Garden Update and Work Day

There have been some great new improvements to the garden as of late!

The herb garden now has an attractive mulch in the bed and a brick pathway.
Bricks are laid out throughout the east plot waiting to be dug into the soil so we will have permanent planting beds and prevent soil compaction from people walking around the garden.
A miniature fence in the west plot marks off where gladiola bulbs will soon erupt from the soil, and the squash plants behind them are sprouting quite nicely (and will soon need thinning).
The compost is decomposing nicely and has an instruction sheet on top, while there is a signpost with garden explanations and the garden wishlist posted in the garden.
More signs have been painted and are waiting to be attached to posts and placed in the garden.
The tomatoes and eggplants are growing profusely and still need to be staked, while some lettuce and many spring onions await harvest.

For those of you in town, Friday morning there will be a trip to Riverside Park to pick up mulch--email rmd2154@columbia.edu for the time--and Saturday will be a work day for working on the above tasks as well as planting seeds for fall crops!

Also, check out this interesting article about urban professionals making the switch to organic farming.

Garden Notes and Eating Out

Ready for Harvest:
The radishes are now gone, as is the lackluster arugula, however the bunching onions are arriving in great fashion. Particularly, the He-Shi-Ko onions are quite flavorful—you needn’t even pull the bulb, simply snip off a section of the green tops, chop it up, and throw it into whatever you’ll be eating over the next few days…Pico de gallo? Cream cheese? Stir-fry? Omelet? At least try a bite next time you’re at the garden. Also, feel free to pluck some lettuce, as its ready and there for the taking. Be careful not to step on the neighboring lettuce and kale seedlings, planted in rows adjacent to the mature rows of lettuce.

Volunteer call:
The masonry shop canceled last Friday, but I’ve rescheduled to pick up bricks from them Wednesday at 1pm. If you are available, please come help me move the bricks from masonry shop, located beneath Pupin Plaza (down the main Dodge gym steps and then down the smaller staircase to the left), to the garden.

Also, I received notice from NYC Parks and Rec. that there is a pile of woodchips at 92nd Street and Riverside Drive that we are free to take. Liz A. also notes there are piles of woodchips at 88th Street in Riverside Park. Please, please, please, if you are available, pick-up a bag or two of the woodchips to bring to the garden (take the bus, even a rolling suitcase could be useful…). Free mulch is great, but only if volunteers—you—help bring it to the garden. By laying mulch around plants, the site will be more attractive and the mulch will suppress weeds and prevent water evaporation, which means less work in the long run.

With mulch and bricks, we will have a work party Wednesday, 5:30-7pm. Please come by and help make paths, and lay mulch. Bring your compostables.

If you aren’t available then, stop by any time to weed, stake tomatoes, and rake the west plot (around the plants, and squash hills).

We now have signs but nothing to put them on. If you have a hammer and nails to affix signs to posts then people will finally know what’s happening at the site!

Take note: Colin planted gladiola bulbs along the front edge of the west plot. They will look beautiful soon, but for now be careful not to step on them, as that will compact the soil.

Eating out tonight? Check out this list of restaurants that purchase food from NYC Greenmarkets: http://www.cenyc.org/greenmarket/chefswhobuy

Garden Update & Work Party Saturday

We had a great work party Tuesday, the largest so far since we tilled the soil. It’s amazing how much we can accomplish with so many hands to help out. I can’t wait to see the squash plants sprout (soon) and the fruit bushes grow (over time), and I can tell the tomatoes are much happier being upright rather than falling on top of themselves. Plus we finally moved the bench to the back of the west plot, which really makes the garden a public space for everyone to enjoy.

Please note the new calendar in the sidebar to the right. It lists garden work times/dates and other relevant events. The next work party will be this Saturday from 1 to 3pm when the garden will be photographed by professional photographer Diego Heckadon, who is taking pictures of community gardens all over the city.

The tasks this weekend will include:
-Painting signs
-Building a melon trellis
-Creating paths
-Mulching (tentative)

I’m currently researching ground cover/ornamental plants for the shady area in the back of the west plot. If you have ideas for types of ground cover or seed resources please let me know.

Also, if you want to add to the sitting area in anyway—garden/path tiles, birdhouse—feel free to put your creative faculties to work in beautifying the space. If you come up with a group project I can post it on the calendar.

Events:
6/28: If you would prefer to learn more about compost this Saturday, the Lower East Side Ecology Center is hosting a free Compost Site Grand Opening & Workshop from 1-3pm at the Rodale Community Garden, 437-39 E 114th btw. 1st Ave. and Pleasant Ave.:
“See different types of compost bins at this new compost demo site sponsored by New York Restoration Project, and learn how to compost in your backyard or community garden.”

6/29: This Sunday the New Amsterdam Market, a public indoor local/sustainable foods market at South Street Seaport that will eventually operate year round, will be open from 11am to 4pm. See the link below if you are interested in attending.
http://www.newamsterdampublic.org/market.htm

Wish List

All call for supplies!

-outdoor paint for signs/murals
-wire cages (for tomato plants)
-bulletin board / chalkboard / dry erase board
-seeds & starter plants
-mulch
-decent scrap wood for labels & signs
-watering can
-gardening gloves & extra hand tools
-wood or metal posts

If you happen to have any of these laying around, we'd love to take them off your hands! Ask friends & strangers just in case. We'd love to recycle old instead of buy new.

Article and Photos

First, an interesting article on food, population, resources, and consumption, from the NYTimes Week in Review: Malthus Redux

Second, garden pictures!



East plot facing east


East plot facing north, view of trellised tomatoes and beans and new strawberries in back containers (mint is in the near containers)


West plot with new garden signs and cilantro that's bolted, meaning we can soon harvest coriander seed


Lettuce and radishes ready for harvest


Harvested radish


Lettuce, radish, and fennel salad, all from the garden!

List of Garden Plants

Here's a list of all the plants in the garden as of today, but as gardens go, the list is always changing:

Bronze Fennel
Fennel
Rosemary (2)
Tangerine Sage
Tri-Color Sage
Cilantro (Coriander)
Heartsease (Johnny Jump-Up) (2)
Cosmos
Lemon Balm (2)
Variegated Oregano
Hot and Spicy Oregano
French Tarragon
Lemon Gem Marigold (2)
Deep Purple Bunching Onion
Lemon Thyme (4)
Lavender
Golden Oregano (2)
Calendula (2)
Spanish Spearmint (2)
He-Shi-Ko Bunching Onion
Bulgarian Giant Leek
Pascal Celery (2)
Purple of Romagna Artichoke
Imperial Star Globe Artichoke
January King Cabbage
Piracicabi Broccoli
Natalino Romanesco Broccoli
Siberian Kale
Dwarf Gary Sugar Pea
Arugula
Lettuce
Radishes
Etruria Genovese Basil
Alexandria Alpine Strawberry (4)
Criolla Sella Hot Pepper
‘Napoleon Sweet’ Sweet Pepper
Tangerine Pimento Pepper
Caribbean Red Hot Pepper
Quadrato Asti Giallo Sweet Pepper
Bonny Best Tomato
Juane Flamme Tomato
Black Prince Tomato
Turkish Italian Orange Eggplant
Italian Pink Bi-Color Eggplant
Tiger Eye Bush Bean (3)
Green Grape Tomato
Koralik Tomato
Beam’s Yello Pear Tomato

Pictures soon! And a fruit garden is in the works for the west plot.

Slow Food Nation!

Hate to interrupt all the great garden updates, but wanted to make sure everyone at CUFSP is aware of Slow Food Nation, taking place in San Francisco August 29th - September 1st. It promises to be a stellar event, you can read more about it here. If you happen to be in the Bay area for Labor Day weekend, I really recommend checking it out. In fact, I would even recommend traveling to the Bay Area just to go! (I hope to! :)

Most importantly, Slow Food is excited about the Youth Program taking place as part of the conference. They are still looking for BYTs who are leaders in sustainable food groups around the country (this means you!) to participate. To get involved, contact Gordon Jenkins (gordon/at/slowfoodnation.org.) It promises to be an exciting and inspiring event, with lots of great tastings, wonderful speakers, and even a Victory Garden.

If you are in New York and would like to get a head start on Slow Food Nation contact me (timothy.minerd/at/gmail.com) and I'd be happy to put you in touch with Slow Food's national office. They are headquartered in Brooklyn, and would love to see a Columbia presence at the event.