Busy week at the garden despite the weather...Erica gave a very informative '10-minute-talk' under the tall tree on common weeds, telling us why identification is important (and what to do about the weeds). We discussed pulling tap roots, severing the tops, and other manual methods (in contrast to other less effective methods including vinegar application). Do you know which weeds can be composted and where? If not, ask you Compost Central team - we noticed some MGs are still a bit confused. Mary Ann Normile did some research and clarified some dates and information on the Montgomery County pesticide Bill 52-14 which passed into law in October 2015. It includes provisions related to the application of pesticides on County-owned and private property. It does not require a home owner/gardener to be a certified pesticide applicator in order to apply pesticides to one's home garden. Learn/read more here: http://www.montgomerycountymd.gov/COUNCIL/Resources/Files/bill/2014/Packets/20141028_4C.pdf A local HeadStart program class visited the Demonstration Garden today. 18 children, 12 girls and 6 boys with 6 female adults learned about potatoes, pill bugs, tadpoles, tasting and fragrance gardening. They loved the children’s garden crawling under the caterpillar and sitting on the Teepee. The shade garden was a favorite as well with the winding paths and beautiful flowers. Did you know we have several ornamental evergreens, donated by Steve, growing near the bamboo-bin? Most have been smothered in weeds and grass after recent rains so Jesse scythed the tall grass and Amy weeded around them then mulched and re-established deer protection. How do you properly identify specific ferns? Joanne and Maria explained the challenges of reviewing the spore-patterns on the back the similarities between species. “Growing Gardeners” group was loading buckets for their MANNA program. All hands on board! Filled 120 buckets for this weeks distribution. Will repeat next week. Congratulations to DDG'ers Patti and Sandy for 5 years service; and Audrey and John Gelb for 15 years. Garden reports: Butterfly Garden: Peggy Stanford Although today was over cast and occasionally drizzling rain, we planted a variety of Butterfly attracting annuals. Plants included are Zinnias, Nicotiana, Globe Amaranth, and Lantanas. Also we continued to trim back over growth of the Viburnum and Hops. Herb and Fragrance Garden: Kathy Tsai If it's raining, it must be Tuesday! The team once again labored under grey and dreary skies, knowing that, sooner or later, we will have sunshine and warm weather. Most of our planting for this season has already been done, but today we added a few small plants, namely a bay leaf and very small jasmine. We have high hopes for both of them, once the sun returns. It appears that we already lost one basil due to the overly wet soil. John Reilly planted around a dozen dahlias, some new this year, and some that he had stored over the winter. A new Southernwood (Artemesia abrotanum) that had been donated to us by MG Pat Kenny was also added to the garden. We had the assistance of intern Daniel John, who helped in planting the Southernwood. He also weeded and cut back the lemon balm. We may have finally gotten the upper hand on the weeds, thanks to everyone's efforts. Last but not least, we were all happy to see new growth on the family heirloom rose that had been donated several weeks ago. Therapeutic: Ellen Meyerson Another cold damp day kept the students away from the garden. We removed lots of volunteer potatoes from potatoes left from last year. Gretchen and Barbara planted two very large tomato plants that Lily gave us. Germination in the salad table has been poor so we replanted spinach and lettuce. We also planted spinach in the ground beds along with carrots. We appreciated help from a new intern, Barbara. Barbara and Sandy added string to support the snap peas plants in planters. Here is hoping for sun in our future. Edibles: Erica Smith Another quiet week in Lake Cold-Be-Gone! but yes, we'll be able to get those summer plants in soon. Our trellis team put up a structure for climbing squash and will need assistance in getting two more up next week (melons and cucumbers). We stuck in a couple of peppers in the Tomato-Relatives Bed, along with a Tzimbalo (which you can look up!), just to see how they will take the continuing chilly wet weather, but they'd be a lot happier if it was 80 degrees and sunny. The bed will fill up on the 24th (which is also tomato planting day). In the meanwhile we'll plant some more beans and maybe some squash. The deeper salad table is ready to go - last week it was seeded with lettuce, carrots, and fenugreek, and this week we put in some perilla (shisho) seedlings brought in by a visitor. We'll be trying various other small edible plants in there through the summer - New Zealand Spinach is on the list and who knows what else? Take a peek at all the greens under the row covers sometime - they are loving this cool wet weather! Tomatoes: Dan Ward The plant time for tomatoes is getting closer, if only Mother Nature would begin to cooperate! A contractor I worked with in California had a sign in the project area that read "CAUTION: Milestones Are Closer Than They Appear." Next week is going to be a very busy time for the tomato bed. We want to get the support structures in place so that the bed will be ready to receive the seedlings. Speaking of which, we are shooting for May 24th as the plant date. We toyed with the 17th, but Mother Nature obviously had other plans. So, please bring the seedlings you wish to donate on the 24th. If it's raining we will make alternative plans. As it stands we are going to need lots of seedlings because the tomato area is 12' X 30'. If we plant them 24" apart (in all directions) we should need approximately 30-40 plants. However, that number is likely to be lower as we go through the layout plan. We will take whatever you can spare. During the growing season please stop by and pull a few suckers off the indeterminate varieties. We could probably have an FTE just for that job alone. When you bring in your seedlings please have at least the variety labeled. If you have the inclination and time you can list the type (determinate or indeterminate) and whether it's a hybrid or open pollinated. I've had many people approach me saying they would like to help, and I truly appreciate it. Whether you are an expert or just want to help, all are welcome. Tomatoes are pretty bullet proof to grow. Keep them watered, remove the suckers, and try to keep the fungus at bay and they require little help. MANNA: Robin Ritterhoff Our Manna friends were delighted with the 6 pounds of mustard greens, asparagus and radishes delivered today. The mustard greens sparked a lively discussion of the most delicious cooking methods -- cooked down with ham hocks seemed to be the favorite. Our total deliveries to Manna are still small -- only 16 pounds, but as it warms up, that will grow. And meanwhile our Manna friends will be pleased to see plenty more greens come their way. Keyhole: Robin Ritterhoff The continuing rains have caused our keyhole garden to sink in various places. If it is dry enough next Tuesday, we'll harvest more greens & lettuce, and build up the bed as possible with top soil. We limited ourselves today to thinning the cilantro seedlings for an eventual crop that will really please our Manna friends. Bales: Robin Ritterhoff Our 2016 hay bales this year have collapsed into themselves so quickly compared to the components of last year's Taj-Mah-Bale and were looking pretty sorry. So we decided to smooth out the lumpy mess and added to the surface new straw acquired from the only garden supply business that could assure us that its bales come hay grown (locally) without pesticides or herbicides. We plan to plant through the new straw into the hay below, and we'll use plants with a big enough root ball to adjust to this non-traditional environment. 100 Square Foot Garden: Mary Anne Normile Despite the threat of rain, it turned out to be a very pleasant morning to be in the garden. While the gardeners groused about the weather, the spring crops appeared to be enjoying the cool and rainy conditions. Lettuce, green mustard, and garlic chives were harvested for Manna. The structures team (Hope, Rich, and Linda) added additional support to the trellises that await the warmer weather and planting of the vining crops. More tiny weeds were pulled, and carrots and beets were thinned. The Cucumber Task Force made plans for the timing of planting cukes to try to thwart the dreaded cucumber beetle. Compost Central: Larry Himelfarb We had a great crew out there today, tossing and turning. Nice to have Ephraim Salins and Susan Wexler using the Compost Crew pitchforks and their core muscles and assisting Susan Eisendrath. Denny May was on assignment in New Orleans consuming toxic seafood. Temps continue to be high. The food waste bin was plus 140 degrees and the garden waste bin 135. The County bin with the food waste was 124 degrees. All the bin were smoking and steaming! We decided not to add any food waste to the large bin, so to have it cool down and finish its decomposition. We added the food waste from the Takoma Park Coop to the County bin as well as the coffee grounds from Kefa Café. Its amazing to see that the food waste disappears completely in just a week and have noticed that these bins reach higher temps than those using garden waste. We need to calibrate the compost thermometers. There's a variance between those that we use and we will incorporate a third one next week for a test. Pond Report: Darlene Nicholson Where are all of the toad eggs? The ruckus seen in the Conservation garden pond last week became a study in contrasts this week. Expecting to see strings of toad eggs due to the mating frenzy last week, we saw only clear water. Not an egg in sight. What gives????? And to compound the mystery, the single fish in the pond is also missing. What I wouldn't give for a surveillance camera. Closing Comments: Lily and Bill
"Where did all the frogs go?" "They must have been tired" - overheard Tuesday See you all next week and hope for a sunny day!
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorOur weekly reports are a joint effort of all garden leads
|