From the Gardens Registrar: Plant Exchange and Compost Sale; Dumpsters and Weed Piles; Keep the Paths Clear; Cancellations and Refunds (last reminder for the year); Garden Committee Co-Chairs; Workday

Hello Gardeners,

PLANT EXCHANGE AND COMPOST SALE - On Sunday, May 28, we will have a plant exchange at Eagle Heights, near the shed, from 10am – 12:00 Noon. If you have extra plants, please bring them, and maybe you can pick up a plant you want from somebody else. Please note that these plants have not been raised in greenhouses and are not guaranteed to be free from disease. (You might want to quarantine them under observation for a few days before adding them to your garden). We will also have free seeds available – for summer crops, such as summer and winter squash, cucumbers, and melons.

Also, compost from the University’s West Agricultural Research Station will be for sale. The price will be $5 for half a garden cart, approximately 3.5 cubic yards. Our garden workers will load the carts. Payment will be in cash only – please bring exact change. ($5 bills are best.) Come early – we’ll probably sell out.

DUMPSTERS – Just a reminder that the dumpsters are only for throwing away trash. Do not throw weeds or other vegetable material into the dumpsters. Also, please do not throw trash in the weed piles – those are for weeds and unwanted vegetable material. It is important to throw things away correctly because of what happens next in the process. The dumpsters are emptied by the University. If the people emptying the dumpsters find plant material in them, they can (and will) refuse to dump them. And then, we will have to pay to get rid of what’s in that dumpster. The weed piles are emptied by the Village of Shorewood, which trucks our weeds to an organic landfill. If they find trash among the vegetation, they can’t dump it there. Instead, we will have to pay for it to be dumped elsewhere. So this really is important.

By the way, if you have plastic pots from seedlings and plants, and they’re still in decent shape, you can leave them on or near the share shelves – other people may want them.

KEEP THE PATHS CLEAR – You may have noticed that the garden workers are mowing the paths – they’re looking really good. Please do not impede the mowing – do not leave stuff from your plot in the paths. This includes but is not limited to: chairs, cages, old wood frames, hoses, buckets, pots, plastic milk jugs, bricks, etc. (It’s amazing what you find in the paths sometimes….)  And please do not leave your hose connected to the water spigots.

CANCELLATIONS/REFUNDS – Last chance – if you’re realizing you won’t be in town this summer, or won’t have time to take care of your plot, May 31 will be the last day you can cancel your plot and still get half of your fees refunded. If you cancel after May 31, I still need to know, so I can assign your garden to someone from the waiting list. But we can’t give refunds after May 31. So if you decide to cancel, let me know as soon as possible.

GARDEN COMMITTEE CO-CHAIRS – We have been overwhelmed with the total lack of response to the request for candidates for garden committee co-chairs. It’s time to turn on the guilt: if you love our gardens, and care about our future, please consider serving a term as a co-chair. It will look great on a resume. Contact me if you’re interested or have questions.

WORKDAY – This weekend’s workday will be at Eagle Heights on SUNDAY, MAY 28, starting at 1pm, after the plant exchange and compost sale. The task will be organizing perimeter brush debris and working emerging thistle in the East tree line. Please bring gloves. Here’s the link to sign up: http://doodle.com/poll/u3if9nkm8nxte4i5

Happy gardening,

Kathryn