From the Gardens Registrar: 700/800 Water Line; Leaking Water Station at University Houses; Surplus Produce; Keep Your Paths Clear; Workday Thursday Evening; Plot Clearing; Bean Recipes

Hello Gardeners,

700/800 WATER LINE – Over the last few weeks, our garden workers have been trying very hard to fix a water leak towards the end of this line at Eagle Heights. They have tried a number of different parts, but the leak has continued. Consequently, the water has been turned off and on a number of times. Yesterday, there was another attempt, which we hope is successful. As I type this, the water is back on. But don’t be surprised if it’s off the next time you need to water. We are sorry for the constant problems and uncertainty. Look, we’re at least as desperate to have this fixed for good as you are.

LEAKING WATER STATION AT U HOUSES GARDENS – Just to make sure that the U Houses Gardeners don’t feel left out, we are also fixing the second water station at your gardens, which has been impossible to turn off for the last week or two.

SURPLUS PRODUCE – One of the many annoyances of gardening is the way we either have nothing or we have too much. Take beans, for instance. After you plant them, it seems like a long long time before they begin to produce. Then, at last, you get the first few delicious little beans. Then, suddenly, the deluge starts and you’re drowning in beans. Please remember – if you have more vegetables than you can eat, don’t stop picking them. You can always put the extras on the share shelves. But you can also take them to food pantries. One pantry is St. Vincent de Paul, 2033 Fish Hatchery Road. They accept fresh garden produce Mondays through Fridays, from 9am – 3:30pm, and on Saturdays, from 9am – Noon. A number of our gardeners have been bringing extra produce to this pantry for years. The pantry workers and the people they serve really appreciate fresh vegetables. https://svdpmadison.org/donate/food/

KEEP YOUR PATHS CLEAR – A reminder – you are responsible for keeping a six inch path next to each of your neighbors’ plots. This not only means you shouldn’t plant in that space, but you (and your neighbors) should keep your paths reasonably clear of weeds. The purpose of the paths is to give you and your neighbors full access to your garden plots, plus it leaves a corridor for your hoses if you don’t have a water station right at your plot.

WORKDAY THURSDAY EVENING AT EAGLE HEIGHTS – Tomorrow, July 26, we will have a workday at Eagle Heights from 4pm – 7pm. The project will be clearing thistles from common areas, and chipping the 1300 row, if time permits. Here’s the link to sign up: https://doodle.com/poll/d34gze2u4dii5mdk This is a great opportunity if you have trouble doing workdays on weekends. Plus the weather looks about perfect, and the moon will be almost full.

PLOT CLEARING – Thank you to everybody who emailed to volunteer to clear plots. We got dozens of volunteers. Right now, we have only a small number of empty plots, and we also have some new gardeners who are willing to take a weedy plot and clean it up themselves. But I’ll let people know when we organize some plot-clearing workdays, or when we might have a specific assignment for a few people.

BEANS – Here are some unusual, mostly simple green bean recipes: https://www.southernliving.com/food/entertaining/green-bean-recipes

Happy Gardening,

Kathryn