Victory Garden March 16, 2013 A Beautiful Day!

Happy St Patrick's Day Eve!

"Go raibh Dia leat agus go mbeannaí Dia duit!" 

and I ain't even Irish except for March 17. I'se Norman Viking via England.

We had a wonderful productive fun day in the garden and got more done than I could have wished for. There is no better gardeners and team workers than the Victory Garden angels!

Next work day is Monday March 18, 430-630pm. I am asking Bob Hathaway and Whit Whitacre to lead it. 

Main thing to get done is to get plots 1 and 5 ready to plant corn when I get the corn seed. See plot 6 (front right/north) and  plot 3 (front left/south) for how they need to look. Also if we get more cardboard, then cover the cross walking paths and cover them with mulch which is already in piles in the walking paths ready to use.  

Today, Satiddy, March 16, Al, Twila, Wes, Helen and Amy, Karen and David and Cody, Carol, Leah and David and Anthony, Sue, John and Adam, Jes, Jeff, Janet, and Joan: (Forgive my faulty rememory if I left out an angel or two.)

Cleaned out plot 3 and planted taters, onyuns, Romaine lettuce, and Bonnie hybrid cabbiges, and cleaned out plot 6 ready for Jan and Selby to plant.

Spread cardboard and mulched most of the walking paths till we rund outa cardboard. They look so purty! We need more cardboard!!!

The flower team got a lot of their much needed, much appreciated, beautiful work done!!! 

John and Adam and some others donated much needed cardboard.

Wes donated onyuns.

Al donated two trailer loads of mulch and went got them and delivered them!!!

Jeff fixed the front wheel on the wheelborrow.

Whit fixed the hoe.

Dr John Bradley donated the Carbon Boost.

Les Branum of Bonnie Farms donated the lettuce and cabbige sets.

Mr Brown of EPlex donated 3 cubic yards of Promix which may be piled on the parking lot by Monday, but we are not ready to put that into the raised beds just yet. 

BIG THANKS to Wendell Kruse, the Epiphany garden leader, for arranging that for us.

Let's remember some of our angels as they are undergoing various physical problems and pray for His healing hand to cover them with a full and quick recovery:

Sherry Barwick's husband

Joan Hermann

Peggy Risner

and others we don't know about.

See some pix below including my new t shirt. In case you don't know where Buckatunna MS is, it's the last MS pit stop before going into AL on US45 just south of Hiwanee, Pusheta, Wahalak, Shuqalak, Shuba, Scooba, and Shubuta.

Ain't God good!

cw

plot 6 ready for jan and selby

plot 3 fully planted

some garden angels covering the main walking path

some garden angels in plot 3

beautiful new main walking path

flower team hard at work doing they magic work

Victory Garden status March 5, 2013

We are hitting the ground running in 2013. I am excited for sooooo many reasons especially the new volunteer angels. There is so much we could do on top of the already amazing work we already do.

Monday, March 4, Patree Ruggieri, Bob Hathaway, Whit and Jan Whitacre, Sue Butler and her daughter, Selby Horton, Janet Dickey, Anne Riordan, Katherine Green, and I, got everything done we had on the list:

   Weeded all but plot 2 garlic garden which Dave Fitzgerald does.

   Applied nitrogen to the straw and compost pile to get it to decompose.

   Raked straw off plot 3 into middles to get ready to plant.

   Repaired rake, sign, and fence except one bad place Bob will fix.

   Jubilated over the 3 beautiful asparagus spears.

   Planted sweet peas on fences around front plots 3 and 6.

   Took a few pics - see below.

Next planned work dates are 10-noon Saturday March 16 and 430-630pm Monday 18. We need a leader for Monday March 18 as I have a Master Gardener Speaker's Bureau engagement. Goal for that week is to get the spring garden planted in sweet corn, red taters, onyuns, and various other greens and cole crops. RSVP by return email if you can be there.

Dr. John Bradley and FBSciences.com donated their all natural Carbon Boost product again this year. Latest study shows average 24 bushels increase in corn production using CB. That is unheard of and AMAZING. They are also having amazing results in Malawi Africa in poor growing conditions. Note it is not a fertilizer. I am hoping it is available on the retail market soon.

http://www.fbsciences.com/uploads/files/Strip%20Till%20Research_LR_021813.pdf

Once again Les Brannum of Bonnie Farms will be donating transplants. They are a huge help and have big healthy plants.

Other thangs for your consideration:

   Cost for materials to put raised beds in one plot is $700 for one plot. Would require some generous donations. The filler would be at least $200 for one plot. May not be worth the money just to save some hilling work twice a year. I think I just talked myself out of this.

   I am thinking we buy 5 cattle panels like our main entrance trellis and but in the space between middle plots (2 and 4) and grow pole beans and decorative gourds. Cost about $100.

   We need enough cardboard to cover all of the walking paths and can buy mulch to cover them. This will save mowing all summer and be pretty.

   Jim and Bill Cox have offered me a spot for a personal veggie garden. There is more than enough space to locate our cut flower garden for local hospice and nursing home. Problem is no access to water. Need funds to make that happen. It is the old lumberyard behind the north side of town square.

We will make it happen whether we get water access or not.

As always your input is valuable and needed.

Ain't God good!

cw  cell 485-6910

   

Victory Garden status March 1, 2013

Victory Garden status March 1, 2013.

I plan to work Saturday morning 8am this Satiddy (tomorrow)) until I get'er done.

 I plan to use plastic ties to piece the fence back together, and spread 50 lbs of 34-0-0 on the straw and compost pile to get them to decompose. They need green (nitrogen) with the brown (carbon, straw).

I plan to clean out plot 3 (front left) and get it ready to plant some greens.

I plan to begin the weeding process around the garlic and onions.

I plan to work Monday evening sometime in the 4-6 time frame.

Next Monday March 4 I plan to finish the weeding and plant sweet peas along the fences 1/2 inch deep and two rows 3 inches part staggered along the fences of plots 2 and 3.

Next work days for me are Saturdays March 16, and 30 to do big time spring garden planting of potatoes, corn, onions, and cole plants.

If you know a source of funds or materials, we need:

     Raised beds in all plots. Will reduce the work load a lot.

We have funds for these and need to get'er done:

     Cardboard, or landscape fabric, and mulch put down on all walking spaces.

     Trailer or truck load of Promix or living soil or rotted horse manure to fill up the raised beds again. 

The Food Pantry received a $25 honorarium honoring the garden.

I have found a potential alternate zinnia garden space. Jim and Bill Cox offered the old torn down lumberyard behind Mr Green's office just north of the square.  I plan to have a personal garden there, too, since too much shade in my backyard. First I need to do a soil test and remove a few zillion rocks and broken glass pieces.

Don't forget Master Gardener Spring Fling at the Red Barn at the Agricenter March 22-23. Free, great speakers and demos, plants for sale, and fun. They usually tap my masterful gardening skills by putting me in charge of one of the parking lots.

Don't forget the Union County MS (New Albany) April 5-6. Best, by far, in the midsouth. I am speaking Satiddy at 10:15 and participating outside in a cast iron dutch oven cooking demonstration. The exotic yard art alone is worth the trip, as well as the lady's homemade canned goods. I always buy her wild blackberry jam. http://www.newalbanygardening.com/

What I would do if we had the space and I had the talent and funds:

https://www.google.com/search?q=Giant's+Head+of+Heligan&hl=en&tbm=isch&tbo=u&source=univ&sa=X&ei=TcYwUYf8EILcyQHi9YGwAw&ved=0CDcQsAQ&biw=1133&bih=868

I only heard from five of you about working in the garden this year. 

Carl Wayne Hardeman