Aspen History: ‘No Problem’ Joe

“There’s ‘no problem’ in gardening,” announced The Aspen Times on May 4, 1989. “Just a good tomato throw from No Problem Bridge is Aspen’s oldest and continuously grown garden. It’s been sown, cultivated and harvested each year since 1952 by No Problem Joe, otherwise known as Joe Candreia. The garden at the corner of King and Neal is smaller than in years past; it’s been getting smaller as No Problem Joe’s collection of cars, tools, and other items he’s collected for the past three decades has grown larger. A green thumb is his secret to gardening, No Problem Joe says. ‘That’s what you have to have. I can plant any damn thing and it will come up. Anything.’ The recent spring snows have nourished his garden, with the few vegetables beaten down already showing signs of recovery, as tough as the man who planted them.” This image shows No Problem Joe at his garden.

Photo courtesy of the Aspen Historical Society