June 25 at the Kitchen Garden

This Saturday, Mark P. stopped by early and began watering the garden, noting that the sprinklers (which now are activated on Fridays and Saturdays at 4 am) only reach the immediate area and don't provide the deep watering that's needed in the veggie beds. We are looking into other options for automated watering. He then went on to tidying and watering the labyrinth garden.

At the garden were Marcelo, Linda H, Susan, Laura, and Gabriela. We weeded Sam's plot, which for now will be part of the communal garden, and planted some more eggplants there, in addition to some lettuce and mesclun that was already planted. Susan will be donating zucchini and cucumber to complete the plot--thank you!

We also weeded, trimmed the tomato plants, and watered, and there was some harvest from the family plots. The garden is looking pretty good with squash flowers, tiny tomatoes, peppers and tomatillos starting to form, among other wonders. Maria Harris visited the garden briefly with her grandson, who helped us water.

Poison ivy follow up: Last week, Gabriela sprayed some poison ivy by the parking lot fence with a mixture of vinegar, salt and dish detergent. The leaves started to wilt and Marcelo applied a second round of spraying. Otherwise, things are looking fine so far.

The watering schedule remains the same. Please note we've been informed that tomorrow, Jun 28 there will be a filming crew from 7 am to noon and we need to stay out of their way. Also, starting next week, the camp will be using the water in the morning. We'll send a separate note to the core group of gardeners.
Mondays: Susan
Tuesdays: Gabriela
Wednesdays: Iris/Linda H.
Thursdays: Marcelo
Saturdays: Group

See you next week!

June 18 @ the Kitchen Garden--Poison Ivy edition

This Saturday, Blanca and her niece, Laura, Linda M, Linda H, Iris, Mark, Marcelo and Gabriela came to the garden.

A HUGE THANK YOU to Marcelo for bravely charging against the poison ivy that was growing profusely in and around the compost area. Gabriela provided assistance with a special focus on protective measures. We physically removed all the ivy we could see and sprayed the affected areas with a mixture of vinegar, salt and dish-washing detergent. No toxic herbicides were used. Now we are keeping our fingers crossed that the protective gear and post-intervention cleanup worked and nobody develops a rash! PLEASE BE VIGILANT AND LET US KNOW IF YOU SEE ANYTHING YOU SUSPECT MAY BE MORE POISON IVY.

​The brave PoisonIvyBuster and the health, safety & decontamination assistant.

The rest of the team carried out a variety of tasks, including mowing, weeding, watering, harvesting, spraying the strawberry patch with a homemade mix of soap, garlic and water (to deal with a soft-bodied pest), and adding compost & hay to newly planted eggplants.

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The harvest this week included strawberries, turnips, and greens.

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Last week we received a donation of eggplants and watermelon plants from Derek DiGuglielmo of EatLocalNY--THANK YOU!! Marcelo planted some eggplants on Tuesday. Feel free to use the leftover plants.


​ Also Marcelo planted some morning glories in a long container located in between Iris' plot and the fence bordering the garden at Zion--please remember to water them!

Watering Schedule
Mondays: Susan
Tuesdays: Gabriela
Wednesdays: Iris/Linda H.
Thursdays: Marcelo
Saturdays: Group

See you next Saturday!

June 4th and 11th at the Garden

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This week at the garden: Linda H, Laura, Iris, Blanca (and her sister), Els, Susan, Marcelo and Gabriela came to the garden and helped with weeding, strawberry picking, watering, and compost mixing, in addition to tending individual beds. We noticed one of the tomatillo plants and the lemon balm seem to be affected by some pest or disease--we'll be asking Suzi Novak during this Thursday's organic gardening class. Also, we believe we may have poison ivy growing in the compost bins. We'll make sure to identify and deal with it properly; in the meantime, please be cautious around the bins!

Last week at the garden: On June 4th we had the maté party and enjoyed some refreshing cold maté or tereré (here's an account of last year's maté party)! On Wednesday, June 8th, the Dobbs Ferry food pantry received its first Kitchen Garden harvest, which included lettuce and collard greens. Marcelo walked Ellen through and pointed to the communal gardening areas that the pantry can harvest, and the family plots.

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Next steps: We'll get some additional plants for next week.

Watering schedule remains:
Mondays: Susan
Tuesdays: Gabriela
Wednesdays: Iris/Linda H.
Thursdays: Marcelo
Saturdays: Group

**Please note** when watering the garden, if Iris and Linda H's hoophouses are covered, you don't have to water them--only water if the plastic cover is pulled to the side.

See you next week!

Gabriela.

May 28th at the Kitchen Garden

 

This past Saturday, Linda H., Laura, Iris, Sam, Susan, Blanca, Linda M, and Marcelo met at the garden. We divided up our work by weeding many of the communal and private beds, watering all the plots, adding compost and planting new herbs. Iris provided us with baby basil plants, mint, and chives. Most of these plants were placed in the community portion of the garden and some went to individual gardeners. Our hose has a bit of a leak and we attempted to repair it by placing some duct tape around the damaged area.

 

 

 

 

 

 

 Next week we will try to add some mulch around the vegetables in the form of salt hay as recommended by Susi Novak.

 

 

 

Watering Schedule Remains (subject to change):

Mondays: Susan
Tuesdays: Gabriela (away this week)
Wednesdays: Iris/Linda H.
Thursdays: Marcelo
Saturdays: Group

 

See you next Saturday!