From the Gardens Registrar: Bicycles, Compost Sale; Leaves; Compost Tea; Garlic Planting; Workday

Hello Gardeners,

BICYCLES IN THE GARDENS – We are all very glad that so many people ride their bicycles to and through our gardens. Bicycles are definitely allowed and encouraged. But please remember that our gardens are part of the Lakeshore Nature Preserve, and bicycles are not allowed in the prairie and woods in the Preserve. Bicycles are a great method of transportation, but they can be very destructive to natural ecosystems. So, within the gardens, yes, but outside of the gardens, no, except on paved paths.

COMPOST SALE – We still have some compost left from the West Ag Station, and we will be selling it the last weekend of this month, October 28 or 29, depending on the weather. The price will be $5 per half-cart, and our garden workers will load the carts. This will be a great opportunity to get mulch to use when you’re preparing your garden beds for the winter. I’ll announce the day and times in my next message.

The sale will be at Eagle Heights. BUT if your plot is at University Houses, you can put in a request for mulch to be delivered! We’ll have a Doodle poll set up for you to use to make your requests. I’ll get you the link for that in my next message too.

LEAF MULCH – University Houses will be getting more leaves this fall, which we hope will last through next summer. As you’ll remember (bitterly), the constant wet weather this spring made it impossible to deliver leaves to you, so UH was without leaves for many months. This time, you should have plenty for a long time.

At Eagle Heights, we will also get leaves, but we are trying to delay delivery, because the big weed pile construction project has finally started, and we want to avoid conflicts between all the trucks. However, we know that gardeners want leaves for their gardens, and Shorewood also wants to get rid of them, so Eagle Heights will still get leaves pretty soon, in our usual spot. Meanwhile, the CALS garden plots, in the northwest part of the garden space, next to the Water Utility building, will be getting leaves, and we can use some of those as well.

ACTIVELY AERATED COMPOST TEA – On Saturday, October 21, Gary K., our garlic czar and compost tea guru, will be bringing containers of compost tea to share with fellow gardeners. This tea, when mixed with water and spread on your plot, introduces useful microbes to your soil. It will be available 9am – Noon. You may use the water in the gardens, or else bring a gallon of (hopefully non-chlorinated) water from home. Gary will also have handouts in case you’d like to make your own.

GARLIC PLANTING – Now is the time. Jung’s garden centers have seed garlic for sale, or you could buy it at Farmers’ Markets or even the grocery store. Here’s a website that looks like it has good information, though the gardener lives in Pennsylvania. http://www.veggiegardeningtips.com/how-to-plant-fall-garlic/ Also, if you have questions about planting garlic, stop in on Saturday morning, and talk to Gary K.

WORKDAY – This weekend’s workday will be at Eagle Heights, on Sunday, October 22, from 1pm – 4pm. AN AFTERNOON WORKDAY YOU WON’T HAVE TO GET UP EARLY FOR! The project will be clearing the fruit tree lines for tree tubing, which keeps the rodents off the bark. Please bring gloves – there are lots of thistles in the tree lines. Here’s the link to sign up: https://doodle.com/poll/r483zc6ttyg322tr

Happy gardening,

Kathryn