T-7 for the SACG’s 2015 Opening Day

2014 Opening Day Crew

Don’t look now, but the sun is shining and the sky is blue.  Although it will likely rain every day next week, it is supposed to be dry and temperate on Saturday, which will be the 2015 Opening Day for the Stoddart Avenue Community Garden.  Susan has already picked up a lot of litter and cleaned out the plots so that Frank can till.  Rayna cleaned out her plot and new gardener Amy wants to get a head start by planting tomorrow before it starts raining again.  Our Opening Day is our single most important work day of the year because this is when we do most of the work which enables us to take it relatively easy for the rest of the year.

We will start at 9:30 and end around lunch time. What do we have in store on Saturday?

·        We need to take all of these wood chips (which were donated by Donley Complete Tree Care) and spread them on the paths in the Garden, around the fence lines and raspberry bushes, in the space between the Garden and the alley and around the raised beds.  This will take a lot of time, garden rakes, shovels and wheel barrows.  We only have one wheel barrow and one wagon at the Garden. Sabrina is bringing a wheelbarrow.  Frank and Barb will bring one when they arrive and Cathy may loan us hers.   We may have some young neighborhood children helping us shovel and spread wood chips.

2013 Opening Day Morning OSU Crew

·        We need to empty one raised bed, move it to near the shed and then re-fill it.

·        We will measure and mark off the plots.

·        We will pick up some litter (which gets blown into and collects in the raspberry brambles).

·        Frank will replace the spicket on the large tank (which was mysteriously broken over the winter).

·        Frank and Barb may reconnect our gates and put up the sign (which I varnished last month).

·        We may transplant any volunteer raspberry bushes which start poking up in the plots.

·        We may flip the compost and debris in the compost bins.

2012 SACG Opening Day Crew

·        We may clean out the neighborhood raised bed to prepare it for planting.

·        We may weed the flower beds (which already have grass and ground ivy growing in them).

 

• We'll probably have to mow the grass too, after all of the rain which is expected this week.

When we were planning to open on March 28, I had purchased a few boxes of rice krispie treats (because they were on sale).  When the weather did not cooperate, I ate all three boxes in three days.  So, for this Saturday, I bought a boxed brownie mix that I can bake on Friday.  I will also likely make some chocolate no-bake cookies.  Rayna usually brings cookies, too.

2010 SACG Opening Day Crew

Once this is done, and the gardeners start planting, we will not have another work day until April 25.  That is when we will celebrate Earth Day and it is voluntary for the gardeners.  We are expecting to have help from volunteer lawyers from the Ohio State Bar Association’s Labor & Employment Section Council.   At that point, we will be planting three fruit trees, picking up litter throughout the neighborhood, and planting the neighbor plot with early Spring crops.

2011 SACG Opening Day Crew

We still have a few plots available for anyone who wants to join us on Saturday.  Be there or be square.  Many hands make light work.