Oct 18 - 26, 2014 CVG Progress and Upcoming Opportunities

This week's 159 lbs of harvest donations:
to The Salvation Army = 78.5 lbs;
to the Collierville Food Pantry = 40 lbs;
to Ms. Ruth, Ms. Julia and neighbors, Collierville = 16.5 lbs;
to the 3rd graders of Collierville Elementary = 24 lbs.

Total YTD harvest donation = 2,533 lbs

Thursday's mustard harvest--four varieties (red, broad, curly, tender/"spinach"):

Thursday's harvest of salad fixings (red romaine, peppers, green tomatoes, radishes):

Thursday's turnip harvest (partial):

Next Week's Organized Work Opportunities:

Monday Oct 27: 8:30 am - 10:30 am -- Harvest for The Salvation Army then work on "to do" list
Thursday Oct 30:  8:00 am - 9:30 am -- Harvest and deliver to Collierville Food Pantry

Wish List for the Garden/Opportunities to work on your own time:

*  Yard bags of pine needles for the cinderblock walkways
*  Clean, sharpen, and oil the garden tools located in the shed in the compost area
*  Pick up Starbucks (on Poplar) coffee grounds a couple of times per week (mid morning after breakfast rush or early afternoon after lunch rush) for composting
*  Bat house / Robin nest platforms/Bird bath
*  Goldfinch nyjer seed sock/feeder

Garden Maintenance To Do List this week:

* Fill large plastic containers with pro-mix on the parking lot and move them into side walkways of the Garden for future use
* Pull/Prune back to ground level the raised bed zinnias and dispose....
* Spread last straw bale along "front" edge of plot 3 (this year's tomato/zinnia plot) on top of black plastic. (Assuming fire ants have "moved along".)
* Split uprooted comfrey plants and maybe re-plant elsewhere
* Replace rotten board at central walkway in plot 4
* Harvest seeds off of butterfly weed plants
* Seek out and destroy the pesky cabbage worms..... reapply BT on Friday
* Apply homemade garlic spray/ Witch hazel spray to greens and cabbage
* Weed in cinderblock beds and wooden raised beds
* Empty, clean, and refill bird (seed) feeder/ add mealworms to bluebird feeder "tray"

This week's Work Progress:

On Sunday, Carl mowed around the garden.

On Monday, CVG hosted the Collierville Elementary 3rd graders to the garden.  More than 120 students attended and learned about "plant parts", "plant adaptations", "the plant life cycle", a CVG garden tour that included harvesting one vegetable (approx. 24 lbs total), and "composting". Station leaders were Judy, Dianne, Teresa, Val, Lauryce, Carl, Stephanie, Jan and Twila. After the field trip, an additional 78.5 lbs of turnips, mustard greens, peppers, and radishes were harvested and Lauryce delivered to The Salvation Army. Teresa's son Jack raked and donated 2 yard bags full of pine needles for the walkways.

Be on the lookout for possible photo(s) in The Collierville Independent-- Ms. Ruth attended the field trip and took some photographs for them.

On Tuesday, Stephanie worked on a bingo card update for Wednesday's Crosswind Elementary Roots and Shoots Garden Club visit.

On Wednesday, Judy, Dianne, Jan, Twila, Jim, and Stephanie hosted nearly 2 dozen students for Garden Bingo, Round 2. They made a lot of progress on the garden "to do" list as well as harvested 9 lbs.

On Thursday, 31 lbs of turnips, mustard greens, red romaine lettuce, tomatoes, peppers, and radishes was harvested and Stephanie delivered a total of 40 lbs to the Collierville Food Pantry. On the way back, she picked up 9 lbs of Starbucks coffee grounds and added them to the barrel composters.

On Friday, Stephanie harvested 16.5 lbs of turnips, mustard greens, and peppers and delivered to Ms. Ruth and Ms. Julia. She sprayed BT on all cabbages, added miracle gro to plot 1 and green bean pots, moved the volunteer sunflower out of the romaine lettuce row, and applied two more coats of urethane to the work bins.

This week's Beauty in the Garden:

Oct 11 - 17, 2014 CVG Progress and Upcoming Opportunities

This week's 80 lbs of harvest donations:
to the Collierville Food Pantry = 50 lbs;
to Ms. Ruth, Ms. Julia and neighbors on Harris Cove, Collierville = 30 lbs
Total YTD harvest donation = 2,374 lbs

CVG In the Press:
Collierville High newspaper article

Next Week's Educational Visits:

Monday Oct 20, 9:30 am - 1 pm -- 6 classes of a total of 130+ Collierville Elementary 3rd graders and many of their parents to visit/tour the Garden. We will be leading 5 different stations discussing the following topics with the 3rd graders: Plant Parts, Plant Adaptions, Plant Life Cycle, CVG Garden Tour, and Composting.

Wednesday Oct 22, 4:30 pm - 5:30 pm -- Crosswind Elementary "Roots and Shoots" Garden Club visits for another round of "Garden Bingo". Please let me know if you are available to help!

Next Week's Organized Work Opportunities:

Thursday Oct 23:  8:00 am - 10 am -- Harvest and deliver to Collierville Food Pantry and work on garden "to do " list

Wish List for the Garden/Opportunities to work on your own time:

* Yard bags of pine needles for the cinderblock walkways
*  Clean, sharpen, and oil the garden tools located in the shed in the compost area
*  Bat house / Robin nest platforms/Bird bath
*  Goldfinch nyjer seed sock/feeder

Garden Maintenance To Do List this week:

* Fill large plastic containers with pro-mix on the parking lot and move them into side walkways of the Garden for future use
* Hill up plot 3 cabbages (front plot with the last tomato plants) and plant last of the onions in between the cabbages
* Spread last straw bale along "front" edge of plot 3 (this year's tomato/zinnia plot) on top of black plastic. (Assuming fire ants have "moved along".)
* Split uprooted comfrey plants and maybe re-plant elsewhere
* Harvest seeds off of butterfly weed plants
* Move volunteer sunflower in plot 6 lettuce to elsewhere in the garden
* Seek out and destroy the pesky cabbage worms..... reapply BT this week
* Apply homemade garlic spray
* Weed in cinderblock beds and wooden raised beds
* Empty, clean, and refill bird (seed) feeder/ add mealworms to bluebird feeder "tray"
* Add one more layer of sealant to the bins

This week's Work Progress:

On Tuesday, since the garden was too wet to work in, Stephanie made garlic spray and worked on plant row ID tags.

On Wednesday, Carl and Stephanie harvested the last of the purple hull peas and pulled and disposed of the vines. With Teresa, they harvested 52 lbs of produce total. Teresa and Stephanie weeded plot 6 and the main garden walkway. Stephanie delivered to 30 lbs of the harvest to Ms. Julia ad Ms. Ruth and neighbors then continued work on some plant row ID tags.

On Thursday, Carl and Stephanie harvested another 28 lbs, mostly turnip and mustard greens. After delivering 50 lbs to the food pantry, Stephanie sprayed a gallon of BT on all of the cabbages and miracle gro on plots 1 and 4.

On Friday, Twila and Jan moved sand and dirt into the tire planter then transplanted a perennial golden rod plant into it. Twila sprayed the turnip greens with the homemade garlic spray. Teresa moved  pro-mix into the empty plot 4 raised bed. Stephanie rolled 3 layers of urethane sealant on the two work bins. Jan and Twila spread fire ant bait around the garden/P4H.

This week's Beauty in the Garden:

Oct 4 - Oct 10, 2014 CVG Progress and and Upcoming Organized Work Opportunities

This week's 72 lbs of harvest donations:
to The Salvation Army = 31 lbs;
to the Collierville Food Pantry = 29 lbs;
to Ms. Ruth on Harris Cove, Collierville = 12 lbs

Total YTD harvest donation = 2,294 lbs
Thursday's food pantry 29 lb donation:

Next Week's Organized Work Opportunities:

Tuesday Oct 14: 8:30 am - 10:30 am -- Continue garden and compost area maintenance
Thursday Oct 16:  8:00 am - 10 am -- Harvest and deliver to Collierville Food Pantry

Wish List for the Garden/Opportunities to work on your own time:

* Yard bags of pine needles for the cinderblock walkways
*  Clean and oil the garden tools located in the shed in the compost area
*  Unused house shingles that we use to wrap the wood edging around the outer edge of garden
*  Bat house / Robin nest platforms/Bird bath
*  Goldfinch nyjer seed sock/feeder

Garden Maintenance To Do List this week--can be worked on your own schedule!:

* Pick last of the purple hull peas in plot 4 wooden raised bed (nearest compost area fence) for donation/Pull pea vines and dispose of them in the dumpster. Add a few wagons full of delivered promix. Maybe sow some collard green seeds...
*Apply liquid miracle grow (located in CVG bin) to particularly maybe plot 1, plot 4 wooden raised beds
* Weed plot 6 (with the large teepee) and start thinning out the mustard greens for donation
* Hill up plot 3 cabbages (front plot with the last tomato plants) and plant last of the onions in between the cabbages
* Spread last straw bale along "front" edge of plot 3 (this year's tomato/zinnia plot) on top of black plastic. (Assuming fire ants have "moved along".)
* Apply polyurethane to the CVG/P4H work boxes
* Place plant id markers on rows, especially plot 6
* Move promix to fill the two stacked tires located in between plots 1 and 2 and transplant some golden rod from the P4H demo bed
* Split uprooted comfrey plants and maybe re-plant elsewhere
* Harvest seeds off of butterfly weed plants
* Move volunteer sunflower in plot 6 lettuce to elsewhere in the garden
* Start pulling zinnia plants??
* Seek out and destroy the pesky cabbage worms..... reapply BT this week
* Apply homemade garlic spray after expected rains on Monday
* Weed in cinderblock beds and wooden raised beds and walkways

Upcoming Educational Visit-- MAMG qualifying teaching hours:

Monday Oct 20, 9:30 am - 1 pm -- 6 classes of a total of 130+ Collierville Elementary 3rd graders and many of their parents to visit/tour the Garden. We are going to need a minimum of 10 volunteers to co-lead 5 different stations discussing the following topics with the 3rd graders: Plant Parts, Plant Adaptions, Plant Life Cycle, CVG Garden Tour, and Composting. Please let me know as soon as possible if you are able to attend and which topics interest you the most.
This week's Work Progress:

On Saturday, Lauryce harvested 31 lbs of turnip greens, green beans, purple hull peas, and peppers and delivered them to The Salvation Army. The Garden received a thank you note from the Collierville Burch Library.

On Monday, after the storm Stephanie picked up fallen tomato plants; worked on admin paperwork.

On Tuesday, the scheduled work day was rained out.... Stephanie sprayed BT on the cabbages in the afternoon.

On Thursday, Stephanie picked 29 lbs of green beans, turnip greens, green tomatoes, and peppers and delivered them to the Collierville Food Pantry. In the evening, CVG participated in the Memphis Area Master Gardener project fair.

On Friday, Teresa delivered and spread 2 yard bags of pine needles in the south cinderbloock walkways. Stephanie harvested 12 lbs of eggplant, green beans, turnip and mustard greens, and peppers until the rain clouds let loose. Stephanie delivered the harvest to Ms. Ruth and family on Harris Cove.

This week's Beauty in the Garden:

Sept 29 - Oct 3, 2014 CVG Progress and and Upcoming Organized Work Opportunities

This week's 65 lbs of harvest donations:
to The Salvation Army = 17 lbs;
to the Collierville Food Pantry = 20 lbs;
to Ms. Ruth, Ms. Julia, and the neighbors in Harris Cove, Collierville = 28 lbs

Total YTD harvest donation = 2,222 lbs

Next Week's Organized Work Opportunities:

Tuesday Oct 6: 8:30 am - 10:30 am -- Continue garden and compost area maintenance, Fall planting, continue the Harlequin Bug glove-to-bug combat
Thursday Oct 9:  8:00 am - 10 am -- Harvest and deliver to Collierville Food Pantry, continue Fall planting if necessary

Wish List for the Garden/Opportunities to work on your own time:

* Yard bags of pine needles for the cinderblock walkways
*  Clean and oil the garden tools located in the shed in the compost area
*  Unused house shingles that we use to wrap the wood edging around the outer edge of garden
*  Bat house / Robin nest platforms/Bird bath
*  Goldfinch nyjer seed sock/feeder
*  Seasoned manure

Upcoming Educational Visits:

Monday Oct 20, 9:30 am - 1 pm -- 6 classes of a total of 130+ Collierville Elementary 3rd graders and many of their parents to visit/tour the Garden. We are going to need a minimum of 10 volunteers to co-lead 5 different stations discussing the following topics with the 3rd graders: Plant Parts, Plant Adaptions, Plant Life Cycle, CVG Garden Tour, and Composting. Please let Stephanie know as soon as possible if you are able to attend and which topics interest you the most.

CVG in the Press:

Carl's column in the Collierville Herald this week!:

This week's Work Progress:

On Monday, Val, Patree, and Stephanie harvested 17 lbs of tender turnip greens, eggplants, hot peppers, green beans, tomatoes, and purple hull peas. Patree delivered to The Salvation Army in Memphis. Val and Stephanie placed some weed guard down in plot 3 and started topping it with straw until stymied by fire ants. Stephanie hand-watered where necessary and spread ant bait. Val harvested zinnias for Baptist Hospital Collierville. Stephanie made some more garlic spray using split garlic grown in the garden and worked on admin paperwork.

On Tuesday, Larry loosened and weeded half of the raised beds in plot 1then Carl sowed curly leaf mustard seeds. Carl mowed around the garden and Stephanie harvested comfrey and added some of it to the barrel composters. She pulled a few marigold plants from plot 2 cinderblock holes that were blocking the overhead irrigation from reaching the turnip and cabbage plants. She adjusted the sprinklers in zone 2 (front of the garden) in order to try to optimize the spray then sprayed the garlic juice on the plot 5 large cinderblock bed turnips and central bed cabbages. She saw a new monarch emerge from a chrysalis! She continued admin work.

On Wednesday, Stephanie prepared for the big "Roots and Shoots" Garden Club from Crosswind Elementary. That evening Arlene, Dianne, Twila, Val, Judy and Stephanie hosted 30+ students at the garden. Through playing a Garden Bingo game, the students completed garden tasks such as weeding, planting, seeding, harvesting, and learning garden facts. By the end of the visit, the students harvested 20 lbs of produce and a huge bunch of zinnias.

On Thursday, Teresa and Stephanie harvested 28 lbs of turnips, purple hull peas, green beans, peppers, a few green tomatoes, and one cantaloupe. Teresa pulled all the pea vines in plot 1 and disposed of the vines. Stephanie delivered the produce to the Collierville Food Pantry and Harris Cove and the zinnias to the Collierville Burch Library. Teresa and Val moved 5 wagons full of the delivered pro-mix (thank you Jim!) to the non-seeded raised beds in plot 1 and 4. They mixed the pro-mix in then planted onion seeds and radishes in half of the southern most wooden raised bed in plot 1. In the half of the raised bed that did have comfrey, they planted beets. And they sowed a few more beet seeds in the plot 4 raised bed nearest the central walkway.

On Friday, Twila walked through the Garden after the weather blew through overnight. She picked up the tomato plants that had been blown over and refilled the mealworm feeder.

This week's Beauty in the Garden: