From the Gardens Registrar: Opening Day, Sweet Potatoes, Orientations, Mud, and Seed Fair Reminder

Hello Gardeners,

OPENING DAY – We are going to bring tools and garden carts out of the sheds later this week, and are declaring this Saturday, March 23, as our Opening Day. The parking signs along Eagle Heights Drive have been changed to allow garden parking. Portable toilets will be installed at both gardens next week, on Thursday, March 28.  Please note that most parts of both gardens are a combination of frozen and muddy. (see Time to Start? below)

SWEET POTATO PROJECT – We will have some information on this project, including a sign-up sheet and contact information, at the Seed Fair. The program provides free sweet potato slips to gardeners who will donate half of the crop to food pantries.  “The Dane County Sweet Potato project is an opportunity to grow delicious food and support your neighbors. Sweet potato slips are provided free of charge. We ask that you donate half your harvest to a local food pantry. Thank you to all who have grown sweet potatoes for the project in the past and donated their harvests back to the community to improve food security in Dane County and bring more fresh produce into food pantries. Since 2013, residents have provided over 15,000 pounds of sweet potatoes to food pantries and programs serving those in need.”

GARDEN ORIENTATIONS – We are considering adding another orientation to the schedule - Sunday, March 31 at Noon at Eagle Heights Gardens. Are there any new Eagle Heights gardeners who won’t be able to attend an orientation on Saturday, March 30, after the Seed Fair? If so, would you come to an orientation on Sunday? We won’t schedule it if there isn’t much interest, so let me know soon.

TIME TO START? – No, it’s really not, for most of us. Spring is slowly starting (finally), but much of the ground, including the garden paths, is muddy on top and frozen underneath.  The large amount of snow we got this winter came on top of an unusually wet summer; the lower plots at Eagle Heights, and much of University Houses are waterlogged. Most people should not do any work in their plots until they thaw and dry out. (Note that the gardens up on the hill at Eagle Heights are more likely to be workable at this point.) But if you feel like getting outside and getting started, this is a good time to haul leaves to your plot, and leave them in a handy pile to spread later when the soil warms up. You can haul wood chips for your plot paths, too.  

Digging when your garden is muddy is not good for the soil – it compacts it, which makes it harder for plants to send roots through it. This can cause problems for your plot and plants for the rest of the season. An easy way to find out if your plot is workable is to grab a handful of soil, and squeeze it. If it forms a loose ball that easily breaks apart, it’s ready to be dug and planted. But if you’ve got a mud pie on your hands, you’re better off waiting. I know we’re all anxious to put this endless and intense winter behind us, but please don’t play in the mud.

Happy Gardening (soon) and see you at the Seed Fair, (which, as you recall, will be Saturday, March 30, from 9:30 – 11am, at the Eagle Heights Community Center.)

Kathryn