Welcome Warm Weather Crops: Peppers and Squash
Sunflower
Greetings St. Mary’s Gardener: Thanks for keeping up with our news. We work hard to serve our neighbors at the St. Joseph’s food pantry with freshly grown food from our garden without depleting our soil resources. Please enjoy our news and stay in touch. Please note our wish list toward the bottom of this message if you would like to donate to our cause.
The new hand tools are interesting. Please take a moment to try them out and share feedback with the growers around you. Jason S. is especially impressed with the mini-kana hoe.
We made an initial purchase using funds from the Pope Francis Charitable Trust Fund. The red bins are excellent. Please try the new tools and share feedback. Next up we will purchase seed for cover crops. We may purchase supplies for season extension.
Work Days
Monday, 6/27, 6PM or later if it’s too hot. Concentrate on moving okra seedlings to open spots on the row. The target spacing is 2’ between plants. Continue weeding. Don’t forget to turn the compost tumbler.
Wednesday morning delivery and harvest happens whenever volunteers arrive between 8-9:30am.
With the excessive heat, please work wisely. Bring lots of water and work for short periods of time. It would be best to work with a buddy.
Harvest squash, peppers, and tomatoes any day of the week. (Save basil for Wednesday mornings).
Here’s the procedure:
-Weigh the basket empty and record the basket weight. (The small white baskets are 0.25lbs)
-Harvest into a basket.
-Load up like vegetables into the basket. Note the final weight and subtract the basket weight. Record the vegetable weight in the notebook by the correct date.
You may take the harvest home, store it, and deliver on time for the next pantry delivery (Wednesday mornings by 9:30AM). Or you may deposit the harvest by the church social hall and contact a volunteer who know how to access the cooler (Walter, Jason, Deacon Sega, and maybe a few others). They will store the harvest ASAP.
Approximate $ Value is based on the $3/unit for all main crops (greens, lettuce, onions, peppers, roots, and squash) and $2/unit for herbs (basil and cilantro). This helps us keep the crops on an equal footing.
We are moving into our warm season vegetables like peppers, tomatoes, and squash. Greens slowed down dramatically in the hot weather. It looks like they will not outpace the lettuce.
Wish List
-We need leaves, shredded yard trimmings, and straw and grass clippings for compost and mulch (no sticks, no herbicide)
-Work gloves for little people and children
-We are trying to build more than one Johnson-Su Bioreactor (an interesting composting method). We are looking for the supplies listed on their site: How To Build Your Own Bioreactor
Here’s the list of bioreactor supplies. I am sure that we can find most of these locally.
These supplies are for one reactor. We hope to make multiple reactors.
Landscape cloth (woven, minimum 5 oz.): Piece One: 13’ x 6’, Piece Two: 6’ x 6’, Piece Three: 6’ x 6’
One standard, sturdy shipping pallet with dimensions of approximately 40” x 48”
Wire re-mesh (6” x 6” x 10-gauge wire), used to create a 5’ x 12’ 6” supporting wire cage. This type of remesh is normally used for reinforcing concrete. Be sure to use re-mesh as horse fencing or other similar wire fence products have insufficient vertical strength to hold the cage in position as you fill it.
Four 10’ lengths of perforated, bell-end, 4” septic system drain field piping
Tie wire (normally used to tie rebar together)
-If you wish to make a financial donation please mention the St. Mary’s Community garden in the comment section of the donation page at St. Vincent de Paul Society (St. Joseph Food Pantry) .
We do not need any seedlings at this time. But we can help you find a home through our network of growers.
