Nov 17 - Nov 23, 2014 CVG Progress and Upcoming Opportunities

This week's 165 lbs of harvest donations:
to the Collierville Food Pantry = 165 lbs
Total YTD harvest donation = 3097 lbs

Next Week's Organized Work Opportunities:

Monday Nov 24:  8:00 am - 10:30 am -- Harvest for Salvation Army*, clean out/weed beds in plot 4 and 5 and add available promix, maybe plant a little more of remaining garlic, plot/plan/"construct" cold frames using hay bales and donated window panes, apply BT to any remaining cabbages.

* Looking for any hotel sized toiletries, toothbrushes, kid's jackets, kid's size (new) underwear and socks (all sizes, gender). We'll send on anything we receive with our produce donation to the Salvation Army on an ongoing basis.... So clear your shelves/drawers/closets!

Wish List for the Garden/Opportunities easily done on your own time:
*  Yard bags of pine needles for the cinderblock walkways and yard bags of leaves for composting
*  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
*  Old bird feeders
*  Bat house / Robin nest platforms/Bird bath
*  Goldfinch nyjer seed sock/feeder, Meal worms for bluebirds

Garden Maintenance To Do List:

* Clear out weeds in empty plot 4 raised bed, add promix
* Set aside pine needle mulch on zinnia beds, fill with promix, and top back with the pine needles
* Continue pulling/disposing of spent plants-- plot 2, 4 (cinderblock) peppers, marigold
* Pull comfrey seedlings around beets in plot 1
* Split uprooted comfrey plants and maybe re-plant elsewhere
* Harvest seeds off of butterfly weed plants
* Seek out and destroy the pesky cabbage worms..... reapply BT on Monday
* Weed in cinderblock beds and wooden raised beds, plot 3 along fence line
* Empty, clean, and refill bird (seed) feeder/ add mealworms to bluebird feeder "tray"

101 lbs of "just right" turnips donated to the Collierville Food Pantry this week:

Some of the Savoy cabbage and mustard greens donated to the Collierville Food Pantry this week:

This week's Work Progress:

On Monday, Twila and Stephanie checked frost covers and added some frost protection to plot 3.

On Wednesday, Twila, Leah, Carl, Teresa, Stephanie removed all frostcovers. They moved promix into plot 4 northernmost raised bed and planted "Redneck Wild" garlic. They cleared the half of southernmost plot 4 raised bed, added promix, and planted "Chesnok Red" garlic. They moved promix into the central plot 2 cinderblock bed and planted Chesnok Red and Elephant garlic. They then refilled all the emptied large containers in the garden with the promix from the parking lot.

On Thursday, Carl, Patree, Twila, Stephanie, Teresa, and Kathy harvested 165 lbs of turnips, mustard greens, cabbage, radish, and loose leaf lettuce. Patree delivered to the Collierville Food Pantry. Teresa and Kathy added promix to the northwestern "corner" cinderblock bed and planted elephant and "unknown variety... but pretty" garlic. Twila and Stephanie prepared two rows in plot 6, ringed them with a thick layer of sand in an effort to redirect any runoff, and planted Kilarney Red garlic.  They covered all garlic plantings with a layer of straw/hay. Stephanie picked up 20 lbs of Starbucks grounds and added them to the barrel composters.

This week's Beauty in the Garden: