Castle Street Community Garden Day May 2, 2010

We had our first big (big coming from the "single serving garden") harvest today!

We harvested almost 6 pounds of kale, a pound of peas, red chard, 3 strawberries, lettuce, chamomile, and potatoes (they were very small, but the plants had died back). 

It was also Toni's birthday! The picture below shows Toni and Ethan planting Toni's birthday Jewel Nasturtium. It is a variegated variety with white and green leaves. We planted it in the Children's Garden to add some bright color to the thriving greens they have growing this season.

Steve, Chris and Angelica weeding, harvesting and watering.

Our cabbages (just cabbage?) are coming up nicely, although were you see the empty looking spots are places were plants have unexpectedly died. There is a suspicious whole towards the back corner of this garden that looks like somebody's home, but I have yet to identify the culprit. I think this somebody is also responsible for the disappearance of the sunflowers we planted in the back of the garden. The plants were completely gone and where each one had been was a small hole. The investigation continues. 

We had an amazing number of cucumber volunteers. The rows are ones we planted from starts, but in the front of the picture are those that came up of their own volition. We have started thinning them out by digging up the bigger ones and transplanting them. We could tell they were cucumbers by the distinctive taste of the shoots when we first pulled a few up. We have some other volunteers and I am not sure how many are "true" squash or cucumbers. We may have some "squashumbermelons" to taste test in a few months.

We also harvested some red chard today and most of the plants are looking strong. This was not a bed that we filled with topsoil, we used horse manure, cardboard, compost and sand. I think the size difference is based on uneven nutrient distribution. We had a similar pattern in other beds. The solution? More is more when it comes to natural soil amendments.

We have started meeting later in the afternoon to escape the heat and to enjoy the longer days. Come see us Sundays from 5:30- 7:30 at Castle Street Community Gardens, 317 Castle Street.