Mulch

Sturbridge's Master Gardener, Charlotte Purdue, scored some free mulch today.

She saw a sign on a Capital City Tree Service truck that said they would donate chipped wood.  So she called and they delivered a giant load!  Bring a wheelbarrow to the garden and help yourself.

Harvest Bags

Jim and Margaret Ault have been hard at work ...again.  I'm so thankful they keep us supplied in bags!

To Carry Home the Bounty

I want to say Jim Ault should receive credit for this idea and its implementation (correct me if I'm wrong.)

If you look on one of the posts in the gazebo, there's a container with plastic bags to carry home your bounty.  Multiple times last summer I went to water my plot and went home juggling produce because I forgot to bring something to carry everything home.  Thanks to Jim, I've been able to carry everything safely home.  This week I made gazpacho and tomato soup from the garden bounty.

Some people haven't carried home produce in a while...and I am really tempted to relieve you of tomatoes that are rotting on the vine!  It's killing me to watch them go to waste.

Friday, my box received some general maintenance - pulled weeds and old tomato plants.  Some say, "let the tomato plants live" that the blooms will set again in cooler weather for "late tomatoes."  But I was anxious to start mustard greens (seeds) and kale (transplants from my house.)  Real estate is a premium with only 48 square feet.

This morning I went to the farmers market in Argenta (NLR), and my farmer friends say that fall gardening is really the best for raised beds.  The cooler weather and gentle rains make for healthy plants.  Be sure to add some compost or other nutrient enhancer occasionally because the raised beds leach minerals and nutrients quicker than a traditional "in ground" garden.

Art in the Garden

Mickey Mouse happens to be a favored character in our house.  To our great surprise, we found one in the garden!

 We also stumbled upon the sculptor, Randy Ripley (also the garden's architect.)

Next time you see Randy, be sure to thank him for his many hours of creative effort to beautify the garden.

The Winter Garden

Y'all, I'm getting excited for spring!  Three weeks ago I gave birth to our third child, a 10 pound 10 ounce healthy boy (details here).  I feel a million times better than I have in nine months!

Yesterday I went to the garden for the first time in months.  Oh boy - it looks different from this fall.

First of all, the garden fairies built a compost bin.  It looks great!  Who wants to take credit for it?  All we need now is more compost.  :)

Looks like Clay Paul sowed some winter wheat as soil-enriching ground cover.  And, it looks like his mint survived the cold snap.

The main reason I went to the garden was to dump our ash bucket on my plot.  My parents scatter their fireplaces ashes on their garden so I thought I'd follow suit.  You can read more about using ashes to amend the soil here.  Our next bucket will be scattered in our yard.  We've loved burning a fire this winter!

 I suppose technically I should have had a soil sample taken first.  I'll put that on my "to do" list.

 I'm getting excited for spring!  The daffodils are poking up their sleepy heads in my flower beds.

Neighborhood Improvements

Cary Cox, our POA president, applied for and received a grant for $1,000 from the city to make some improvements to our neighborhood.  Below you will see that most of the efforts were in the park.  Of course pictures don't do justice so please go take a look for yourself!!  Several volunteer crews have been busy (thank you!).  If you've missed out, there will be more work days. :)

The handrails on Old Forge near Clapboard Hill were given a fresh coat of paint.

Receiving landscaping attention was the traffic island also near Old Forge and Clapboard Hill.

In the picnic area of the park, a much needed giant load of mulch was dumped and spread.

Earlier in the summer these Knock Out Roses were planted and amazingly survived the dreaded drought. 

A path was built with railroad ties then filled in with mulch from the park's parking lot to the garden area.

The gazebo is getting a facelift! The old (rotting) cedar shake shingles are being replaced with new ones.

Jim and Margaret Ault were in their garden today, cleaning up and planting seeds because "the almanac says today is the day to plant."

 Someone has had success already with radishes.

 The Garden of Weedin' is now the Garden of Eatin'!  The green beans look yum!

Debbie Poirot has been working hard in her garden and it shows!  There were so many butterflies on the zinnias in the garden today when I was there.  It was beautiful to watch them.

 Debbie added pine straw around the bottom of her box.  It looks very neat and pretty.

Hey!  If anyone has hay left over after Halloween, please bring it to the garden.  We can use it as mulch or compost it.  The same goes with your bags of leaves.

 Thanks again to all the volunteer workers.

If anyone is interested in obtaining a garden box for the spring, please contact Julie:: luvmyhub AT gmail DOT com