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Welcome new gardeners, and renewing gardeners too!
This a reference sheet for contacts, gardening tips, gardening resources available as we begin to prepare our garden plots for the new year.
SDF community garden website has the following: https://sites.google.com/site/sdfcommunitygarden/home
Events calendar
Documents include "Welcome to SDF Community Garden" resource list and tips. This is always a good go-to list
Planting calendar for Travis County : http://aggie-horticulture.tamu.edu/travis/wp-content/uploads/2013/09/Vegetable-planting-calendar-2012-1.pdf
Monthly general to-do list for gardening: http://www.naturalgardeneraustin.com/this-month-s-to-do-lists/
Good seed companies to consider shopping from:
Good Austin nurseries to check out:
http://www.naturalgardeneraustin.com/
They have the best seed/transplant selection in the area, but are way out in SW Austin. Worth a long trip. Tomato/pepper transplants first shipment arrives around Valentine's Day. Call ahead of time with questions about what's in stock.
http://www.bartonspringsnursery.net/
much less variety, but have basic veggie transplants closer in to town on Bee Caves Rd
The Sustainable Food Center does have classes, including a beginning gardeners' class, which is coming up Feb 13 & 20:
Good contacts to have at the Sustainable Food Center, which oversees the garden to some extent, and serves as a resource for gardeners.
Liz Cardinal, SFC Teaching Garden Coordinator: manages part of our garden liz@sustainablefoodcenter.org
Mia Berger, SFC Education/classes AND Spread the Harvest Coordinator: Mia@sustainablefoodcenter.org
Spread the Harvest Program: Free seeds/ transplants and compost for those who are enrolled in the program. Household income now is a qualifier.
Details are at http://sustainablefoodcenter.org/programs/grow-local/spread-the-harvest
Contact Mia Berger at Mia@sustainablefoodcenter.org
Contacts at the garden to keep handy for questions: (email the garden email address and the appropriate person will get back to you: sdfcommunitygarden@gmail.com)
Corey leads the garden administration and business with SFC
Bob maintains the plot fees and assignments for gardeners
General questions can always be asked to the garden members at large: sdf-community-garden@googlegroups.com (moving to Discord fall of 2024)
And here are a few main tips that are described in the ""Welcome to SDF Community Garden" document on the garden webpage listed above :
Tools- feel free to use the tools in the shed. Spray off dirt before returning them, if necessary.
Every plot at the garden has needed weeds pulled and soil added at the beginning. Preparing the plot for the first time does take some effort, but then when it's over, gardening is much easier. That's when the fun begins.
Weeding. Get all the weeds out before adding soil, if you do add soil. Bermuda grass at the garden can take over your plot if you turn your head too long . If kept in check, it's really not much work maintaining.
If soil is hard/dry, spray down soil a day before digging in order to loosen soil. Weeds are much easier to pull when the soil is damp.
Use cardboard and mulch on paths around plots to smother grass.
Use a shovel to dig bermuda grass up - roots too! If you don't get the roots out, it will come back (It's evil!)
Put pulled weeds/large plants with seeds over by the woods behind the ribbon tree. You'll see the piles already there. Don't put them in the compost piles!
"Feed the soil, and the soil feeds the plants." The most essential part of gardening is to get the soil workable and full of good nutrients and microbes, which in turn feed the plants. This evolves as you work with your soil.
Phase 1 plots are pretty much enriched garden plots, although a few plots still are the bare sand that we all started with. Add some clay loam from the diminishing mound by the wood chips pile. Make sure you pull out Bermuda grass roots as you shovel out this soil. This loam has good mineral content and helps retain moisture when mixed in with sandy soil.
Phase 2 is clay loam (and rocks) on top of sandy cinder. There is very little biological life in the dirt as it is, but it has adequate mineral content. Ideal garden soils have dirt, humus/compost, water and air. If you're growing carrots, dig and loosen the soil even farther down, as they do well in loose, sandy soils.
Using fresh compost can reduce the germination of seeds, so try to use the aged compost, and only as a top dressing. Don't mix in to the soil, or it will compete with your plants for nitrogen at the root level. The first season may be a little less successful, but getting the soil ready is still necessary with the compost.
If you have raised beds, there are pros and cons. Keep in mind that they can dry out faster. Avoid treated lumber, which has all types of toxic chemicals that will leach into your soil.
Go easy on fertilizing new plants. Wait a week after transplanting before fertilizing.
Planting calendar for Travis County. September and early October is the window for planting seeds and transplants for fall/winter.
When planting seeds, follow instructions. Try to water daily until seeds sprout, if the weather is warm and dry. If getting to the garden is difficult every day, partner with someone else and water each other's plots on alternating days. Seeds need soil contact and moisture to germinate. During hotter weather, consider using shades to keep the sun from drying the soil out
In the shed is a "Johnny's Selected Seeds" catalog. This has answers to every question imaginable about starting seeds, the temperatures they need, moisture, etc. Valuable reference to read through!
Muddy driveway/entrance:
if we've had a rain, especially a good hard rain, the access road will probably be risky to drive on for at least a day. Be cautious about this and check it out before driving on it.
You can park at the wide area by the MLK Blvd entrance and walk along the dirt road, or park beyond the traffic circle by the CapMetro train station (look for parking signs), and then cross through the station by foot.
There have been a number of vehicles mired in the muck in the past.
Eventually the road is planned to be topped off with large gravel. Our garden does not maintain it, and is somewhere in the joint jurisdiction of the Meredith Foundation, the SFC and other entities.
Consider starting tomatoes/pepper transplants 1 month early, starting about Valentine's Day:
I like to plant tomato transplants as early as possible in order to get a longer harvest period out of them, and to be able to pick tomatoes a full month earlier by using these Walls o' Water. I've been using the same set for about 6 years and love them. They allow you to plant warm season crops by insulating them with water to withstand below-freezing temperatures. These also protect your plants when they're small and tender from winds and birds. They do work.
I paid $12 for a pack of 3, so they may be a little more expensive now. Search on Google for companies that sell them to compare prices. I copied the first one I saw listed below, for reference.
Wall O' Water Plant Protectors (3-Pack) | Planet Natural
Wall O Waters enable organic gardeners to start tomatoes, peppers, squash or other plants 6-8 weeks earlier, without fear of freezing. Protects to 16°F.
Lastly, if you need help with getting your plot ready, email the group at large, and probably a few will offer to help you. Same thing goes with gardening questions in general. We have a friendly and sharing group of gardeners. Welcome.
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