2nd floor planters - first peppers

2nd floor planter

2nd floor planters - pics

Looks like some unwanted succulants are invading the planter! They already have their first strawberry.

More Plantings!

In case you have not seen, there are new plants on the 2nd floor. I saw beans, beets, peppers, an orange tree, tomatoes, strawberries and an entire herb garden. Thanks to Craig for getting a water key so that the groups can use the faucet on the 2nd floor. Looks like it is going to be a great crop.

How to Plant a Fall Vegetable Garden

By eHow Home & Garden Editor

Don't think just because the tomatoes and green beans are harvested that your gardening is done for the season. Smart gardeners know the end of summer means it's time to plant their cool season crops. So get those gardening gloves back out and try some of these fall garden delights.

Things You’ll Need:

• Tiller
• Vegetable seeds
• Mulch

Step1

Clear the garden of weeds and any summer crops that are past their prime.

Step2

Till the soil to a depth of 6 to 8 inches and plant the seeds. It's best to plant the vegetable seeds a bit deeper than your summer garden crops to help them stay cool and moist.

Step3

Choose from a variety of fall vegetables such as broccoli, cauliflower, onions, carrots, beets, peas, kohlrabi and flowering kale. Many types of cabbages also do well in cool weather.

Step4

Shade the garden soil with a light mulch. It will regulate the soil temperature which will help with germination.

Attack of the Killer Tomatoes

Check out the progress of the tomatoes and corn planted by our organizers.

Teams 3 and 5 are planning!

Team 3 and Team 5 have been meeting to plan their plantings. Here is Chong, Ralph and Donna of Team 3 thinking about how to get water to their planter.

Lessons Learned from Jan

Lessons learned today 8/7/08 - Watering planter on the 2nd floor outside patio area was quit a challenge. First and most importantly, for those who are fair skinned and burn easy, proper attire should be worn when attending to planters (hat, sun glasses, sun block etc). Planters are located in direct sun without any shade and soil is extremely dry. A "garden" water can is not large enough to provide a thorough watering. I made four trips to the sink inside the building filling an empty 20 gal plastic water bottle almost to the top every time and this really wasn't enough.

Second, best time to do watering (once we find a garden vegetable that can tolerate the all day direct summer sun....perhaps corn?) is very early a.m. and/or after 7:00 pm.

Third - What teams have a planter on the 2nd floor patio area besides Team 5? Maybe we could exchange info/ideas with them on how they have watered their planter..... Thanks for listening and thanks for your help.

I know our team was late getting started, and we're still excited about growing our own and will continue on. However, I propose for future planting, teams rotate planter locations. Or perhaps we could put up some kind of shade cover or umbrella for the 2nd floor and the drip irrigation setup is a great idea.

-Jan

Planter Teams

Team 1 CJ, Lori, Jocelyn

Team 2 Erika, Matt, Nancy (Mentor: Tina)

Team 3 Ralph, Sofi, Chong, Donna (Mentor: CJ)

Team 4 Catherine, Peggy, Jeannie (Mentor: Tina)

Team 5 Santina, Cynthia, Jan, Natasha (Mentor: Craig)
Team 6 Tina, Craig, Kelly
Team 7 Yan and Heidi

July 31 Minutes

Adoption of Mission Statement and By-Laws
Two changes were made: adding temps, contractors and consultants to make Society officially inclusive; and changing “those who may not have space or capability of growing their own” to “Unified Garden Society Members”. Mission Statement and By-Laws were adopted with those changes.A healthy discussion ensued about the true meaning of consensus versus majority vote.

Discussion about Logistics
Planting schedule: Tina distributed a handout showing appropriate planting times for various food crops. A suggestion was made that, due to the late start, teams consider planting nursery seedlings and intersperse those with seeds to get immediate results as well as satisfaction from seed growing.

Planters: There was discussion about adding two interested newcomers to existing teams or purchasing additional planters. The suggestion was made to get existing planters started with growth before purchasing new planters. Newcomers were added to existing teams.

Craig will inquire about rounding up some additional concrete planters from around the District that aren’t being used and having them brought over.

Jan suggested bringing a request to the ELG, but a discussion ensued that this is strictly a volunteer project to benefit the Society members. There may be interest in Port support in the future, but for now we have all agreed to be self-sufficient.

Watering: Many members have commented about watering. Tina, Kelly and Craig divide their watering duties with Craig on Mondays, Tina in Wednesdays and Kelly on Fridays. Tina has provided a watering can for the ground-level teams. 2nd floor teams will need to procure a watering can. Eventually, Crais hopes to install a solar-powered drip irrigation system.

Cleaning up: Members need to be diligent about keeping all planting areas neat and cleaning up after themselves. Tina will donate a dustpan for the purpose and Craig will try to find a broom. Teams can’t leave messes or create extra work for gardeners or custodians. Craig will look into finding an appropriate storage area for broom, dustpan and other group supplies.

Sharing Tips and Advice

Santina suggested starting a list of what each team is planting. Lori agreed to start the document in DM5 and send it around. Cynthia suggested adding to the list whatever seeds members have available to share, as a seed bank. Tina has a few gardening books that she will loan to interested members (but members will have to sign them out).

Jeannie offered to bring an unused rotating composter. Craig asked her to first provide photos and dimensions to make sure we have room for it.

Café Ole is currently putting some of their green waste into the compost bin. It is already at capacity, so members can’t yet put their waste into the bin. We are investigating the possibility of adding composting capacity. Eventually, we hope to generate enough compost for the Port to use on planted areas close to the water, to replace synthetic fertilizers.

Lori suggested having the Port reimburse the Society for the compost. Craig discussed the idea of setting up a barter system. We could also set up a “farmer’s market” table, just outside of Café Ole, where any Port employee could leave surplus produce from their gardens to share with all other employees.

Upcoming Speakers and Field Trips

September 4: Bill Tall from City Farmer’s Nursery will give a presentation on home composting titled “Lunchtime Trash: How to Eat it Again.” Kelly will send details and advertise the presentation Port-wide.

Those present agreed that lunchtime was a good meeting time. Tina will send the next appointment and ask for a volunteer to put together the next meeting agenda and lead the meeting.

Lavender Lemon Cookies

With their lavender scent, delicious lemon syrup and sparkly sugar, these cookies are extra-special. I know it looks like a lot of steps, but trust me, these cookies are worth it! Bring these to a holiday or New Year's party and everyone will thank you for bringing a great alternative to all the heavy chocolately stuff of the season. They're also fantastic with tea!

Ingredients:
1 tablespoon dried culinary lavender buds
1 tablespoon plus 3/4 cups sugar
1/4 pound (1 stick) unsalted butter, at room temperature
1 large egg
1 1/4 teaspoons grated lemon zest
1/2 teaspoon vanilla extract
1 1/4 cups all-purpose flour
1 1/2 teaspoons baking powder
1/4 teaspoon salt
Lavender lemon syrup (recipe below)
Lavender Sprinkling sugar (recipe below)

Recipe:
Combine the lavender and 1 tablespoon of the sugar in a spice grinder and pulse until finely ground. Transfer to a large bowl. Add the butter and the remaining 3/4 cup sugar. Beat with an electric mixer until smooth. Beat in the egg, lemon zest, and vanilla. Sometimes I double or even triple the recipe as one batch is never enough!

Sift together the flour, baking powder, and salt. Add to the butter mixture and beat until blended. Cover the bowl with plastic wrap and refrigerate for 3 hours or overnight, until the dough is well chilled.

Prepare the syrup.

Prepare the sprinkling sugar.

Preheat the oven to 325 degrees. Line 2 baking sheets with parchment paper.

Slice the logs into 1/2-inch coins and place on the prepared baking sheets. Using a pastry brush, generously coat the top side of the cookies with the syrup. Dust with the sprinkling sugar. Bake for 8 to 12 minutes, or until golden brown. Transfer the cookies to a wire rack and cool completely.

Lavender Lemon Syrup
Combine 1 tablespoon dried culinary lavender buds and 1 tablespoon of sugar in a spice grinder and pulse until finely ground. Transfer to a small saucepan. Stir in 3/4 cup of fresh lemon juice, 1 tablespoon of honey and 1 tablespoon of grated lemon zest and 3/4 cup of sugar. Bring to a simmer over medium heat, stirring occasionally. Cook for 1 minute, or until the sugar is dissolved. Set aside to cool. If you aren't going to use this right away, you can put a lid on your container and store in your fridge. Should be good for about a week.

Lavender Sprinkling Sugar
Combine 1/2 teaspoon of dried culinary lavender buds and 1 tablespoon of sugar in a spice grinder and pulse until findely ground. Transfer to a small bowl and stir in the remaining sugar. You could set this aside too, if you're making it all in advance. This sugar is also scrumptious on many things that have nothing to do with these cookies! I put it in coffe & tea and use it in other baking. It's really good for making meringues!

Lime Basil Dressing

1/2 cup fresh basil
2 cloves garlic
3 TBSP cup fresh lime juice
1/4 cup olive oil
sat and pepper to taste

Dump said ingredients in your food processor. Blend until smooth. Dump over bite sized, cooked yukon gold potatoes to make a light potato salad, or a green salad of your choice.

Lori, CJ and Jocelyn's garden

They planted eggplant, basil, bush beans, oregano, chamomile and carrots - which have sprouted!

Tina, Craig and Kelly's Garden

They planted corn, lettuce, tomatoes, basil, peppers and marigolds (to repel pests).

City Farmer's Nursery Event 8/2