May Garden Resource Day/ Our week at work/ Maximizing Growing Space

Hey all,

Dates:

The next Garden Resource Day at the Ft. Scott Community Garden will be on May 12, 10am-1pm. We'll continue to have seedlings to give away, so if yours were eaten, plan on some protection before you replant. 

And not related to the gardens, but good to know: the Presidio Spring Cleaning Day (for residents only) will be on May 19. 

This has been a bit of a stressful week. We had an education program all set for Monday morning which canceled because of the rain. Tuesday was the Spring Planting Cut-off and unfortunately quite a few folks didn't meet the deadline. It's never fun to be the enforcer but I try to be as fair as possible, keeping in mind that other neighbors are waiting for a turn to use a garden plot and that we want to promote well-maintained, attractive, and weed/pest free community spaces in the park. For everyone who did tend their gardens-we're *so* glad you're continuing to participate in the community garden program. Many of the plots looked really lovely :) Enjoy the harvests to come! And don't forget to start watering twice a week now that the rains have stopped.

Moving on this week we have 3 good sized volunteer groups coming out- Salesforce, Redaptive, and Earth Day in the next 3 days. Taylor and I have big plans for getting the Ft. Scott Garden all cleaned up and ready for a new season. Finally, tomorrow I have an additional intern starting- Emily will be joining us for six months and we're super excited! 

Here's Taylor's new post on: Maximizing Growing Space
Hello community gardeners of the Presidio! It’s that time of year where Jean and I are out checking gardens to make sure everyone is planting. A wonderful added bonus of visiting your gardens is seeing how creatively each of you use the space you’ve been given. I love observing the differences between garden beds and contemplating how everyone arranges their spaces in totally different ways. Your creativity has inspired me to do some of my own research and write this blog post on maximizing growing space in your raised bed gardens. 

1) Think of your garden in layers
Start with the tallest crop (artichokes, tomatoes, peas, fava beans) then think of mid-level/low-level crops that might create beneficial relationships with your tallest crop. For example, lettuces, chard, and rhubarb thrive under shady conditions. Perhaps placing a few chard and lettuce plants underneath your tall artichokes may help you to grow more food while also maximizing garden space! Remember to utilize your horizontal AND vertical space. Pole beans, tomatoes, peas, and squash can be trellised- leaving a whole lower level of garden space for you to plant shade-loving vegetables. Thinking of your garden in layers can help you to produce more food in a small amount of space. 

2) Succession planting
This one is pretty simple- don’t plant all of your veggies at the same time! Odds are they are going to grow at pretty much the same pace (especially if they are greens like lettuce, chard, and spinach) and you will find yourself with a whole lot of food that you don’t know what to do with! Staggering planting times can really help to keep you with a consistent and manageable amount of food. Do a little bit of planning and research and see how much time the plant that you are growing takes to mature. If you have a packet of radish seeds, don’t sow them all into your garden at once. Space out your plantings/sowings so that you always have radishes in your garden bed that are ready to harvest. 

3) Inter-planting/companion planting
I could probably write a whole blog post on this topic alone! Basically, there are certain vegetables that have been reported to grow well together. For example, planting basil next to tomatoes can improve the flavor and growth of the tomatoes because of the basil’s ability to repel certain pests that often plague tomato plants. Beans and peas are great for planting alongside most crops as they help to enrich soil by fixing nitrogen to their roots and pulling it to the top layer of soil. Beets are also great soil-enrichers and are great companions with lettuce, onions, and brassicas. However, it’s also important to remember that some plants do not make very good companions! For example, beans and beets have been observed to stunt one another’s growth when grow side by side. Do a little bit of research on companion plants before placing new plants into your bed and maybe you’ll be able to keep some pests away, or maybe you’ll plant crops that will help enrich your soil and your other veggies!

Hope you all are enjoying your gardens in these beautiful spring days, email me if you have any garden related questions- tjais@presidiotrust.gov
Taylor

Last Reminder- Spring Planting Cut-off is tomorrow and some inspiration

Hi everyone,

If you're a procrastinator, you've made it to the very last day to clean up and plant your assigned garden plot if you want to continue being able to use it.

If you haven't visited your garden plot in the last 2 weeks, I really recommend a visit today- you might be surprised at how quickly the weeds grow!

Sending out emails taking garden plots away is the least favorite part of my job- seriously-this is not pleasant for me and it's a huge, time-consuming task. If you haven't planted yet this season, please reevaluate your time available to tend a garden (despite what I know are tons of good intentions and wishes) and perhaps send me a message turning the plot over. Or brave the sun and rain today to weed and plant! Why?...

Growing your own food and eating a plant-based and locally grown diet is one of the top things you can do to combat your contributions to climate change. I just read "Drawdown: the most comprehensive plan ever proposed to reverse global warming" edited by Paul Hawken in advance of giving a presentation to a sustainability summit about our efforts in the Presidio. If you need some inspiration they identify and rank the 100 biggest impacts. Eating a plant-rich diet is #4 and reducing food waste is #3. If you're a fan of Michael Pollan, as I am, he reminds us that growing a garden is one of the most powerful things an individual can do. This is mostly carbon-dioxide-producing-free fuel for you, great exercise, with the bonus of being outside and recognizing that your body is good for doing something- that you can produce something tangible and delicious. So take advantage of this amazing opportunity- despite the setbacks, the rodents, the learning curve...there's nothing like putting dinner on the table for friends or family and proudly saying "I grew this!"

Clear the Greenhouse!

Happening now- the April Garden Resource Day at the Ft Scott Community Garden!

Red oakleaf lettuce
Red romaine lettuce
Sugar snap peas
Red Russian kale
Arugula
Spinach
Chard
Cauliflower
Calabrese Broccoli
Green cabbage
DiCicco broccoli

There are more of some and less of others. Come early for the best selection and enjoy this beautiful day in the garden!
plus compost!

Fine us at the end of Wisser Court near 1330 Kobbe. Have a terrific weekend :)

Spring Planting Cut-off/ April Schedule/ Chard Torta recipe

Greetings community garden members!

Spring is in full swing- sun, rain, seedlings, and flowers! But also tiny slugs, weeds going to seed, and last year's vegetables bolting. Have you visited your plot to see what's changed? 

The Spring planting cut-off is on Tuesday, April 17. This is a hard deadline, which means warnings will not be issued. If your garden hasn't been tended and has weeds (including miners lettuce and chickweed) and/or vegetables flowering (i.e. kale, arugula) you will not get a warning, but will forfeit your plot. Pathways around garden beds also need to be weeded. 

Next week is our last week of evening garden visits- Baker Beach gardens 3+4 on Tuesday, and South Baker Beach on Thursday. The next Garden Resource Day is Saturday, April 14: all the leftover seedlings will be available from 10am-1pm. Come by and plant a few in your plot! Map to Ft. Scott Garden

Spring pests- while watering and harvesting, spend time looking for (and removing) pests on your plants. Look closely for aphids, leaf miner eggs, and Cabbage White butterfly caterpillars. Snails, slugs, earwigs, and pill bugs (roly polys) all do significant damage to seedlings and tender plants. Keeping a tidy garden bed and weeded paths helps control pests by reducing habitat for them; removing or treating problem pests before the population explodes is key to a healthy harvest.

Wondering what to do with those chard and kale towers as they bolt? Harvest the greens before pulling them out! This recipe for Chard, Mushroom, and Ricotta Torta can be used with most cooking greens. Taylor taught her fellow interns how to make it last month and it was a hit!

Chard, Mushroom, and Ricotta Torta

Ready in 1 ½ hours; Serves 6-8 people

Ingredients

• 1 pound frozen bread dough, thawed (can substitute pizza dough or puff pastry)
• 3 pounds chard
• 1 tablespoon minced garlic
• 1 tablespoon olive oil
• 2 large eggs
• ¾ cup ricotta cheese
• 1 cup sauteed mushrooms
•  2 teaspoons grated lemon peel
• ¼ teaspoon ground nutmeg
•  ¼ teaspoon salt
•  ¼ teaspoon pepper

Preparation

1. Separate the bread dough into two pieces. With floured hands, flatten both portions into disks. Cover both disks with wax paper and let stand while preparing filling.

2. Rinse chard and tear leaves from stems, compost stems.

3. Pour oil into a 12-inch frying pan over medium-high heat; when hot add garlic and stir about 1 minute. Add chard and stir frequently until evenly wilted, 12-15 minutes. Transfer mixture to a strainer and let drain until cool enough to handle. Squeeze chard to remove all liquid and then coarsely chop.

4. Slice mushrooms thinly and place in the 12 inch frying pan that is on medium-high heat. Add a pinch of nutmeg and stir until mushrooms are evenly cooked, 10-15 minutes.

5. In a bowl, mix chard, 1 egg, ricotta, mushrooms, lemon peel, nutmeg, salt, and pepper.

6. With a lightly floured rolling pin, on a lightly floured surface, roll the larger portion of the dough into a 12 inch round about ¼ inch thick. Fit the round into a 10-inch cheesecake pan (though any cake or pie pan will work) and fold excess dough down so that edges come about halfway up sides of pan; press dough gently against sides of pan. Add chard mixture and spread level. Roll remaining dough into a 10 inch round. Center over filling and pinch with the sides to seal. In a small bowl beat remaining egg. Brush top crust with the beaten egg, discard remainder.

7. Bake in a 375F degree oven until top is richly browned, 35-40 minutes. Let cool about 10 minutes, then run a small sharp knife between tart and pan to loosen. Use a serrated knife to slice into wedges. Serve warm or cool.