From the Registrar August 26, 2021

Hello Gardeners,

If you have more produce than you know what to do with you might be thinking about preserving it for later.

Canning: The USDA's guide to home canning is available here:

https://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/publications_usda.html

Freezing: If you don’t want to can, or don’t have the time, freezing is another great way to preserve food. There are some helpful guidelines here:

https://nchfp.uga.edu/publications/uga/uga_freeze_veg.pdf

Food pantries: If you’d like to donate your extra produce, here is the local food pantry information again:

• Second Harvest Food Bank is accepting donations of food, Mon-Fri 8am-4pm. Their address is 2802 Dairy Dr. Madison, WI 53718
• The River Food Pantry River will accept donations of fresh produce Mon 7am-3pm and Tue-Fri 7am-10am. They’d appreciate a call or email in advance if possible. Phone #: (608)-442-8815) email: info@riverfoodpantry.org
• St Vincent de Paul food pantry is not currently accepting food donations

Share shelf: Or you can always put your extra produce on the share shelf for other gardeners.

Thanks, and happy gardening,

Lily

From the Registrar August 18, 2021

Hello Gardeners,

I hope everyone is enjoying the harvests from their gardens!

Please never dig outside your plot borders: Every plot has a post in each corner to mark the borders. Please do not dig or plant beyond the posts and outside the borders of your plot in the paths. Our water lines are fragile and close to the surface. Digging in the paths risks damaging or cutting the water lines, which unfortunately happened recently. Any time this happens, the water must be turned off for large sections of the garden, potentially for a number of days, and gardeners can’t water their plants. It also takes time and energy for the garden workers to make the repairs. Digging and planting in the paths also makes it harder for everyone to get through to their plots. Lastly, your plants are at risk of being mowed if they are outside your borders.

Revisal to birdhouse request: A gardener has mentioned that no occupied birdhouses should be taken down. The Friends of the Lakeshore Nature Preserve would like to see no birdhouses in the gardens in the future, but if you have a birdhouse that’s occupied, leave it up for the rest of the season and you can take it down in the Fall.

Are animals eating your tomatoes? You can protect the fruit on your plants by putting plastic clamshells on them while they ripen. The clamshells that berries come in can be clamped over the tomatoes while they’re still attached to the stem, and nothing can eat them.

Bean beetle update: We’re getting reports of many parasitized bean beetle larvae, which is great news. This means that the parasitic wasps are doing well and keeping the bean beetle population down.

Thanks, and happy gardening,

Lily

From the Registrar August 4, 2021

Hello Gardeners,

Lake weeds: If you didn’t get any lake weeds for your garden yet and you would like some, there are still some between the leaf mulch and wood chips at Eagle Heights. Please remember to be careful where you spread them and to wash your hands.

Independent workday opportunities at Eagle Heights: We have a couple of plots that need to be cleared of weeds at Eagle Heights. Please let me know if you’d be interested, and available to do this soon.

Birdhouses: Unfortunately, birdhouses attract house sparrows. House sparrows chase out native birds like bluebirds and purple martins and will destroy eggs and kill baby birds. If you have a birdhouse in your plot, please take it down.

Water at Eagle Heights: The water leaks at Eagle Heights will be worked on tomorrow morning. I will let everyone know when there are updates.

Thanks, and happy gardening,

Lily

From the Registrar July 28, 2021

Hello Gardeners,

Bittersweet nightshade: Bittersweet nightshade (Solanum Dulcamara) is a plant from the same family as tomatoes, potatoes, peppers, and eggplants. It is toxic and can be dangerous for children, especially since it has small red berries. If you see this plant in your plot you should remove it. Here are some photos to help with identification: https://kingcounty.gov/services/environment/animals-and-plants/noxious-weeds/weed-identification/bittersweet-nightshade.aspx

Weed pile vs dumpster: This is just a reminder that the dumpster is only for trash, and the weed pile is only for weeds.

Weedy fences: Fences can be helpful for keeping pests out, but weeds and grass tend to get tangled up in them. Please remember to keep your fences clear of weeds.

Thistle monitors: We're looking for some volunteers to take on a longer-term job that would count for workday credit. We have some areas with a lot of thistles at both gardens that need to be watched between workdays. The thistle monitors would need to check their areas twice a week and pull out any thistles that come up. The areas wouldn’t be too large, and you could do the thistle pulling on your own schedule. A gardener did this in an area of Eagle Heights last year, and after nine visits the thistles were gone. The weeding should take less time with each visit. Please let me know if you would be interested!

Thanks, and happy gardening,

Lily

From the Registrar July 21, 2021

Hello Gardeners,

Some identification photos: Last week I forgot to send identification photos with my note about squash bugs and Japanese beetles. Here are some links to help identify them if you have them in your plot. There are also some good tips here about how to manage them. Please remember that if you garden anywhere in Eagle Heights and in the organic section of University Houses you must use only organic gardening methods to deal with pests.

Squash bug: https://extension.umn.edu/fruit-and-vegetable-insects/squash-bugs
Japanese beetle: https://extension.umn.edu/yard-and-garden-insects/japanese-beetles

Fence etiquette: If you have climbing plants, please make sure they stay in your plot and don’t climb over your neighbor's fence or into their plot.

Parasitic wasps: We released the parasitic wasps to combat the bean beetles last week. There haven't been signs of them flying around yet, but hopefully we will see them soon.

Tools: Please don’t take tools from another gardener’s plot to use in your garden. If you garden at Eagle Heights, you need to have your own hose to water your garden. The hoses at University Houses are shared, and both gardens have a large selection of tools for everyone to use.

Thanks, and happy gardening,

Lily

From the Registrar July 14, 2021

Hello Gardeners,

Pollinators: The gardens are a great place to support pollinators, which are declining around the world.

Here is an interesting site about pollinators: https://www.pollinator.org/pollinators.

This is a great resource from the University about supporting pollinators in your garden: https://pollinators.wisc.edu/

And now for some less beneficial insects. If you weren’t already tired of dealing with potato beetles and bean beetles, unfortunately we’ve had some reports of more insect pests.

Squash bugs: Adult squash bugs look quite a bit like stink bugs but are narrower. The nymphs are gray with black legs. You might find them gathering together on the undersides of squash plant leaves. They especially like squash (winter and summer), but will eat anything in the cucurbit family, so they might attack cucumbers and melons as well. It’s a good idea to start trying to get rid of them as soon as you see signs. Picking off the bugs and eggs and dumping them in soapy water is the best method. Some people have success with neem oil.

Japanese beetles: Japanese beetles are actually quite pretty. They’re an iridescent green and copper color. They will eat quite a few things but love to eat beans and raspberries. The same soapy water method is best for them too.

Independent workday opportunity at Eagle Heights: We’re looking for a volunteer to clear the weeds from a half plot at Eagle Heights. Please let me know if you’re interested and can do the workday soon.

Thanks, and happy gardening,

Lily

From the Registrar July 7, 2021

Hello Gardeners,

Parasitic wasps: The parasitic wasps have been ordered to combat the Mexican bean beetles and should arrive next week. We have some plots to put them in at Eagle Heights, but we still need a place at University Houses if bean beetles have been found there. If you garden at University Houses and have beans, please check for beetles and let me know if you’d be willing to host some wasps.

What can you plant now? A few gardeners have been wondering if it’s too late to plant. It’s not! There are still things that will do well and produce a crop if planted later in summer. There are some planting guides on our website that are a good reference if you’re interested.

Under “How to”: http://eagleheightsgardens.org/gardens/organic-growing/

Spots still open for UH workday: We still have a couple of spots open for the University Houses workday this Sunday from 9-12. Please let me know if you’re interested.

Thanks, and happy gardening,

Lily