What are some tips for gardening in the mountains?

First thing that you have to do is to talk to other gardeners in your area. Find out what works for them in your particular climate and elevation. Gardeners the world over are a friendly bunch and most will love to brag a little and tell you some failed stories. From there it will be a bit of trial and error as the climate for your plot won't be quite the same as anyone else's. For example my tomatoes are always about three weeks behind my friend who lives a couple of hundred metres away.

I believe that no matter where you live the important thing is to nurture the soil with plenty of organic material - compost, worm poo, animal manure are all good. One thing you could do during the winter is to start a worm farm - see my hub for doing it on the cheap.