Minton Stable Garden Annual Meeting

Despite the rain and the unintentional conflict with the first night of Passover, about 30 Minton Stable Community Gardeners attended the annual meeting, which took place on Monday night down the street in the English High School library. At least one of the lucky former waitlisters was there to pay her $30 dues and sign her contract stating that she will follow the ever-increasing list of rules; new additions for 2010 include a protocol for dealing with people who are at risk of losing their plot (due to not completing hours or other violations), the procedure for those wanting to use the property for their own gatherings, and the opportunity to donate extra work hours into a bank so others who may have some physical limitations or other emergency can have them applied to meet their own requirement (still 4 hours per season). With a few families and individuals having left the neighborhood since last season, a few more plots are being allocated to those at the top of the waitlist (of now over 40 wannabe gardeners).Thanks to Allan for sending me photos; I posted this one because it features almost everyone in attendance. If you click on photo to enlarge it you can make out the Steering Committee members in the back facing the crowd--I'm wearing yellow, Todd is left of me, John is right of me in a white shirt, Asa (in a black jacket with white stripes) is discussing the rules, Terry is right of her (in a maroon sweater). Roxane is sitting on the left side of the table, wearing a light blue shirt and taking notes on her laptop. Jennifer, who usually takes notes and chairs meetings, was taking a well-deserved vacation in Guatemala.

We managed to finish ahead of schedule so I could (as treasurer) process the dues payments of everyone who had brought them. In past years different issues extended the meeting; at least once there were disagreements between dog owners and gardeners over where dogs could roam and do their business, and the year the shed was built there was much discussion about how to carry out that project. But this year dogs were hardly mentioned. Bees were, though, as Joe (one of the gardeners) presented some information in advance of a possible proposal to keep some at the garden, a project in such an early stage that it has not sparked any controversy. One item that members did want to discuss was how to better turn our weeds and plant waste into compost. Right now we don't have the capability and there are sanitation issues as well, but there seems to be enough interest and energy to investigate and implement a plan to change that.

If you are a member reading this post, I would like to remind you that there will be four Steering Committee seats to be filled in the election this May. Asa, Roxane, and I will stay on for the second year of our two-year term, but the four whose terms are ending have decided not to run again. Sure, there is work involved, and decisions to be made, but we only meet for two hours a month. I'd be happy to answer any questions you have (there's a link on my profile page if you want to email me), or you can contact the committee at mintonstablegarden@yahoo.com.

Brief harvest Monday and plot update

It's been two weeks since I posted a harvest update. To my surprise, there continues to be a yield about which to report, and the list of Harvest Monday participants over at Daphne's Dandelions is growing again. Thanks to an amendment to the Minton Stable Garden rule that states that plots must be winterized by November 1, plants that are still producing can stay in the ground. In my case, it's still the broccoli sending out sideshoots (a nice addition to last night's stir fry) and a few more raspberries. I think by the end of next week I'll have enough raspberries to fill a package and add that information to my tally. After I filled my tiny baggie with the goodies I snapped a few photos to show off the compliance of most MSG gardeners. Luckily nasturtiums count as edibles and add some color.Tomorrow's a busy day, and I have to squeeze voting in there somewhere. We'll see which man--Menino or Flaherty (with Yoon)--will be at the podium at next year's Gardener's Gathering. Whoever it is, I hope he keeps the free compost coming.

The season begins

I'm not a big fan of meetings.  I can usually gauge the inefficiency of one by the intensity of my resulting headache.  Luckily, the Minton Stable Garden Steering Committee understands this, as there is usually only one meeting of all of the gardeners each year.  Aided by a shortage of intense controversies, about an hour was all that was needed to review rules and share other information on the upcoming season.

We gathered this past Monday at the nearby English High School library (thanks to Allan for the photo).  The important items of business included signing a contract pledging respectful gardening practices and paying the annual dues of $28.  For the past couple of years MSG members have followed through in completing their 4-hour work requirement and honoring deadlines for maintaining their gardens, with few people abandoning their plots or moving out of the city; as a result only four individuals/families have been granted plots, leaving 30 still on the waiting list.  Given the high demand to garden, a Steering Committee member explained that with nine work days scheduled and opportunities to mow and shovel, there will be no excuses for falling short this year.

Julianna from the Steering Committee provided a treasury report.  With a budget of around $1400 a year, money needs to be raised for any purchase beyond the basics (water, plantings, fuel for mowers, special events, etc.).  Two other issues that I would like to explore in future posts are an update on our bindweed situation as well as our inability to produce our own compost.

Nancie, also on the Steering Committee, brought up an idea to keep gardeners informed and give them a voice: a Yahoo group, now in the "beta" phase.  Also, members were urged to run for one of the three Steering Committee slots that will be open this year.

I had not seen many of the 30+ people in attendance since last season.  I look forward to running into them in the garden soon, if it ever stops raining.

Bedtime

Yesterday was the deadline to put our Minton Stable Garden plots to bed.  In the freezing rain, a few drooping perennials appeared to be the only plant life extant.  The patchwork of mostly barren plots served as evidence that gardeners heeded the warnings from the half dozen emails sent out by the Steering Committee this fall--if you don't clear your plots by the 30th, there's a waiting list of wannabe gardeners eager to take over for you.

Gone were the deadbeats of previous years.  I confess to have been among the guilty, leaving the skeletons of sunflowers and hollyhocks drooping into other plots and tomatoes rotting in their rings.  I was putting my plot and others at risk of attracting diseases and pests.  The procedures and rationale for putting a garden to bed can be found here.  

Most people appeared to have pulled out their plants and dug up the soil.  A few people covered their plots with salt hay.  I wondered where they were able to procure this useful material that I had searched for earlier this season.  In any case, it blows my mind to think that just two months before, you couldn't walk through these plots without becoming tangled in greenery.  

Update on my plot

Just two months earlier, I couldn't see from one side of the MSG to the other; today, it looks almost as bare as it did last March.  Many folks have cleaned up their plots in anticipation of the deadline of November 30, as set in the garden rules.

Earlier last week, as I was turning over the soil in my plot and wedging another 2-by-4 as a temporary measure to rein in the strawberries, Jonathan, another gardener, showed up to dig up his rosemary and bring it inside for the winter.  He was curious about the red clover seeds I was spreading around where my vegetables and zinnias had grown.  I'm experimenting with a ground cover this winter, partly to enhance the soil, but mainly to see if it can combat the seeding and growth of weeds that would impact next year's growing season.

I came back today to snap these photos.  I had left half of my transplanted lettuce plants in an open spot in my perennials area.  Apparently the freezing temperatures we had at least one night the week before did not kill them off.  And though you can't see the thousands of tiny curly hairlike seedlings in this photo, the red clover is starting to germinate.  However, I may clear some of it to make way for some of the 20 bulbs I have just received.

Don't just sit there!

Fall--a time for birthday parties, open studios, apple picking, the Roslindale Parade, etc. and after shivering for a few hours in the fall chill, lounging on the couch under a blanket, coffee and Sunday paper within reach, checking the foliage status of the maple across the street...gardening is over, right?  Of course not.  

But like the cleanup at the end of a party, it must be done.  I guess that would really happen in November, so October is like that period where you start shutting off the music and yawning in front of your guests, telling how great it was to see them, and making sure everyone has a ride home.

October is one of the busiest months of the year, especially when it comes to the planting of trees, shrubs, and bulbs, as well as dividing and transplanting perennials, composting, and protecting some plants from the winter elements.  With the exception of a raspberry plant I brought home from the Perennial Divide, most of my transplanting involves moving around a few perennials at home.  

In my Minton Stable plot, I'll keep my lettuce and carrots watered, cut back spent perennials, and pull out and compost the tomato plants.  I'll try to get around to harvesting the basil before it's too late; most of it's out already.  I'll keep the zinnias blooming and, as much as I know there won't be a harvest, I can't bring myself to pull out the peppers and eggplant until next month.  According to the community garden rules, the plots must be cleaned out by November 30, so I have time.  If I lived a little farther north, in Zone 7, covering the strawberries would be a good idea.  I did nothing to protect them last year and they still proliferated.

I'll think about a winter cover plant that would enhance the soil, such as winter rye, which my husband swears by but is hard to find.  I'd be curious to know what other gardeners are planting.

Okay, it's Monday, the sun is out, so it's time to stop procrastinating.