A Story About Daisies and Saving Seeds

If you have been by the Stoddart Avenue Community Garden this Spring, you will notice that we have a lot of daisies. A lot. Several of people even stopped by to ask if we were selling them. No, but you can take a couple for free. How did we come to have so many daisies this year? Funny you should ask.

Let me take you back to1998, the year I bought my house. There was a legal secretary who lived behind me (where Beth & Mike live now with Louis, Lucy and Peter). She had a little dog and lots of daisies in her back yard. When I told her that I was interested in gardening, she came over with some dead daisies and just crushed the flower over my flower bed. There, she said, you will have daisies there next year. She was right; I had a lot of daisies. You see, the seeds are in the yellow center. I returned the favor when Beth & Mike moved into her house.

When the petals die back, all you have to do is to make sure that the center of the dead flower hits the ground or to crush it between your fingers to spread the seeds over where you want them the next year. The problem is that they can form foliage pretty quickly (which will overwinter in your garden) and that will prevent later season flowers (like cosmos) from growing. (It also runs the risk of dying in a drought). So, I usually prune the dead flowers, put the daisy centers into brown paper bags, label them and then spread them in the Fall (like November after all of the other flowers have died back) or in February (before other flowers start growing and while I can just see the outlines of the mounds of other perennials).

I apparently went a little crazy with daisies last Fall or in February because they were not just growing in our front flower bed, but also in most of my plot. (Even the most gentle breeze can carry their light seeds). No matter, Rayna dug them up from my plot and transplanted them into our middle flower bed during our opening work day. Although I thought they were dying, they bloomed just fine.

A Story About Daisies and Saving Seeds

If you have been by the Stoddart Avenue Community Garden this Spring, you will notice that we have a lot of daisies. A lot. Several of people even stopped by to ask if we were selling them. No, but you can take a couple for free. How did we come to have so many daisies this year? Funny you should ask.

Let me take you back to1998, the year I bought my house. There was a legal secretary who lived behind me (where Beth & Mike live now with Louis, Lucy and Peter). She had a little dog and lots of daisies in her back yard. When I told her that I was interested in gardening, she came over with some dead daisies and just crushed the flower over my flower bed. There, she said, you will have daisies there next year. She was right; I had a lot of daisies. You see, the seeds are in the yellow center. I returned the favor when Beth & Mike moved into her house.

When the petals die back, all you have to do is to make sure that the center of the dead flower hits the ground or to crush it between your fingers to spread the seeds over where you want them the next year. The problem is that they can form foliage pretty quickly (which will overwinter in your garden) and that will prevent later season flowers (like cosmos) from growing. (It also runs the risk of dying in a drought). So, I usually prune the dead flowers, put the daisy centers into brown paper bags, label them and then spread them in the Fall (like November after all of the other flowers have died back) or in February (before other flowers start growing and while I can just see the outlines of the mounds of other perennials).

I apparently went a little crazy with daisies last Fall or in February because they were not just growing in our front flower bed, but also in most of my plot. (Even the most gentle breeze can carry their light seeds). No matter, Rayna dug them up from my plot and transplanted them into our middle flower bed during our opening work day. Although I thought they were dying, they bloomed just fine.

SACG’s First Fairy Garden

Our faithful readers could not be blamed for thinking that nothing happens at the Stoddart Avenue Community Garden without the involvement and/or leadership of your somewhat burned-out Garden Manager. That is only because I am the only blogger and control the flow of information. However, there are things that happen at the SACG without my knowledge and some of them are worth sharing with the world (or at least as worthy of sharing as anything else I impose on you). This week is one of those times.

Last night I received an email from one of our new gardeners (i.e., new to the SACG, not new to gardening). She is one of the gardeners who took our platform/elevated raised garden beds (affectionately referred to as Grandma beds). Barb is an OSU certified Master Gardener, is a retired school teacher, has volunteered from time to time at the SACG and has over the years provided us with pretty flowers from her home garden (such as the lilies growing between our blueberry bushes along Cherry Street and the Jupiter’s Beard on the west side). I met her when I used to be involved with the Bexley Community Garden. Barb is an extremely committed community gardener, which makes her perfect for the SACG. (It also doesn’t hurt that she faithfully reads this blog). Tragically, Barb suffered a serious fall in February and broke her neck.

As you can imagine, this accident has very much limited her ability to garden since she cannot bend, etc. and has sapped her formerly boundless energy and enthusiasm. Luckily, she has been steadily recovering and Trae (from the Bexley CG) and her grandsons have helped her from time to time at home. (I cannot claim to have been so helpful). I did, however, build her a Grandma bed so that, after her doctor relaxed her many physical restrictions, she could garden without having to bend. (I’m not so heartless as some people would have you believe and I’m only too happy to steal her away from the BCG just as I have stolen Kelly away from FPC). I am not alone. When Barb expressed concern with navigating our uneven and unfinished brick path to the SACG annex (where the raised beds are located), our Board President, Rayna, immediately remedied the problem.

Anyway, I received an email from Barb last night. She had previously promised me that she had something unusual planned for her Grandma bed. (She wanted me to be concerned, but I am too burned out to be worried . . . . ). Last night was the great reveal. As she explained it:

I wanted to do something different and fun for all, but especially for the children. So, tonight I started a "fairy" garden in my 3' x 6' bed. I had the help of 5 lovely neighborhood children (can't remember all their names!). I was given a 25% discount today from DeMonye's garden center to purchase succulents, cactus and succulent mix and a little fence for our "fairy" house.

Due to succulents needing significantly less water and special soil, we put the plants in little pots and embedded them in the soil. Since fairies like wooded areas, we put bits of wood around for them to hide behind if they need to and there is a nice rock path for them to walk to the house.

Also, a small pond which has marbles to attract them (and maybe butterflies too).

Feel free to add features to this garden if you wish. I would like all to have fun with it.

. . .

I told the children last night it is fine to touch the plants gently...that is O.K. with me. If they want to bring a little plastic animal from home to put in the garden that would be fine with me. And, I said I would ask their advice later about putting up a little sign naming the garden.

To say this was a hit with the neighborhood girls is an understatement. They want Miss Barb to come every day. They want to know why I wasn’t there. They wanted to play with it and water everything. (I had to explain that cactus really don’t need to be watered every day). I shared with them tonight that Miss Barb will be back to read them stories about fairies, too.   They will be adding to the fairy garden over the summer and who knows what it will look like by Labor Day.

So, not everything we do at the SACG is serious and meaningful. Some of it is silly.  (There was, after all, Betty's whimiscal windmill invasion in 2010).   But that makes for great childhood memories, doesn’t it?

SACG’s First Fairy Garden

Our faithful readers could not be blamed for thinking that nothing happens at the Stoddart Avenue Community Garden without the involvement and/or leadership of your somewhat burned-out Garden Manager. That is only because I am the only blogger and control the flow of information. However, there are things that happen at the SACG without my knowledge and some of them are worth sharing with the world (or at least as worthy of sharing as anything else I impose on you). This week is one of those times.

Last night I received an email from one of our new gardeners (i.e., new to the SACG, not new to gardening). She is one of the gardeners who took our platform/elevated raised garden beds (affectionately referred to as Grandma beds). Barb is an OSU certified Master Gardener, is a retired school teacher, has volunteered from time to time at the SACG and has over the years provided us with pretty flowers from her home garden (such as the lilies growing between our blueberry bushes along Cherry Street and the Jupiter’s Beard on the west side). I met her when I used to be involved with the Bexley Community Garden. Barb is an extremely committed community gardener, which makes her perfect for the SACG. (It also doesn’t hurt that she faithfully reads this blog). Tragically, Barb suffered a serious fall in February and broke her neck.

As you can imagine, this accident has very much limited her ability to garden since she cannot bend, etc. and has sapped her formerly boundless energy and enthusiasm. Luckily, she has been steadily recovering and Trae (from the Bexley CG) and her grandsons have helped her from time to time at home. (I cannot claim to have been so helpful). I did, however, build her a Grandma bed so that, after her doctor relaxed her many physical restrictions, she could garden without having to bend. (I’m not so heartless as some people would have you believe and I’m only too happy to steal her away from the BCG just as I have stolen Kelly away from FPC). I am not alone. When Barb expressed concern with navigating our uneven and unfinished brick path to the SACG annex (where the raised beds are located), our Board President, Rayna, immediately remedied the problem.

Anyway, I received an email from Barb last night. She had previously promised me that she had something unusual planned for her Grandma bed. (She wanted me to be concerned, but I am too burned out to be worried . . . . ). Last night was the great reveal. As she explained it:

I wanted to do something different and fun for all, but especially for the children. So, tonight I started a "fairy" garden in my 3' x 6' bed. I had the help of 5 lovely neighborhood children (can't remember all their names!). I was given a 25% discount today from DeMonye's garden center to purchase succulents, cactus and succulent mix and a little fence for our "fairy" house.

Due to succulents needing significantly less water and special soil, we put the plants in little pots and embedded them in the soil. Since fairies like wooded areas, we put bits of wood around for them to hide behind if they need to and there is a nice rock path for them to walk to the house.

Also, a small pond which has marbles to attract them (and maybe butterflies too).

Feel free to add features to this garden if you wish. I would like all to have fun with it.

. . .

I told the children last night it is fine to touch the plants gently...that is O.K. with me. If they want to bring a little plastic animal from home to put in the garden that would be fine with me. And, I said I would ask their advice later about putting up a little sign naming the garden.

To say this was a hit with the neighborhood girls is an understatement. They want Miss Barb to come every day. They want to know why I wasn’t there. They wanted to play with it and water everything. (I had to explain that cactus really don’t need to be watered every day). I shared with them tonight that Miss Barb will be back to read them stories about fairies, too.   They will be adding to the fairy garden over the summer and who knows what it will look like by Labor Day.

So, not everything we do at the SACG is serious and meaningful. Some of it is silly.  (There was, after all, Betty's whimiscal windmill invasion in 2010).   But that makes for great childhood memories, doesn’t it?

Don’t Blink or You’ll Miss the 2012 Strawberry Season

As I reported at the May GCGC meeting, the strawberries at the Stoddart Avenue Community Garden began ripening before Mother’s Day. Like everything else this year in Central Ohio, the strawberries seem to be coming two weeks early this year after our extremely warm (even hot) Spring. So, I realized that I had better get a move on or I would miss fresh strawberries this year if I wait (as I usually do) to the first or second weekend in June. I don’t think the berries will be around that long this year. (I saw lots of ripe berries and only a few flowers and even fewer white berries).

Here’s an update of this year’s strawberry pickings (since the neighborhood kids eat all of the strawberries at the SACG before we can get to them):

a. Hann Farms 4600 Lockbourne Road has u-pick strawberries this year at $1.59/pound (a nine cent increase over last year). This is the closest u-pick farm to Bexley and your least expensive option by far, but the trip there is a little tricky (through an industrial district in Obetz, etc.). You can pick 10-6 Monday through Saturday and 12-5 on Sunday. You must pay with cash or check. Call 491-0812 for more information.

b. Schact Farms, 5950 Shannon Road in Canal Winchester, $2/pound (a penny more than last year). This is the next closest to Bexley and is pretty easy to find. They had 15 rows of strawberries (that are several football fields long). They are a lot more organized this year; the rows are numbered and the staff can tell you in advance where the best berries are. They even had a sign explaining picking etiquette, picking tips and storage points. (Later in the year, they also have an extensive pumpkin patch and tomato u-pick operation). They accept cash, credit cards and WIC. They are open 9-6:30, but are closed on Sundays. Call 833-1932 for more information and to ensure that the ripe berries were not all picked the prior day.

c. Jacquenmin Farm, (between Plain City and Dublin), $2/pound (a dime increase over last year). I visited here several years ago with my nieces and it is very quaint and very close to Dublin and Sports Ohio. They have a nice system of having you leave a flag where you left off so that the next person knows where to start picking in their three acre strawberry patch. They have big plans this year for strawberry season. If you call to schedule in advance, they will entertain organized groups of children (or 10 or more). The strawberry field trip costs $4 per child and includes 1 quart of strawberries (picked by the children, of course), an educational coloring book about berries, and an ice cold slushee to cool down with after the picking is done. They are open weekdays 8-5 (but stay open late until 8 p.m. on Wednesdays) and Sundays 1-4 p.m. Call 873-5725 for more information.

d. Doran Farms, 5462 Babbitt Rd. New Albany, $1.79/pound (a dime increase over last year). I've never been there, but have heard good things about it. They opened on Saturday and will be open from 8 a.m. until 7 p.m. every day until the strawberries are gone (with temporary suspensions while the ripe strawberries catch up with the pickers). Call 855-3885 for more information.

e. Circle S Farm, 9015 London-Groveport Rd west of Grove City. They will not be opening for u-pick for another few days (at least) and reported the recent cold evenings had delayed their strawberry crop. I went here a few years ago with my oldest niece and it's a nice, large farm, but is way, way out in the country. They will not provide information up front about pricing (which I find extremely annoying, and so do not recommend that you drive so far out without knowing this in advance). They say they will entertain groups and classes of children if you call in advance. Good luck with that.

While you can get strawberries for $2/pound at Kroger’s without a lot of bending, driving, sweating or walking, they aren’t as fresh or ripe or flavorful as the ones you pick yourself. Strawberries should be red all the way through, something you rarely find at a grocery store. Be sure to wear sunscreen and bug spray. I highly recommend going first thing in the morning because it is supposed to get very, very hot over the next 10 days.

  

I freeze most of my strawberries (to use in cocktails and smoothies), but also use some to make ice cream and jam. (The problem now, however, is that I’ve pretty much eliminated bread from my diet and have nothing to spread the jam on . . . . ). I think I ate a pound of strawberries yesterday with short cake and whipped cream. So much for that low-carb diet . . . . .   What we do for our art:)

Don’t Blink or You’ll Miss the 2012 Strawberry Season

As I reported at the May GCGC meeting, the strawberries at the Stoddart Avenue Community Garden began ripening before Mother’s Day. Like everything else this year in Central Ohio, the strawberries seem to be coming two weeks early this year after our extremely warm (even hot) Spring. So, I realized that I had better get a move on or I would miss fresh strawberries this year if I wait (as I usually do) to the first or second weekend in June. I don’t think the berries will be around that long this year. (I saw lots of ripe berries and only a few flowers and even fewer white berries).

Here’s an update of this year’s strawberry pickings (since the neighborhood kids eat all of the strawberries at the SACG before we can get to them):

a. Hann Farms 4600 Lockbourne Road has u-pick strawberries this year at $1.59/pound (a nine cent increase over last year). This is the closest u-pick farm to Bexley and your least expensive option by far, but the trip there is a little tricky (through an industrial district in Obetz, etc.). You can pick 10-6 Monday through Saturday and 12-5 on Sunday. You must pay with cash or check. Call 491-0812 for more information.

b. Schact Farms, 5950 Shannon Road in Canal Winchester, $2/pound (a penny more than last year). This is the next closest to Bexley and is pretty easy to find. They had 15 rows of strawberries (that are several football fields long). They are a lot more organized this year; the rows are numbered and the staff can tell you in advance where the best berries are. They even had a sign explaining picking etiquette, picking tips and storage points. (Later in the year, they also have an extensive pumpkin patch and tomato u-pick operation). They accept cash, credit cards and WIC. They are open 9-6:30, but are closed on Sundays. Call 833-1932 for more information and to ensure that the ripe berries were not all picked the prior day.

c. Jacquenmin Farm, (between Plain City and Dublin), $2/pound (a dime increase over last year). I visited here several years ago with my nieces and it is very quaint and very close to Dublin and Sports Ohio. They have a nice system of having you leave a flag where you left off so that the next person knows where to start picking in their three acre strawberry patch. They have big plans this year for strawberry season. If you call to schedule in advance, they will entertain organized groups of children (or 10 or more). The strawberry field trip costs $4 per child and includes 1 quart of strawberries (picked by the children, of course), an educational coloring book about berries, and an ice cold slushee to cool down with after the picking is done. They are open weekdays 8-5 (but stay open late until 8 p.m. on Wednesdays) and Sundays 1-4 p.m. Call 873-5725 for more information.

d. Doran Farms, 5462 Babbitt Rd. New Albany, $1.79/pound (a dime increase over last year). I've never been there, but have heard good things about it. They opened on Saturday and will be open from 8 a.m. until 7 p.m. every day until the strawberries are gone (with temporary suspensions while the ripe strawberries catch up with the pickers). Call 855-3885 for more information.

e. Circle S Farm, 9015 London-Groveport Rd west of Grove City. They will not be opening for u-pick for another few days (at least) and reported the recent cold evenings had delayed their strawberry crop. I went here a few years ago with my oldest niece and it's a nice, large farm, but is way, way out in the country. They will not provide information up front about pricing (which I find extremely annoying, and so do not recommend that you drive so far out without knowing this in advance). They say they will entertain groups and classes of children if you call in advance. Good luck with that.

While you can get strawberries for $2/pound at Kroger’s without a lot of bending, driving, sweating or walking, they aren’t as fresh or ripe or flavorful as the ones you pick yourself. Strawberries should be red all the way through, something you rarely find at a grocery store. Be sure to wear sunscreen and bug spray. I highly recommend going first thing in the morning because it is supposed to get very, very hot over the next 10 days.

  

I freeze most of my strawberries (to use in cocktails and smoothies), but also use some to make ice cream and jam. (The problem now, however, is that I’ve pretty much eliminated bread from my diet and have nothing to spread the jam on . . . . ). I think I ate a pound of strawberries yesterday with short cake and whipped cream. So much for that low-carb diet . . . . .   What we do for our art:)

It’s Dry Out There Folks

It's very hard to plant when the ground is bone dry for inches and inches. No matter how much we water, the moisture drains away.  Even my perennial black-eyed susan flowers are wilting in this mini-drought.  I'm glad I planted my tomatoes with my home compost.   It's time to pull out the straw mulch, folks. It's only going to get hotter and hardly any rain is in sight.  Of course, on the brighter side, this dryness is hard on weeds, too.

Yesterday, Joey, Charlie and I planted pepper, eggplant and squash seedlings. However, those seedlings were not happy campers within just a few hours.   Joey and I then turned to building another 5x5 raised bed with cedar donated by Trudeau Fencing and he unloaded all of the bags of soil from the back of my car. One of our neighbors ran into one of our platform raised beds (aka grandma bed) with his pickup truck on Friday morning and spent the rest of the day emptying and repairing it.  (There's a reason I used 5-inch deck screws on that bed and it paid off with the relatively minor damage it suffered after being moved four feet in the collision).   Joey and I then refilled it yesterday. Then Joey and I borrowed Frank and Barb's tape measure to mark the location of our new cherry trees. To get all of this done, Joey missed his nephew's play and I missed my niece's soccer tournament.  How sad, then, that I forgot to pack the no-bake cookies I made for everyone on Friday.

Barb, Susan and Frank worked across the street at the Block Watch lot to mark and prepare new flower beds.

After Joey and Charlie left, Kelly and Sandy came. Kelly and I dug four holes for our new cherry trees. What Kelly lacked in enthusiasm, she more than made up for in execution. Her two holes were wider and deeper than mine and completed in a fraction of the time. (Tree holes should be as deep as the root ball and twice as wide). She also made nice, neat piles of dirt next to the holes. We never could have completed the project without the small pick axe (aka the "chick pick") loaned by Barb and Frank. We haven't had to use it since breaking ground in 2009. The ground at the SACG was full of bricks and glass. The two holes we dug in the Block Watch lot were horrible. There is nothing but gravel and aggregate just one inch below the weedy lawn. After Kelly and Sandy left, I brought over the large bags of mulch that had been donated for this purpose by Scotts-Miracle Gro. (Why didn't I think of asking for help before they left?)

Mari came by to work in her plot. After leaving a flat of tomato seedlings for everyone, I headed home to shower and cool down. I watered other flats of seedlings. Then, it was off to Lowe's again to get more top soil for the kids' beds and tree garden soil for the new trees.

Mark from Oakland Nursery then delivered our four new cherry trees around 6 p.m. They were a lot bigger than I recalled and I had to widen and deepen our holes a bit. One of the neighbor guys helped me carry the heavy bags of garden soil (which he just threw over his shoulder). Neighbor Rose helped me get the trees out of their containers. I scored the roots, watered in the tree soil, tapped it down, covered it with the rocky soil we had dug out and then covered everything in pretty mulch. We planted two Montmorency cherry trees in front of the SACG and two Eastern Bing cherry trees in the Block Watch lot across the street. I thought it would be nice to have cherry trees near Cherry Street. (The SACG is at the corner of Stoddart Avenue and Cherry Street).

Mark did not stay for any of this. I gave Mark a quick tour of the SACG. He liked the grandma beds, made no comment about the abundance of blueberries we are growing this year from the bushes he donated to us in 2010, but fixated on one of our most popular features: our strawberry patch. He could not believe how many plants we had from the dozen crowns he donated to us in 2010. (I didn't tell him that we had actually thinned them last year and sold seedlings to raise $100). He then fled before there was any chance that I might actually ask him to help me plant the trees.

It was important to plant the trees as soon as they arrived because I cannot leave them unattended for long.  On Thursday, I spent the afternoon working to replace our shed lock because it had been damaged in another break-in attempt.  Luckily, the thief was unsuccessful in stealing our tools, but he rendered the lock unusable.  After Frank let me know, I borrowed a bolt cutter from Rebuilding Together and purchased a stronger lock.  Then, one of the kids convinced her older brother to cut our old lock (which would no longer open) off the shed (because Ms. Puniness here doesn't have the upper body strength to cut anything).  That wasn't how I thought I had planned to be spending my Thursday afternoon.

Barb and Frank then returned to do more work in the Block Watch plot and I went home at 8 p.m. for dinner.

It’s Dry Out There Folks

It's very hard to plant when the ground is bone dry for inches and inches. No matter how much we water, the moisture drains away.  Even my perennial black-eyed susan flowers are wilting in this mini-drought.  I'm glad I planted my tomatoes with my home compost.   It's time to pull out the straw mulch, folks. It's only going to get hotter and hardly any rain is in sight.  Of course, on the brighter side, this dryness is hard on weeds, too.

Yesterday, Joey, Charlie and I planted pepper, eggplant and squash seedlings. However, those seedlings were not happy campers within just a few hours.   Joey and I then turned to building another 5x5 raised bed with cedar donated by Trudeau Fencing and he unloaded all of the bags of soil from the back of my car. One of our neighbors ran into one of our platform raised beds (aka grandma bed) with his pickup truck on Friday morning and spent the rest of the day emptying and repairing it.  (There's a reason I used 5-inch deck screws on that bed and it paid off with the relatively minor damage it suffered after being moved four feet in the collision).   Joey and I then refilled it yesterday. Then Joey and I borrowed Frank and Barb's tape measure to mark the location of our new cherry trees. To get all of this done, Joey missed his nephew's play and I missed my niece's soccer tournament.  How sad, then, that I forgot to pack the no-bake cookies I made for everyone on Friday.

Barb, Susan and Frank worked across the street at the Block Watch lot to mark and prepare new flower beds.

After Joey and Charlie left, Kelly and Sandy came. Kelly and I dug four holes for our new cherry trees. What Kelly lacked in enthusiasm, she more than made up for in execution. Her two holes were wider and deeper than mine and completed in a fraction of the time. (Tree holes should be as deep as the root ball and twice as wide). She also made nice, neat piles of dirt next to the holes. We never could have completed the project without the small pick axe (aka the "chick pick") loaned by Barb and Frank. We haven't had to use it since breaking ground in 2009. The ground at the SACG was full of bricks and glass. The two holes we dug in the Block Watch lot were horrible. There is nothing but gravel and aggregate just one inch below the weedy lawn. After Kelly and Sandy left, I brought over the large bags of mulch that had been donated for this purpose by Scotts-Miracle Gro. (Why didn't I think of asking for help before they left?)

Mari came by to work in her plot. After leaving a flat of tomato seedlings for everyone, I headed home to shower and cool down. I watered other flats of seedlings. Then, it was off to Lowe's again to get more top soil for the kids' beds and tree garden soil for the new trees.

Mark from Oakland Nursery then delivered our four new cherry trees around 6 p.m. They were a lot bigger than I recalled and I had to widen and deepen our holes a bit. One of the neighbor guys helped me carry the heavy bags of garden soil (which he just threw over his shoulder). Neighbor Rose helped me get the trees out of their containers. I scored the roots, watered in the tree soil, tapped it down, covered it with the rocky soil we had dug out and then covered everything in pretty mulch. We planted two Montmorency cherry trees in front of the SACG and two Eastern Bing cherry trees in the Block Watch lot across the street. I thought it would be nice to have cherry trees near Cherry Street. (The SACG is at the corner of Stoddart Avenue and Cherry Street).

Mark did not stay for any of this. I gave Mark a quick tour of the SACG. He liked the grandma beds, made no comment about the abundance of blueberries we are growing this year from the bushes he donated to us in 2010, but fixated on one of our most popular features: our strawberry patch. He could not believe how many plants we had from the dozen crowns he donated to us in 2010. (I didn't tell him that we had actually thinned them last year and sold seedlings to raise $100). He then fled before there was any chance that I might actually ask him to help me plant the trees.

It was important to plant the trees as soon as they arrived because I cannot leave them unattended for long.  On Thursday, I spent the afternoon working to replace our shed lock because it had been damaged in another break-in attempt.  Luckily, the thief was unsuccessful in stealing our tools, but he rendered the lock unusable.  After Frank let me know, I borrowed a bolt cutter from Rebuilding Together and purchased a stronger lock.  Then, one of the kids convinced her older brother to cut our old lock (which would no longer open) off the shed (because Ms. Puniness here doesn't have the upper body strength to cut anything).  That wasn't how I thought I had planned to be spending my Thursday afternoon.

Barb and Frank then returned to do more work in the Block Watch plot and I went home at 8 p.m. for dinner.

GCGC: No Trespassing Signs Deter More Than Unwelcome Guests

On May 10, GCGC met at Christ Lutheran Church in Bexley. It was a sparsely attended meeting, but there were a few points worth passing on.

First, I gave a presentation about the SACG, complete with picture slides. I pointed out that our strawberries are already ripening and I had eaten one the night before. I’ve included a picture of some of the neighborhood girls which came by to poach strawberries. (When I left last night, the boys had only then discovered that the strawberries were ripe. If they spent more time at the Garden than on the basketball court or skateboarding they would not have missed out on a week’s worth of berries). Now, all of the children’s questions are focusing on when our blueberries will be ready to eat . . . .

Second, Roger announced that Local Matters was offering some seminars on backyard gardening for residents of Weinland Park and the Near East Side. (I haven’t been able to find any more information about it on Local Matter’s website to link here. I’d like to know the boundaries of “near east side”). You can sign up on Local Matters’ website or email questions to tdehnbostel@local-matters.org.

Third, there was a discussion about the website which some volunteers at Otterbein College are putting together for GCGC. Volunteers are needed to help develop content for the new GCGC web page.

Then, it was announced that Roger was stepping down from the steering committee after two years. Anyone interested in joining the steering committee should contact Peggy.

Next, Roger made a presentation about liability issues facing community gardens. He had help from retired attorney, Louise Annarino. Very few of us (if any) had posted no-trespassing signs at our gardens because we think they are ugly, unwelcoming, and would deter neighbors and potential volunteers from approaching gardeners. However, a few good points were made about the benefits of a no-trespassing sign. First, the police are unlikely to do anything about trespassers or loiterers without a sign. Second, if a trespasser gets hurt on garden property without a sign, it is more likely that the garden could be held liable than if a sign had been posted. Generally, a landowner owes no duty of care to a trespasser, but you have to show the person is an unlawful trespasser. (This is difficult to do without a sign or locked fence/gate). A duty of warning of latent dangers is owed to individuals, like guests, who are invited onto the property. A much higher duty of care is owed to individuals with a business relationship with you.

Roger then led a discussion about what kinds of rules gardens should adopt and how those rules should be adopted. He felt that the neighbors should have input into the rules. He also raised a good point about the need to keep MSDS (i.e., Material Safety Data Sheets) at the garden which contains information on all of the chemicals and agents used at the garden (including organic products like blood and bone meal). Someone could get something in their eye or mistakenly ingest or breathe something and require emergency medical assistance. Having a binder onsite with information about the contents and dangers of all such chemical and other agents would be important to have in a crises. He also raised a concern with using blood and bone meal from cows which could have “mad cow disease.”

Michael (from Kossuth Garden) volunteered to arrange for a standard sign that community gardens could use for rules and no-trespassing.

I passed out a general risk management assessment worksheet and a handout about risk management issues involving volunteers.

There was a discussion about places which sell seeds in bulk. There was a strong recommendation for Zettler’s downtown (i.e., at Third Street and Main). I pointed out the Oakland Nursery and Dill’s also sell seeds in bulk. I’ve also found them at some rural feed stores (which might volunteer to donate some seeds at the end of the season if you start telling them about your community garden, etc.).

I then made available to the attendees the Botanical Interest seeds which had been generously donated to the SACG by CLC member, Linda. This may have been a small group, but they pretty much cleaned us out and very few seeds were left by the time I kicked them out at 7:50 (so that I could rush home to watch the second-to-last showing of the now-cancelled Missing). There will lots of happy planting in Central Ohio this year. A gentleman from a new community garden near Rome-Hilliard Road also brought a flat of vegetable seedlings to share. Patrick, Derek and I divided them up:)

The next GCGC meeting will be at the community garden at Epworth Methodist Church on Karl Road on Thursday, June 7, 2012. Food was on everyone’s mind because I didn’t feed anyone. The next meeting will be a simple networking and social gathering. Everyone is asked to contribute to a potluck dinner and you can bring whatever you like. There was also a discussion about having a seed swap of sorts.

GCGC: No Trespassing Signs Deter More Than Unwelcome Guests

On May 10, GCGC met at Christ Lutheran Church in Bexley. It was a sparsely attended meeting, but there were a few points worth passing on.

First, I gave a presentation about the SACG, complete with picture slides. I pointed out that our strawberries are already ripening and I had eaten one the night before. I’ve included a picture of some of the neighborhood girls which came by to poach strawberries. (When I left last night, the boys had only then discovered that the strawberries were ripe. If they spent more time at the Garden than on the basketball court or skateboarding they would not have missed out on a week’s worth of berries). Now, all of the children’s questions are focusing on when our blueberries will be ready to eat . . . .

Second, Roger announced that Local Matters was offering some seminars on backyard gardening for residents of Weinland Park and the Near East Side. (I haven’t been able to find any more information about it on Local Matter’s website to link here. I’d like to know the boundaries of “near east side”). You can sign up on Local Matters’ website or email questions to tdehnbostel@local-matters.org.

Third, there was a discussion about the website which some volunteers at Otterbein College are putting together for GCGC. Volunteers are needed to help develop content for the new GCGC web page.

Then, it was announced that Roger was stepping down from the steering committee after two years. Anyone interested in joining the steering committee should contact Peggy.

Next, Roger made a presentation about liability issues facing community gardens. He had help from retired attorney, Louise Annarino. Very few of us (if any) had posted no-trespassing signs at our gardens because we think they are ugly, unwelcoming, and would deter neighbors and potential volunteers from approaching gardeners. However, a few good points were made about the benefits of a no-trespassing sign. First, the police are unlikely to do anything about trespassers or loiterers without a sign. Second, if a trespasser gets hurt on garden property without a sign, it is more likely that the garden could be held liable than if a sign had been posted. Generally, a landowner owes no duty of care to a trespasser, but you have to show the person is an unlawful trespasser. (This is difficult to do without a sign or locked fence/gate). A duty of warning of latent dangers is owed to individuals, like guests, who are invited onto the property. A much higher duty of care is owed to individuals with a business relationship with you.

Roger then led a discussion about what kinds of rules gardens should adopt and how those rules should be adopted. He felt that the neighbors should have input into the rules. He also raised a good point about the need to keep MSDS (i.e., Material Safety Data Sheets) at the garden which contains information on all of the chemicals and agents used at the garden (including organic products like blood and bone meal). Someone could get something in their eye or mistakenly ingest or breathe something and require emergency medical assistance. Having a binder onsite with information about the contents and dangers of all such chemical and other agents would be important to have in a crises. He also raised a concern with using blood and bone meal from cows which could have “mad cow disease.”

Michael (from Kossuth Garden) volunteered to arrange for a standard sign that community gardens could use for rules and no-trespassing.

I passed out a general risk management assessment worksheet and a handout about risk management issues involving volunteers.

There was a discussion about places which sell seeds in bulk. There was a strong recommendation for Zettler’s downtown (i.e., at Third Street and Main). I pointed out the Oakland Nursery and Dill’s also sell seeds in bulk. I’ve also found them at some rural feed stores (which might volunteer to donate some seeds at the end of the season if you start telling them about your community garden, etc.).

I then made available to the attendees the Botanical Interest seeds which had been generously donated to the SACG by CLC member, Linda. This may have been a small group, but they pretty much cleaned us out and very few seeds were left by the time I kicked them out at 7:50 (so that I could rush home to watch the second-to-last showing of the now-cancelled Missing). There will lots of happy planting in Central Ohio this year. A gentleman from a new community garden near Rome-Hilliard Road also brought a flat of vegetable seedlings to share. Patrick, Derek and I divided them up:)

The next GCGC meeting will be at the community garden at Epworth Methodist Church on Karl Road on Thursday, June 7, 2012. Food was on everyone’s mind because I didn’t feed anyone. The next meeting will be a simple networking and social gathering. Everyone is asked to contribute to a potluck dinner and you can bring whatever you like. There was also a discussion about having a seed swap of sorts.

Giddyup – Stirrup Hoe Makes Shuffling Off Weeds Way Easier

Today was a busy and long day at the Stoddart Avenue Community Garden. We built three raised garden beds for neighborhood kids with cedar fence boards generously donated -- AGAIN and AGAIN - by Trudeau Fence Company.   Russ and Mike are absolutely AWESOME for saving flawed cedar boards for me to use at the SACG.  These cedar boards may not be good enough for their customers, but they are extremely valuable to us at the SACG since we use them to build gates, tomato stakes, fence stakes, and raised garden beds.  We gardeners hoed, hoed and hoed some more today to stay on top of the weeds and some of us got some planting in before tomorrow’s forecasted rain.

First things first. Two years ago, we had some nifty gardening seminars at the SACG organized by the Franklin Park Conservatory.   One of them dealt with second season crops and the leader – Leslie -- strongly recommended that we buy a shuffle hoe. She demonstrated it for us. While impressive, I didn’t feel like spending the money at the time. However, new gardener James came by last Saturday with a second-hand one and I saw the light.  It made hoeing the pantry plot a breeze (after two inches of rain the day before). I bought one for the SACG yesterday and everyone (i.e., Frank, Barb, Mike, Beth, Rayna, Sandy, Kelly and me thought it was THE BOMB). It whips right throw those small weeds with ease. You just keep running it back and forth over the ground (instead of raising it up to chop like a regular hoe). If you keep it in place, it just goes deeper and deeper. Cathy came by and was very excited to see it. She called it a stirrup hoe, which makes more sense because the bottom looks like a stirrup. She’s been looking for ages to buy one. It only cost about $15 and your gardening life will not be complete without it. It makes hoeing between rows a breeze. I may never go back to using a regular hoe. Really. I cannot strongly recommend that you immediately buy one of these before you plant another seed. Really Really Really. Really.

I got there around 9:30 this morning. Charlie popped by first. After working the night shift, he had hit some yard sales and the Clintonville Farmer’s Market. He had a great poster of all things peppers. I gave him some tomato seedlings and he was on his way.

Then, new SACG gardener Kelly and her mother, Sandy, came by. Sandy planted Kelly’s plot. Then she came and helped Kelly and me build raised garden beds for our neighborhood kids. I shoveled our excess wood chips out of the way. They stayed and worked until my drill battery died. We built two beds and put them in place against the west fence.

Barb and Marvin came by to see Barb’s new elevated garden bed.

Orlando stopped by. He helped to finish the second raised bed with his personal drill after my drill battery died. I then put him to work helping me fix Barb’s raised bed. (Be sure to use deck screws on the side braces. We didn’t on her bed and the three-inch screws were not strong enough to hold up the bench). Unfortunately, one of the BTBO air conditioning units had been stolen the night before. I believe I took a picture of one of the thieves a few days earlier scoping out the unit. We spoke with the police. I also provided some seedlings for the BTBO “man garden.” Veronica stopped by and we commiserated over the theft.

Beth, Mike, Lucy and Peter came by to hoe out their plot and do ALL of their planting.   They even had nifty brass-like plant markers this year.  Lucy and Peter got bored, so Mike walked them all the way back home to the east end of Bexley. That blows my mind. Have you ever seen a plot so free of weeds in your life?  They live behind me and know this is the perfection I expect:)

Frank and Barb came by to plan the second flower bed in the Block Watch plot across the street. They agreed we could plant four fruit trees in the Block Watch plot and I volunteered my personal chain saw to clear out weed trees. Frank brought me his drill to complete another raised bed.

Then, Joey came by after volunteering at Heritage House serving meals. He hoed his plot with the stirrup/shuffle hoe and planted tomatoes. Then he helped me build another raised bed.

Rayna came by to hoe her plot and transplant raspberry seedlings. Kenaya popped over a few times, helped Mike and Beth plant, and read us (Rayna, Joey and me) a story about Franklin the Turtle who is afraid of the dark. Peanut came by and shoveled wood chips for a while and helped Rayna with the raspberry seedlings.

Cathy came by to chat. Her kids helped clean out the last raised bed where Peanut had raked up wood chips.

Ms. Gladys stopped by to talk about scheduling.

I planted 18 tomato plants, showed a few people around the garden (and tried to recruit neighborhood gardeners for our three vacant plots), planted some fennel, two rows of heirloom beans (courtesy of my sweet friend Mary) and some plants in the neighborhood plots and hoed and hoed and hoed. I also dug up some volunteer potatoes. Some of them are just babies, but one was bigger and firmer than my fist. Go figure.

Frank and Barb came back to hoe more of their plot, mow grass in the Block Watch plot and who knows what else. They were still there when I finally left after 6.

At home, I watered seedlings and made myself some Genovese Chard (i.e., sautéed in anchovies and olive oil) with swiss chard that I planted at home last Spring. I am whipped and very sunburned (on my arms).

Did I mention also that my neice Rachel scored FIVE goals this morning in soccer?  She has a tournament next weekend, so who knows how much gardening I'll get done . . . .   You go girl!!!!

Giddyup – Stirrup Hoe Makes Shuffling Off Weeds Way Easier

Today was a busy and long day at the Stoddart Avenue Community Garden. We built three raised garden beds for neighborhood kids with cedar fence boards generously donated -- AGAIN and AGAIN - by Trudeau Fence Company.   Russ and Mike are absolutely AWESOME for saving flawed cedar boards for me to use at the SACG.  These cedar boards may not be good enough for their customers, but they are extremely valuable to us at the SACG since we use them to build gates, tomato stakes, fence stakes, and raised garden beds.  We gardeners hoed, hoed and hoed some more today to stay on top of the weeds and some of us got some planting in before tomorrow’s forecasted rain.

First things first. Two years ago, we had some nifty gardening seminars at the SACG organized by the Franklin Park Conservatory.   One of them dealt with second season crops and the leader – Leslie -- strongly recommended that we buy a shuffle hoe. She demonstrated it for us. While impressive, I didn’t feel like spending the money at the time. However, new gardener James came by last Saturday with a second-hand one and I saw the light.  It made hoeing the pantry plot a breeze (after two inches of rain the day before). I bought one for the SACG yesterday and everyone (i.e., Frank, Barb, Mike, Beth, Rayna, Sandy, Kelly and me thought it was THE BOMB). It whips right throw those small weeds with ease. You just keep running it back and forth over the ground (instead of raising it up to chop like a regular hoe). If you keep it in place, it just goes deeper and deeper. Cathy came by and was very excited to see it. She called it a stirrup hoe, which makes more sense because the bottom looks like a stirrup. She’s been looking for ages to buy one. It only cost about $15 and your gardening life will not be complete without it. It makes hoeing between rows a breeze. I may never go back to using a regular hoe. Really. I cannot strongly recommend that you immediately buy one of these before you plant another seed. Really Really Really. Really.

I got there around 9:30 this morning. Charlie popped by first. After working the night shift, he had hit some yard sales and the Clintonville Farmer’s Market. He had a great poster of all things peppers. I gave him some tomato seedlings and he was on his way.

Then, new SACG gardener Kelly and her mother, Sandy, came by. Sandy planted Kelly’s plot. Then she came and helped Kelly and me build raised garden beds for our neighborhood kids. I shoveled our excess wood chips out of the way. They stayed and worked until my drill battery died. We built two beds and put them in place against the west fence.

Barb and Marvin came by to see Barb’s new elevated garden bed.

Orlando stopped by. He helped to finish the second raised bed with his personal drill after my drill battery died. I then put him to work helping me fix Barb’s raised bed. (Be sure to use deck screws on the side braces. We didn’t on her bed and the three-inch screws were not strong enough to hold up the bench). Unfortunately, one of the BTBO air conditioning units had been stolen the night before. I believe I took a picture of one of the thieves a few days earlier scoping out the unit. We spoke with the police. I also provided some seedlings for the BTBO “man garden.” Veronica stopped by and we commiserated over the theft.

Beth, Mike, Lucy and Peter came by to hoe out their plot and do ALL of their planting.   They even had nifty brass-like plant markers this year.  Lucy and Peter got bored, so Mike walked them all the way back home to the east end of Bexley. That blows my mind. Have you ever seen a plot so free of weeds in your life?  They live behind me and know this is the perfection I expect:)

Frank and Barb came by to plan the second flower bed in the Block Watch plot across the street. They agreed we could plant four fruit trees in the Block Watch plot and I volunteered my personal chain saw to clear out weed trees. Frank brought me his drill to complete another raised bed.

Then, Joey came by after volunteering at Heritage House serving meals. He hoed his plot with the stirrup/shuffle hoe and planted tomatoes. Then he helped me build another raised bed.

Rayna came by to hoe her plot and transplant raspberry seedlings. Kenaya popped over a few times, helped Mike and Beth plant, and read us (Rayna, Joey and me) a story about Franklin the Turtle who is afraid of the dark. Peanut came by and shoveled wood chips for a while and helped Rayna with the raspberry seedlings.

Cathy came by to chat. Her kids helped clean out the last raised bed where Peanut had raked up wood chips.

Ms. Gladys stopped by to talk about scheduling.

I planted 18 tomato plants, showed a few people around the garden (and tried to recruit neighborhood gardeners for our three vacant plots), planted some fennel, two rows of heirloom beans (courtesy of my sweet friend Mary) and some plants in the neighborhood plots and hoed and hoed and hoed. I also dug up some volunteer potatoes. Some of them are just babies, but one was bigger and firmer than my fist. Go figure.

Frank and Barb came back to hoe more of their plot, mow grass in the Block Watch plot and who knows what else. They were still there when I finally left after 6.

At home, I watered seedlings and made myself some Genovese Chard (i.e., sautéed in anchovies and olive oil) with swiss chard that I planted at home last Spring. I am whipped and very sunburned (on my arms).

Did I mention also that my neice Rachel scored FIVE goals this morning in soccer?  She has a tournament next weekend, so who knows how much gardening I'll get done . . . .   You go girl!!!!