Please let me know if your bed is planted with seeds/seedlings.  Also, we would like to clearly mark all beds with room # or teacher names as well as plant labels.  Please let me know if you need signs.

 

Tasks for the Garden this week:

1)      Plant the beds - there are seeds in the shed marked for fall/winter plantings that include Brassica family (broccoli, Brussels sprouts, cabbage, cauliflower, kohlrabi, mustard greens, kale), root vegetables (beets, carrots, radishes, rutabagas, turnips), leafy greens (lettuces, chard, arugula), peas (sugar snap peas, Chinese snow peas), and alliums (onions, garlic, leeks, shallots).  There are also seedlings in the greenhouse that should be used first to get a head start.  Keep a garden journal of what/when/where/how you plant.  Contact me if you need any help.

2)      Water the greenhouse seedlings if they appear dry (mark the clipboard to keep track of when the seedlings were watered)

3)      Check the worm bins to make sure they have enough dry/brown material; if it seems damp or if fruit flies are present, shred newspaper and add it to the bin

4)      Sample some of the remaining greens in the beds

5)      Cut off any dead flower buds on rose bushes and any other flowering plants

6)      Pull weeds in and around the vegetable beds 

7)      Load up a wheelbarrow of woodchips from outside the fence behind the compost area and distribute them on any exposed dirt pathways and throughout the orchard area (this will keep the pathways from getting to muddy and will act as a natural soil builder as the wood decomposes)

8)      Pick up and dispose of any trash

9)      Make sure the bird baths have water

10)   Clean and return tools to the shed

11)   Return wheelbarrows to compost area or behind shed

 

Garden News:

We held our garden workday this past Saturday.  Whole Foods sponsored the workday by donating bagels and cream cheese, scones, lots of yummy cookies, orange juice and coffee.  There were plenty of goodies to keep everyone fueled. 

Our dedicated crew moved woodchips from our back pile to the dirt pathways to prepare the garden for the winter rains ahead.  The woodchips will keep the paths from turning into a muddy mess and will break down over time to build the soil. 

Another team planted a bag of donated daffodil bulbs around the garden so we will get a nice surprise in the spring. 

The last of the summer squash was pulled from one of the raised beds and the bed was amended for winter planting.  The front area around the roses was weeded.  Thanks to Jill Anderson, Barbara Bleckman, the Bloom family, the Citroen family, the Dunne family, the Figuierinhas family, the Ross family and everyone else for a wonderful volunteer effort.

 

 

REMINDER: At the end of the school day, please lock up the garden if it is unlocked.  The garden is usually unlocked during the school day and I am not always around at pick up time so please take a moment to make sure it gets locked up.  Also, hang up your gloves and put away your tools.  Barbara Bleckman and Luz Castro cleaned and organized the garden shed.  The gloves are now cleaned, organized and hanging above the worm bin.  Please make sure they are returned to their place when you are done using them.

Posted by Saor Stetler on November 10