage has faded away. * * * * * Sign up for the In The NoCo newsletter: Visit KUNC.org Questions? Feedback? Stor

In the months ahead, leaders across the West will wrestle with a proposal to use federal land as a remedy for housing shortages.  You may remember that a few weeks ago, Republican Sen. Mike Lee of Utah wanted to sell off thousands of government-owned acres in Western states, including some parts of Colorado. That plan died when some key Republican senators refused to support it.  But a similar, and more focused, proposal may still move forward under the Trump administration. Interior Secretary Doug Burgum has offered a plan to sell or lease federal land to Western communities that are facing housing shortages.? Interior Department officials will meet with local leaders about it in the months ahead.  So how will this idea be received in places like Summit County — which face severe housing shortages, but are also defined by the picturesque public lands that surround them?  Rachel Cohen is a reporter for the Mountain West News Bureau, which KUNC is part of. Rachel's been reporting on this issue. She spoke with

A solar panel that collects energy from the sun – while also helping farmers grow bigger, tastier tomatoes and other crops. A team of scientists at the National Renewable Energy Laboratory in Golden (NREL) say that’s exactly what they’ve developed. And this new type of solar panel could lead to better produce and more widespread solar power generation.  Some farmers already place solar panels on their land and grow crops alongside them. It’s a practice called agrivoltaics.  But the new panels designed by NREL are translucent – meaning they allow certain frequencies of light to pass through and reach crops planted beneath the panels. In fact, NREL scientists used the solar panels as the roof and walls of a greenhouse during their experiments. Bryon Larson is NREL’s principal researcher on this study. He talked with In The NoCo’s Erin O’Toole about the solar panels and how they might be used in the future.  Sign up for the In The NoCo newsletter: Visit KUNC.orgQuestions? Feedback? Story ideas? Email us: NOCO@KU

For a lot of veterans, Independence Day can be a hard day.   Celebrating America’s birthday typically comes with loud, colorful blasts of fireworks. We don’t talk about it a lot, but for veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder, that can be a struggle. It can remind veterans of combat or other traumatic experiences from their time in the military.  Helping veterans cope with PTSD is the specialty of Dr. Mandy Rabenhorst-Bell. She is the PTSD program manager with the VA healthcare system serving Eastern Colorado.  Mandy spoke with Erin O’Toole ahead of Independence Day last year about what the holiday can be like for those with PTSD, and how friends and family can help support them. We’re listening back to that conversation today. Find more information and resources for PTSD from the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs. * * * * * Sign up for the In The NoCo newsletter: Visit KUNC.org Questions? Feedback? Story ideas? Email us: NOCO@KUNC.org Like what you're hearing? Help more people discover In The NoCo b

Travelers making their way through Denver International Airport this summer may notice a colorful, distinctive new art exhibit.  The project, called “It’s Not What You Take, It’s What You Bring Back,” was created from 183 pieces of used luggage, suspended over a walkway in Concourse B. They’re painted in the vibrant colors of the Colorado sky – turquoise, baby blue, ruby red – and they form a shape resembling the infinity symbol.  That painted baggage is part of a new installation by Colorado artist Thomas Evans, better known as Detour. He’s well known around Denver for his colorful murals of local sports legends like Denver Nuggets Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic.  Detour talked earlier this year with Erin O’Toole about what inspired his new art at DIA – and some of the stories behind the luggage. We’re listening back to that conversation today. You can see even more photos from the installation on  Detour’s website at https://www.iamdetour.com/.  Sign up for the In The NoCo newsletter: Visit KUNC.orgQuestions

Like a lot of people nowadays, Colorado artist Rick Dallago is very invested in selfies. But Rick, who’s a painter, thinks about selfies differently than someone who just snaps a quick self-portrait with their phone.  Rick paints key moments in history and then paints a cell phone into the image. In one painting, a man takes a selfie in front of the Twin Towers on Sept. 11, 2001. In another, a man uses a selfie stick to capture the moment when John F. Kennedy was assassinated. And other paintings show iconic images, like Michelangelo’s sculpture David, reduced to a snapshot on a tiny cell phone screen.   Rick’s work is on display in a new show called “Thirst Traps.” It’s on display in Denver at The Lab on Santa Fe through July 19. Rick Dallago joined In the NoCo’s Brad Turner to talk about the ideas behind his paintings. Sign up for the In The NoCo newsletter: Visit KUNC.orgQuestions? Feedback? Story ideas? Email us: NOCO@KUNC.orgLike what you're hearing? Help more people discover In The NoCo by rating the sh

A few weeks back, Colorado saw three moose attacks on people in just three days. The incidents were reported in the Coloradoan.  The attacks left three people injured. One of the incidents led to a cow moose being shot in self-defense, and her calf being euthanized.  So, as more people head out to hike in the state’s moose territory this summer, we wondered: What are you supposed to do if you encounter an aggressive moose? And how do you avoid a moose attack in the first place?  Bridget O’Rourke who is a Public Information Officer with Colorado Parks and Wildlife. She spoke with host Erin O’Toole about how to be safe around moose – and what makes them such dangerous animals. Sign up for the In The NoCo newsletter: Visit KUNC.orgQuestions? Feedback? Story ideas? Email us: NOCO@KUNC.orgLike what you're hearing? Help more people discover In The NoCo by rating the show on your favorite podcast app. Thanks!Host and Producer: Erin O'TooleProducer: Ariel LaveryExecutive Producer: Brad TurnerTheme music by Robbie Rev

Back in April, a commercial flight carrying 159 people had a major scare as it took off from Denver International Airport: The United Airlines flight struck an animal, which crippled one of the plane’s engines and forced the crew to make an emergency landing. As it turns out, the threat to aircraft from birds, rabbits and other animals is something DIA officials work hard to manage. Scott Franz, who’s an investigative reporter here at KUNC, recently got his hands on documents that show just how widespread the problem is.  Scott found that last year 878 planes had reported animal strikes while taking off or landing at DIA. And the airport killed or relocated tens of thousands of birds and other animals to limit the potential damage to aircraft. So: How vulnerable are planes at DIA, and is there a better solution? Scott talked about his story with In The NoCo's Brad Turner. Sign up for the In The NoCo newsletter: Visit KUNC.orgQuestions? Feedback? Story ideas? Email us: NOCO@KUNC.orgLike what you're hearing? He