Compost giveaways/ Fall Pizza Potluck

Hello Presidio Community Gardening friends,

I hope you are enjoying the last few weeks of summer. Our harvests have been going strong, and the new edible flower beds are wildly productive. 

We've been working our way around to the neighborhood community garden sites to weed and mulch with the monthly Garden Stewards program. Coming up we'll be at Baker Beach #2 on 8/22 and Baker Beach #4 on 9/26- come out and help out (or make sure to weed your paths before we get there!)

edible flowers

I've also seen a lot of Pacific chorus frogs in the garden plots- how cool!


As summer crops are harvested, you may want to think about planting for fall and winter harvests. August is the last reliable month for lots of crops: brassicas, beets, lettuce, kale, and chard. September starts favas and spinach, and is the end of radish, turnip and mustard green planting times. Thinking about planting garlic in October? Now is a good time to pre-order seed garlic.

Every time you plant, it is best to add compost! Turn it in before planting, or top-dress as the plants grow. If you can't get compost from me, local garden centers sell it bagged.

I'll have some buckets of compost available for you a few times this fall- you can find me and the compost at the Ft Scott Community Garden. You can borrow the 5 gallon buckets, as long as you bring the buckets back after adding the compost to your garden bed.

Monday, August 12, 2-7pm
Monday, August 19, 2-7pm
Wednesday, September 18, 4-7pm
Thursday, October 10, 2-7pm
Monday, October 28, 2-6pm

Finally, the Fall Harvest Pizza Potluck will be on Saturday October 5, from 11am-3pm. The oven will be ready to start making pizzas around noon. Please bring a potluck dish to share, pizza toppings, beverages, and your own plates, forks etc. I'll have homemade dough, sauce, and any veggies available in the gardens, along with a green salad. Please RSVP by October 1

For a great place to learn more, check out Garden for the Environment

Happy Summer Solstice!/ Dates for summer plot checks

Hi everyone,

I hope you've all had a great transition from spring into summer. As the seasons change here are some changes to look for in your gardens:

• broccoli ready to harvest
• lettuce bolting (getting tall, forming flowers, becoming bitter)
• chard bolting (same as above, except not bitter)
• dry soil- water deeply once or twice a week
• aphids, leaf miners, cabbage white butterfly larvae and other pests
• various spring greens flowering and making seeds: arugula, mustards, spinach, lettuce...

We had great success with cabbages this year. This is the first time I'm trying kohlrabi- it's super cute!

Garden plot checks

Plus a new season means it's time for another round of plot checks! Please make a note of the date that I'll be visiting YOUR garden. 

Tuesday, July 23:  West Washington and South Baker Beach gardens

Friday, July 26: Lendrum Ct and Ft. Scott gardens

Monday, July 29: Portola and MacArthur gardens

Tuesday, July 30: Baker Beach gardens

In order to avoid getting a warning:

• garden plots are free of weeds
• gardens have actively growing crops
• no vegetables are flowering or making seeds that indicate they are past harvesting stage
• plots look tended, watered, and used

If you have any questions about your plants, need to contact a neighboring gardener to ask for watering help, or want to share your amazing harvests, please get in touch!

Ft. Scott Community Garden update

The Salesforce Foundation has continued to support our gardening program by providing funds for a brand new tool shed at the Ft Scott Community Garden. This week, with the help of two of our carpenters, we built a lovely new addition to the garden! 

before- the foundation of an old shed from the original garden

after- our new 8x8 cedar shed inside the old foundation

Places to learn more

Reminder: Final Spring Garden Resource Day on Saturday 4.13/ links to classes at SF gardens

Saturday April 13, 10am-3pm: Garden Resource Day at the Ft. Scott Community Garden
Come by for buckets of compost and lots of seedlings. That is your last weekend to weed, tend, pull flowering vegetables, and plant before the Planting Cut-off on April 16. Remember, plots must look used/tended/loved/planted so if you haven't visited your plot in a week or more, this is the time to make sure it's in the best shape it's been all spring!

Come out and enjoy the garden! The garden is full of flowers!

seedlings available: broccoli, romanesco, lettuce, mizuna, kale, kohlrabi, spinach and more!

RSVP by April 29 for our May the Fourth Spring Garden Potluck Party- Saturday 5/4, 1-4pm at the Ft. Scott Community Garden

Want to volunteer at the Ft. Scott Garden and learn about harvesting, pest control, seeding, transplanting and more? Email me to inquire about weekday opportunities!
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Want to learn more? Check out these other gardens in San Francisco:

🌺Garden for the Environment's monthly Edible Garden workshop is coming up this Saturday, April 13th!

Learn to take full advantage of the unique gardening climate in San Francisco, where you can grow your own fruits and vegetables year round. Our expert instructor, Carey Craddock, will go over everything you need to do in your vegetable garden this month. She'll also take you on a tour of what's growing at the GFE this month. Bring questions and Carey do her best to answer them so you can reap a bountiful harvest!

This month, our class will concentrate on growing transplants, choosing the right spots for your vegetables in the garden and caring for the seedlings you have started.

When: This Saturday, April 13th, 10a.m. - 12p.m.

Where: Garden for the Environment, 1590 7th Avenue (at Lawton)

Cost: $25

Register at GFE's Workshops website, and explore other upcoming classes and events. 

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🌺Please join us at College Hill Learning Garden on Monday, April 22nd between 4:00-7:00pm for our family-friendly Earth Day workshop series: Full Cycle - Growing, Eating, and Composting From Your Windowsill Garden.

To learn more or register for one (or all!) workshops, visit our Eventbrite page.

Please share with your networks! Pre-registration is highly encouraged in order to provide materials for all participants.

Click here for more information on programs at College Hill Learning Garden

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🌺Get your Garden Growing: Basics of Organic Gardening

Sunday April 14, 10 am to 12pm at Alemany Farm

Instructor: Jason Mark and Christopher Chimenti

Have you been wanting to start a small vegetable garden but need some guidance? This two-hour crash course in Organic Gardening 101 is for the novice green thumb. The workshop will cover the basics of soil fertility and compost, crop planning for the Bay Area, best watering techniques and non-chemical pest control.

$20 Suggested donation; no one turned away for lack of funds

Space is limited, Please REGISTER in advance

  

Please email Alemanyabby@gmail.com if you have any questions