CVG 2015 Jan 26 - Feb 1 Progress and This Week's Upcoming Opportunities

Please join me in welcoming Jan Trent and Twila Christian as fellow co-Chairs of the Collierville Victory Garden!

Upcoming Week's CVG Organized Work Opportunities:

Monday Feb 2: Probably too wet and absolutely too cold to work in the garden!
Tuesday Feb 3: 8:30 am - 11:30 am -- Garden clean-up, weeding, set up hay bale raised bed in plot 6 along archway, turn/mix/add more compost in plot 2 large cinderblock bed, set up hay bale/window cold frame in plot 2 large bed, clean up nappa cabbage row in plot 4 and add compost, continue adding cardboard to plot 4 walkways
Thursday Jan 29: 8:30 am - 10:30 am --  Continue work from Tuesday, turn soil again in cinderblock beds

* Looking for any hotel sized toiletries, toothbrushes, kid's jackets and socks, new kid's underwear (all kid 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!

***Please update your annual liability release form for the Church and give it to me/leave it in the mailbox the next time you work at the garden***

Wish List for the Garden/Opportunities easily done on your own time:

*  Yard bags of pine needles for the cinderblock walkways and mulching garlic
*  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
*  Meal worms for bluebirds

Garden Maintenance To Do List:

* Weed in plot 4 wooden raised beds and top off with compost in old cabbage/collard? areas,  clean out all of plot 3 and most of plot 6, walkways as well as dispose of any broken, discarded garden items
* Spray dormant oil in empty raised beds when weather warms a bit... probably not this week!
* Continue adding available cardboard in walkways between plot 4 wooden raised beds (and spread a few haybales?)
* Start building hay bale raised bed and hay bale cold frame

Jan 26-Feb 2, 2015 5 lbs of harvest donations:

Jan 26 - Feb 2, 2015 5 lbs of harvest donations:
to the Collierville Food Pantry = 5 lbs
Total YTD harvest donation = 155 lbs

Collierville food pantry January 29 harvest donation:

Work Progress:
Special thanks to the Town of Collierville for donating 2 huge, beautiful dump truck bed loads of leaf compost!

On Tuesday Jan 27, Carl, Twila, Teresa, and Stephanie sprayed 1 gallon of dormant oil on plot 1 outer two (southern) raised beds. Moved leaf compost and filled all cinderblock holes, 2 corner plot 5 beds, moved one arch panel between plots 1,2 to allow access to plot 1 walkway. Filled all available empty pails and containers with compost. Added coffee grounds to plot 5 large bed. Turned barrel composters. Ordered 3 more gallons of dormant oil. Added blank liability forms to garden mailbox. Sophia brought more coffee grounds from the Donut Hutt.

On Thursday Jan 29, Twila, Carl, Teresa, Arlene, and Stephanie harvested 5 lbs of onions, cabbage, collard, carrot. Carl delivered to the food pantry. They moved many yards of compost into cinder block raised beds. Added nitrogen to plot 5, plot 2, and outer two in plot 1. Carl brought more coffee grounds from Starbucks. They spread the coffee grounds in plot 2 and 5. Pulled up carpet remnants in plot 4 and started laying cardboard. Reapplied frost cover to the beet beds.

On Saturday Jan 31, Twila and Jan met with Jim to plan raised beds and address drainage for plots 3 and 6, estimated completions dates March 1, March 15 respectively. Plans drawn to rework/remove rotten wood from  plot 1(soon) and plot 4 (after garlic harvest) beds. Parker filled up/topped off plot 5 cinder block beds with compost and turned. Twila and Jan added a little more nitrogen to those plot 5 beds. They continued garden clean up by addressing compost area-- stomped then raked leaves in the area, added greens (cabbage and shredded paper) and mixed. Threw out the carpet remnants, some old hose, soaker hose, and broken wand. Carl delivered a bag of nitrogen, a bag of seed starter mix, and some bags of soil microbes to the garden.

On Sunday Feb 1, CVG was mentioned in the Commercial Appeal!CVG article in the Commercial Appeal