Soil Sample Bags Available in the Shed

While I was sweeping the 'red barn' floor, I noticed soil sample bags and instructions are now stocked there for anyone wanting the service.  The testing is done at UGA, costs $6.00 and turnaround is 7-10 days after the sample is turned into the County Extension office.  Your results will recommend fertilizer, lime or sulfur amendment specifically for what you tell them you're growing.  Also, remember that it takes time for the amendment application to be effective.  In other words, now is not too soon! to collect and send your soil sample before spring planting.  Instructions can also be found at http://www.cobbextension.com/ .  Click on PUBLICATIONS and enter SOIL TEST or C 896 in the SEARCH area.  While you're there, why not browse around to view all the professional and free publications for immediate downloading?  'Free' is good! and 'professional free' is even better!

More Foggy AM Pix - This time I got what I went to shoot

Above the terraces and beyond the garden there's a beautifully formed tree.  Which it is I won't know for sure until I see the leaves so if you know, don't tell me yet.  But it's nearly perfectly formed due to lack of competition from other trees and its longevity.  The photos were taken as the fog on Feb 6th was beginning to thin.  Same tree, slightly different angle.  I got so excited when I saw the contrail in the photo to the right that I would've lost the shot due to shaky hands but I'm thankful for my tripod and remote shutter release! 

The two photos were taken 15 minutes apart - that was my window of opportunity.  The image below was taken at 10:00 AM and the one to the left at 10:15!  Before 10:00, the fog was pea soup - too, too thick for my taste.

The Great And Not So Great Garden Companions

Hey Everyone,

Collard Greens

I was speaking with someone in the garden last week having trouble growing radishes in close proximity to their collard greens.  They mentioned neither had performed very well even though they did everything right. Hence, the inspiration for this post as it is a common problem you may encounter in the garden!  

From the symptoms they described of how their plants and produce appeared (both small and unproductive) and the proper steps they had taken in their care, it sounded like a simple case of bad bed buddies.  I certainly won't try to say that one fast three times!

Amethyst Radishes
Territorial Seed 

Much like countless dogs and cats, some plants just do not get along.  While others have such an amazing connection, you are bewildered and intrigued by their behavior.   Many of my garden references state that Radishes and the Cole crops are actually bad companions in the garden as they somewhat repel each other.  Most often, this leads to stunted growth and poor development.  Not always, just more often than not!  

However, if you take those same radishes and plant them next to carrots, cucumbers, lettuce, peas, spinach, and a few others, they will all work in perfect harmony creating a symbiotic relationship.  I actually seem to find my radishes more on the sweeter side when I plant them beside my lettuce in the early days of spring.  They are also excellent to use as a trap crop (see definition below) for leafminers when grown alongside spinach and lettuce, or utilized as a repellent for cucumber beetles.  I use both these practices on a routine basis.

Trap Crop - A small group of plants often used in companion planting techniques to attract harmful or undesirable insects away from the main crop.

There is a substantial amount of information out there regarding the use of companion planting.  The science behind the concept is that some plants chemically enhance or inhibit each other's growth when planted in close proximity to one another.  In addition, it is believed that certain plants have the further benefit of either being able to attract or repel certain insects depending on your needs.  Much of it is proven scientific fact; however, you will always find some folklore mixed in.      

Raised bed gardening actually lends itself quite well to the practice of companion planting due to the close proximity in which each crop needs to be grown.  I have been experiencing a great amount of success with the method of utilizing certain crops to repel insects.  Garlic, parsley, mint, and radishes left to bloom are all workhorses in the garden for me.  With the rapid approach of spring, I thought I would offer some information on the topic to get everyone off to a great planting season with much success. The first link offers a base list to use in the garden for those that just want a quick reference of the great and not so great garden companions.  The second and third links provide some additional information on the topic.  

Garden Companion Planting Chart - link to a basic list of companion plants - vegetables

Companion Planting Techniques - link to some general information on companion planting

Companion Gardening Overview - link to some general information on companion planting

Rodale Organic Gardening
Reference
Sally Jean Cunnigham

"Great Garden Companions", by Sally Jean Cunningham out of Cornell University is one of the nice references that I use and is readily available on Amazon.  This book maintains its focus solely 
on the vegetable garden and provides detailed information for preventing pest problems utilizing common herbs and flowers.  I find quite a bit of success with many of her recommendations.

Happy Gardening!

Denise, Beds 25 & 29

My Grandpa would be proud

One square foot of garden space - that is all I needed to grow the BEST tasting carrots. I took them to Family Dinner yesterday and everyone agreed, they taste so much better than store bought carrots. Later, my Daddy told me my Grandpa would have been proud of me.



The only thing is, my carrots don't all grow

 the same in that 1 square foot!

 

PS: 16 carrots made enough tops for 2 flower arrangements.  But I'm not sure what Grandpa would have thought of that.

Foggy AM at the garden

Remember the heavy fog on Feb 6th?  I wanted to photograph in the fog a beautifully huge, rounded tree above the terraces at the garden.  When I got to the first terrace and looked back toward Dallas Hwy, I quickly photo'd the house & garden. (Looks like we're growing two Conestoga Wagons, doesn't it?)  Anyway, as always happens, what I plan to photograph isn't nearly as interesting as what I stumble upon.  ;-)  Rita B.

Weekly Calendar - Upcoming Dates at the Garden

Feb. 14 (Thursday)
9:00 AM
(Note time changed from the newsletter)

Monthly Planning Meeting
Christ Lutheran Church, 176 West Sandtown Road  Marietta, 30064

All gardeners at the Green Meadows Community Garden are invited to attend the Planning Meeting. You have a vested interest in the day to day operation and the future of the garden. 

Feb 16 (Saturday)
2:00 to 4:00 pm
Great Backyard Bird Count at the Garden
See GBBC Event at the Garden for complete details

Bluebird Trail Tours!

Jim will be leading two tours of the completed Green Meadows Preserve Bluebird Trail. Come out and see what all the excitement is about!

Wear a warm jacket (if the weather is chilly as we will be in the shade) and comfortable shoes for the 2 + mile hike along the the Bluebird Trail. Tours will be conducted rain or shine.

The first date will be on Thursday February 28th at 12:00 noon after the Green Meadows Community Garden work day (Thursday version).

The second tour date will be on Saturday March 2nd at 4:00 pm after the Green Meadows Community Garden work day (Saturday version).

We look forward to showing the trail off to the Nest Box Sponsors, fellow gardeners and 2013 MGVOCC classmates.

Mr. Bluebird is watching us

Chip, Chip, Chip(s)

Chips Away!

 

Wed's afternoon Denise called and said she was talking to Joey at the garden and he could bring us as many chips as we would like for the garden. All I could think of was WOW! What a great thing to happen since we are in dire need of a new layer of chips.  Carol agreed - Yes, Please! Bring them on!


Denise pitching away

Now true, we did get 2 loads of chips from the county which we spread on Jan 24th but they barely covered the areas they went in. Having another source of chips is wonderful and will really help us combat the weeds. Thanks Joey for stopping by the garden to see what is going on inside the fence! And then giving us chips.


Pulling mulch into the bucket

After the chips were dumped, I decided to take a few pictures showing the pitchfork & wheelbarrow method and my method of moving chips. If you have a lot of upper body strength, the pitchfork method is a breeze. However, if you aren't comfortable using a pitchfork, you can use the bucket method.

Dumping the chips

 

Loading the cart

My bucket method involves using the stiff tined rake or the digging fork to push/pull the mulch into the bucket. I then used one of the garden carts to haul 5 buckets at a time to where I wanted to dump the chips. Buckets  are also good for filling in small areas and tight corners.

One thing led to another and next thing I knew, Denise and I ended up having a mini-workday with that half load of chips! Mark just dropped by the garden to work on his broccoli but joined us in moving the chips. Thanks Mark, for working with us to the bitter end.  ( By the way, Mark, Denise and I spread half a load of mulch in about 1 hour.)
 

Lucky Mark - roped into the fun.
By the time he left the sun wasn't shining.

Chances are if you go to the garden over the next few weeks there will be a new pile(s) of mulch waiting to be spread.

Please help spread  the mulch if you see a new pile!

All the equipment needed can be found in the shed.  The goal is to spread it 1 1/2 to 2 inches thick to really smother any weeds currently present and to keep more from coming up. A little bit of up front work spreading chips will mean a lot less work during the year.

Flagged stakes will be out to indicate where to start spreading the mulch. (Friday the 8th that will be near the 3 new beds). When you finish mulching an area, just move the stakes to the new starting position so the next person will know where to start.

In advance, thank you VERY much for

 helping to spread the mulch when it shows up. 





Three New Beds

Wow! We now have 3 new beds at the garden. Mike and Jim went to the garden this morning and in a matter of hours, the beds were put together. Now they just need dirt and gardeners.

It was a great day for building them - perfect temperatures and a deep blue sky.










         Thanks Mike for sending me the pictures to post.

Weeding Helpers

Tractor Supply over on Hwy 278 in Hiram has a nice selection of garden tools at good prices. The Stainless Steel Garden Weeder (only $2.99) is especially good at digging those dratted onions out with. The Stainless Steel Garden Cultivator and Hoe ($2.99 as well) is excellent for pulling up weeds that are big clumping weeds. Of course, if you use the cultivator/hoe combo around your bed you won't have to deal with big weeds. You can hack those little weeds to bits before they get big.

 

There are now 2 Garden Weeders and 2 Cultivator/Hoe tools in the shed for all the gardeners to use to help keep the weeds down. Feel free to use them whenever you want to.

Wild onions do the same thing that daffodils do - they make little bulbils (not bulblets) that grow and create new plants. (Turns out bulbets are little bulbs that form above ground and bulbils are the bulb babies that form underground.)

Just chopping the top off the onion plant isn't going to get rid of the problem. You have to dig down, deep down, to get the bulbs. Unfortunately, little bulbs get left behind but if you keep digging them out while they are little, you get less and less each time new growth occurs. 

This was a very healthy clump of onions!  By the way, don't throw the onions in the compost pile. Take them home to dispose of them. We really don't want to spread more onions around since they are so hard to get rid of!
 
Right now there are a large number of weeds that have formed basal rosettes (which means a dense cluster of leaves at or near ground level).  The cultivator/hoe combo does a great job of catching under the leaves and pulling the weed up. With as much rain as we've been having, the ground is just right for digging the weeds up easily.
                                          

King Tut of the Weeding Tools

Looking for Seed Potatoes?

Some of you may be looking for seed potatoes since it is almost time to get your potatoes planted out. Denise talked to Leslie at Pike's Tuesday and they are about to order their potato sets. But if you want them right this very minute - go to Elrod's!

Mike sent me an email (with a picture) telling me that Elrod's

already has their potato sets in the store.

Buy them while they have them!

Great Backyard Bird Count

One of my favorite Citizen Science events is about to occur - the Great Backyard Bird Count !

What is a Citizen Science project you ask?
       It is any project where ordinary people go out and collect data and submit it to the requesting group. This data is used to detect trends and developments. Some projects require you to go through a training class - like if you are a stream monitor. Jim will be doing citizen science when he records and reports on the success of the birds that move into the nest boxes on the Bluebird Trail.

This year the Great Backyard Bird Count is Feb 15-18, 2013. I'm going to try it at the Community Garden as well as at my house.

If you are interested, join me at the garden on 

 Saturday, Feb 16 between 2:00 and 4:00 and we'll look for birds.

Bring binoculars if you have any.

Below are pictures of some of the birds that have been heard or seen in and around the garden. We'll just see how cooperative they are when we go looking for them!

To the left, pine siskins on the tube feeder. Above, a red-bellied woodpecker. Below the pine siskins, a tufted titmouse.

A male cardinal (to the left) is bright red all over. While a female cardinal (above) is buffy brown with red highlights. She isn't bright like the male because she needs to be hidden while sitting on the nest. Below is a morning dove.

 

Garden Damage after the Freeze

The Good News - the freezing weather is over.
Even better news - we now have 10 days of warm weather.

The Bad News - the freezing weather is over
Worse news - we now have 10 days of warm weather.

Warmer weather is a mixed blessing for plants at this time of year. It gives them time to recover from the cold weather but because it is going to be warm for 10 straight days, we are going to have a huge outbreak of pests (aphids and sucking/chewing critters) and fungal disease outbreaks.

Everyone needs to come out to the garden and check their beds for damaged leaves and killed or melted plants because of the cold weather. Leaving damaged vegetation in your beds creates the perfect climate for disease and bugs to proliferate.  As you can see from the pictures there are a lot of "melted" out plants because the lows were so low.

Removing all damaged plant material now is essential!

Dead plant material just creates hiding places for insects and disease in your bed. If you wait to remove the dead plant material until just before you plant, there will be bad critters lying in wait to attack your newly planted veggies.

Be sure and inspect all your plants closely for eggs and aphid nymphs. Just before the deluge last week, I saw I had some but the rain washed all the azamax off that I had sprayed. I've since resprayed but I still need to keep an eye on the situation because it will be warm so long.

Luckily, I  don't have any cold damage on my plants. However, the frost cover trapped all the rain and high humidity inside so now I have a lot of damage to my Swiss Chard leaves. This week all the damaged leaves need to be removed and the plants that look more dead than alive need to be pulled out.

Next year I think I'll plant my Swiss chard so it will be outside the cover since the majority of the Swiss chard grown in the open is doing very well. My carrots and spinach are thriving under the cover but the Swiss chard, not so much.

               VickiBed41

"Bubba" Blue

A Great Big Welcome to....
                                  Bubba Blue!

Bubba's new home is Bed #34

But it looks like he is driving Caully

 (who resides in Bed 30) to drink

The Carlos Montano Garden Art Studio

Four Winds Planter

At Green Meadows we like to garden.  In the cold, the heat, the wind, and especially on a warm, spring day, we like to garden.  But we are not only about gardening.  We have many interests.  Sometimes we even like adventure.  On February 20th, we have an appointment at the studio of Carlos Montano in Fairburn, Georgia.  Those that want to participate can meet at the garden at 8:45 on Wednesday the 20th and caravan south of Atlanta to his studio.  Carlos produces beautiful garden art to enhance your garden. You will find incredible planters, bird baths, statuary and more.  He also reproduces unique pieces created by the late Atlanta artist Christine Sibley.   His work is very well known in Atlanta and it is not sold in stores.

Magnolia Stepping Stone

I know you will be pleased with the quality and also with the pricing.  Several of us went in October and came home with unique pieces.  I have pictures of several pieces that I purchased and you can go to his website, Carlos Montano Studio .   The website only gives you a small sample of the items he has available and you cannot appreciate the variety and quality from the pictures on the web.  Carlos promised that in February as he prepares for spring, the studio has more items available than at any other time of the year.

Garden Wall Plaque

      Those that would like to join us need to email me at our Green Meadows email address so I can have a head count of who is going and how many vehicles will be needed.  Trucks and suv’s are great as they allow more room for bringing things back.  We will plan a nice stop for lunch and make this a fun outing.     If you like garden art, you don’t want to miss this trip.

Carol Hanak

Beyond Freezing Temps Warning

Here is another HEAD's UP that we are going to have beyond freezing temps for the next few days. The only good thing is that everything is extremely well watered at the garden.  Cover as soon as possible on Thursday to trap as much heat under your frost cover to get through Friday and Saturday.

Friday am - 29 with a high of 38
Saturday am  - 22 with a high of 49
Sunday am - 35 with a high of 55
Monday am - 30 with a high of 54

After Monday morning it looks like we won't have any super cold temperatures for a few days.

Army of Armadillo's

I've been slow posting the pictures from last Saturday's workday, I plead...rain delays. Grin. 

We had a great group of 13 people show up and we got tons of weeding done while talking up a storm. The winners of the weeding prize drawings were Vann, Amy and Jim.  Plus we had very tasty treats as well. All under a sunny sky. What more can you ask for! Well besides no weeds.

Denise contributed the treats and the "weeding" prizes and Mike brought one of his pottery pieces for another guessing game.  Dalita was the grand prize winner of the guessing game this time. Vann was very lucky because she was the runner up for the guessing game and ended up taking home two prizes.

 The Treats

 

The players

 

The Pottery Girls

 

 At the end of the Day, the major paths were weed free. Now we all have to be like chickens spotting a June bug - jump on the weeds before they get too established and pull them out.

Mike's Pictures from the Thursday Workday

Rita and Elise digging weeds

Carol moving dirt to top off a bed

Dalita supervising Vicki's weed pulling



Hard at work spreading mulch