Hi all –
Spotting late blight in your garden beds, due to the heavy rains this season — via an article from Cornell Cooperative, in a Hudson Valley Master Gardener column today:
1) symptoms on leaves, stems or fruits are fairly dramatic , easy to spot. Nickel to quarter-size lesions that are blue-green or brown and look wet appear;
2) leaf or lesion edges may be yellowish, lime green or beige;
3) The edges of water-soaked lesions will be covered with white fungal growth that contains the contagious spores;
4) Petunias are closely related to tomatoes and potatoes, and may be infected, too, with similar symptoms.
SO– if you want fresh tomatoes and your plants suffered, head for the Stranger’s Gate Green Market, 106th & CPW, Saturdays from 10AM to 5-ish for the good fruits saved / harvested by local/regional farmers.
This may answer the questions many of you have asked the past few weeks about strange looking tomatoes and discolored petunias.
LM
Saturday, 7/25/09, 12 Noon — is the time to participate in this fun activity — in the East Garden!
So bring your smiles and a small basket to reap the harvest!
Something to do after pickin’ peaches:
W. 107th Street Festival Honoring Children and Seniors
-July 25, 2009, Saturday 10AM to 6PM
sponsored by the Hispanic Community Organization for Life, Inc.
On W. 107th Between Manhattan and Columbus Aves.
This is a local, fun event with lots of nice music. Stop by or spend the day. Enjoy.
Dear Gardeners (and outdoor chefs),
By now you’ve probably seen our new BBQ. You may not know that we’ve also acquired a Charcoal Chimney—a simple, ingenious device that turns charcoal into glowing coals in a short time without lighter fluid or fluid-soaked charcoal. It’s easy to use and it eliminates noxious fumes and that petrol aftertaste in your food. All you need are a couple sheets of newspaper, matches or a lighter, plain charcoal, and an oven mitt (it gets hot). The chimney is in the west garden shed. Please use it when you BBQ. Neighbors have complained about lighter-fluid fumes, which aren’t healthy for you either.
Thank you,
The Steering Committee
Dear Fellow Garden Members:
Since the last work day, when a number of us cleared the southeast corner of the East Garden of debris and overgrown plants, I have been working with others in the garden on a plan for new personal beds in this area. There have been a number of designs drafted, commented on, and discussed among the steering committee members and others who have been interested in this issue. Please find attached a plan reflecting a workable consensus and/or compromise for new personal bed space in the East Garden.
This plan, labeled D2, shows one long continuous bed along the fence. We are required to maintain 36″ aisles for handicapped access, and so there is an aisle with this width shown between the bed and the stage, as well as around the shed to provide access to the area used presently for storage behind the easternmost shed. It is suggested that the Steering Committee divide this continuous gardening space with posts and rope each year. This allows for maximum flexibility to accommodate more or fewer gardeners, and reduces construction significantly. By my own estimation, I believe we can accommodate at least eight gardeners in this new bed.
There has been discussion of using the space in the corner and behind the eastern shed for additional garden space. This has only recently been used for storage (really only because we placed lumber here that were cleared from along the fence), although some feel that this is best kept for storage use. Physically, we can construct more garden space here, which would not affect the bed shown in D2 – it would be an add-on, and is up for discussion.
Please review this plan and come to the workday on Wednesday evening prepared to discuss its merits and drawbacks, and to vote to move forward with submitting this plan to GreenThumb for approval. If we collectively decide that there are further changes necessary, I will make them. However, this has already gone through an iterative process, and I believe it reflects a good, workable plan. I’ll be presenting this on Wednesday, and welcome your feedback. Any comments preliminary to Wednesday’s meeting are welcomed – please contact Peter at peterbazeli[at]yahoo.com.
Download Plan (PDF 80Kb)
Thank you,
Peter Bazeli
Dear West 104th Street Garden Members,
Our July Garden Workday is this Wednesday evening at 6pm. There is a
lot to talk about and do so, please mark your calendar.
Here are some of the items on the agenda to date:
Discussion with Peter Bazeli regarding the building of new garden
plots on the west side of the garden. Peter sent a detailed email
earlier this weekend with a plan attachment.
Jean Jaworek will report on her findings regarding access to electricity.
Compost needs more frequent attention. Also, do we need a trash can
for finished compost?
Volunteer(s) needed to pick up grass seed and fertilizer
Vote: Yes or No to accept Susan Archambault and Alan Tenney to the
Steering Committee
Looking forward to seeing you on Wednesday,
Janice Vrana
Steering Committee Member
Please take all recyclabes with you out of the garden that you bring into the garden, because:
- We “garbage people” cannot be expected to rummage through the garbage,
- We have no bags for recyclables, and
- We do not want to get a ticket.
Thank you,
Walli (taking care of garbage in May)
The National Gardening Association’s Mid-Atlantic Regional report for January has been released, with articles on Camelias and reminders to:
- Plan For Veggies in Your Flower Garden
- Check, Clean, Sharpen, and Oil Tools
- Replant Rootbound Indoor Plants
- Reapply Deer-Repellent Sprays and Materials
- Have a Family Powwow About More Greening and Recycling
Read more at:
http://www.garden.org/regional/report/arch/3016
We lucked out!
It was a relatively hassle-free delivery, with the alternate side car-parkers cooperating.
The compost is rich, dark and delicious. And there is LOTS of it, we didn’t take the full truck load because it was just too much.
Fortunately the port-a-potty has been taken for the season, so we don’t have to worry that we are blocking it with our new mountain.
Please be careful as you pull the tarp away to grab your share. We used the tarp that was used when the fence was painted silver.
Therefore on the one side of the tarp there are lots of silver particles that shake off as you move it. This will contaminate the soil, PLEASE do your best to handle it delicately.
If anyone has a fresh / spray paint-free tarp that they can offer as an alternative to the one we used, please be generous and share it 
Enjoy!
P.S. two issues:
1. If anyone knows the “generous” landscaper that keeps dropping off the white and HEAVY bags of bad soil for our use, please ask him to stop.
These bags are inhibiting our ability to open the delivery gate.
2. Tree guards are not yet installed and this is a good thing because the dump truck would not have been able to access the delivery gate.
Do we want to consider not installing this guard due to the likelihood that it will prevent future deliveries?
In My Garden
New Regional Blogs!
That Goes, This Stays in the Winter Garden
Resources
Shows & Events: Cast Your Vote for a 2008 Garden Hero
Books: Perennial Garden Care Tracy DiSabato-Aust’s “The Well-Tended Perennial Garden: Planting and Pruning Techniques”
Regional Reminders
* Dig Your Holiday Tree Hole Now
* Fertilize Spring and Summer Bulbs
* Leave Ornamental Grasses and Select Seed Pods
* Empty, Clean and Store Nonweatherproof Containers
* Pop In Pansies, Dwarf Evergreens
National News:
New Award-Winning Christmas Melon
Community Gardens Add Value to Inner City Homes
New Biopesticide Controls Tomato Blight and Mildew
Garden Gloves for Animal Lovers
Read the full newsletter at: http://www.garden.org/regional/report/current/13
