Sunshine Weekly Weeder Newsletter
29 January 2014
www.sunshinecommunitygarden.org
Calling all Sunshine Gardeners
From the President:
Our Annual plant sale will be held March 1, 2014
This is our most important fund raiser and requires many gardeners to swing into action to help with all of the preparations and activities during and after the plant sale. Most of the volunteer activities are during the plant sale (9:00 am-2:00 pm), but there are before and after tasks also.
Prior to the actual plant sale preparations, we clean up our "house" for guests. It is not too early for each of you to get your garden in shape and clean up the area around your plot and help tidy up the garden.
On the day of the sale there are two shifts - AM 8:30-11:30 and PM 11:30 to 2:30. Additionally, you have the option of working the entire day or if you can only work overlapping shifts that is fine.
Jobs include the following with a brief description
- Setting up - Prior to March 1 Time to be determined. This included unloading and organizing plants. Fairly strenuous. Gardeners form a living conveyor belt.
- Sign Placement - Signs need to be placed on the street for directions before sale and picked up after. Signs identifying the various tents need to be hung - probably Friday.
- Gate/Greeting - Stand at the gate, hand out plant list, greet customers, answer questions
- Compost Sales - Bagging compost (we try to have as many bags as possible bagged prior to the sale) Heavy lifting is required. $5/5 gallon bag
- Haulers - Helping our customers carry their purchases to their cars. Some heavy lifting
- Receipt Writers - Customers select their purchases and you write out a receipt and give it to them to bring to the cashiers. Plant transplants and Herbs are $2/each. The only exception is pass along plants. They are priced as marked.
- Regular Cashiers - collect money/checks. Gail Reese is in charge
- Music Set up - Need 3-4 people from 7:45 Sat until 8:30 to set up stages and chairs and at 2-3 to break setup down Charlotte Jernigan in charge
- Tomato tent - become familiar with the varieties for sale and help customers
- Eggplant/Peppers tent - become familiar with the varieties for sale and help customers Marge T and Adriana in charge
- Pass along Plants - become familiar with the varieties for sale and help customers
- Ornamentals - become familiar with the varieties for sale and help customers
- Herbs - become familiar with the varieties for sale and help customers
- Stroller/Go to Person - help volunteers and /or customers as needed
- Breakdown/Closing - organize remaining plant (hopefully not too many)
- Kitchen Set up - Refreshment set up for volunteers
NEEDED:
Boxes for the plant sale. Can everyone start collecting boxes for buyers to carry their purchases out of the garden?
Lists to varieties to be included in the sale
Which Vegetables Tolerate Frost and Which Don't?
Cold tolerance depends somewhat on preconditioning. For instance, if broccoli has been growing in warm conditions and temperatures drop below 22 degrees F., it will probably be killed. If these same broccoli plants had already experienced cool weather, they would probably survive the sudden cold.
A frost (31-33 degrees F.) will kill beans, cantaloupe, corn, cucumber, eggplant, okra, peas, pepper, potatoes, sweet potatoes, squash, tomatoes and watermelon.
Colder temperatures (26-31 degrees F.) may burn foliage but will not kill: broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, chard, lettuce, mustard, onion, radish, and turnip.
The real cold weather champs are beets, Brussel Sprouts, carrots, collards, kale, parsley, and spinach.
Gardeners Reports on Freeze
I asked gardeners for information on the effect of freezing on their vegetables. Several Gardeners replied and thank you for those. The concensus is that lettuce will survive pretty cold temperatures with just a little freeze burn. One report in particular was very detailed and I include it here. There is a possibility that we are going to get another Arctic front coming in the middle of next week, so we're getting a lot of information on plants that survive (or not) freezing temperatures, especially between 26-31 degrees.
Thanks Bill Cason:
| Dec 7 nothing covered | Jan 6 & 7 All covered with blankets | ||
|---|---|---|---|
| Red Kale | Slight wilting; full recovery | Slight wilting; full recovery | sets from TSBVI sale |
| Broccoli | Slight wilting; full recovery | Slight wilting; full recovery | sets from TSBVI sale |
| Brussels Sprouts | Slight wilting; full recovery | Slight wilting; full recovery | sets from TSBVI sale |
| Swiss Chard | Many leaves killed; plant survived | Slight wilting; full recovery | sets from Shoal Creek Nursery |
| Mustard greens | Slight wilting; full recovery | Slight wilting; full recovery | sets from Shoal Creek Nursery |
| Mei Quin Chol | Slight wilting; full recovery | Slight wilting; full recovery | sets from Shoal Creek Nursery |
| Dinosaur Kale | Slight wilting; full recovery | Slight wilting; full recovery | sets from Shoal Creek Nursery |
| Collards | Slight wilting; full recovery | Slight wilting; full recovery | raised from seeds planted in September |
| Beets | Slight wilting; full recovery | Slight wilting; full recovery | raised from seeds planted in September |
| Turnip | Slight wilting; full recovery | Slight wilting; full recovery | raised from seeds planted in September |
| Carrots | Slight wilting; full recovery | Slight wilting; full recovery | raised from seeds planted in September |
Events
Composting for the Home Garden
Thursday, February 6, 2014, 10:00 - 12:00
Travis County AgriLife Extension Office
The first class in a series 'Dealing with Drought Conditions', will deal with the value of compost in building and maintaining healthy soils. Cathy Wood, Master Gardener and compost specialist, will teach attendees how to build an effective compost pile, and how to use its contents as an aid to increase water retention in soils of all types.
This presentation is part of the Texas AgriLife Extension Water Conservation Series Register or by phone 979-845-2604. $10 fee, $15 at site. Class is limited to 40 people.
VFIC Conference
When: February 25 - February 26
Where: Texas A&M AgriLife Center,
556 John Kimbrough Blvd,
College Station, TX 77843
Contact Person Connie Sebesta, Vegetable & Fruit Improvement Center, Ph 979-862-4592, email
The 2014 Conference of the Vegetable & Fruit Improvement Center will address future challenges of increasing the consumption of healthy vegetables and fruits. This conference will provide useful information from leaders in research, industry and government entities pertaining to research efforts to increase health promoting compounds in fruits and vegetables. The audience will gain information in a format that reaches a wide range of interests. The conference will consist of presentations, open dialogue and round table discussions.
To register and find more information go to the website
Vegetables to Plant in January
All month: Lettuce, Radish, and spinach. Artichoke crowns and Asparagus crowns.
Middle to end of month: Onion sets (transplants), Beets, Broccoli, cabbages, carrots, cauliflower (transplants), collards (transplants), leeks, peas, turnips.
Officer and Zone Coordinator Contacts - Sunshine Garden
Officers
- President - Ila Falvey ila.falvey@gmail.com
- Vice-President - Janet Adams jartdaht@gmail.com
- Secretary - Berk Bettis dolrsdad@aol.com
- Treasurer - Jack Reynolds scgtreasurer1@gmail.com
- Director - Michael Hall fibercable@austin.rr.com
- Director - Kay McMurry scg.plots@gmail.com
- Director - Emily Tisinger etisinger@gmail.com
Zone Coordinators
- Zone 1, Jody Trendler jody.trendler@gmail.com
- Zone 2, Katy Davis katydavis@austin.rr.com
- Zone 3, Ludmila Voskov lvoskov@austin.rr.com
- Zone 4, Ila Falvey ila.falvey@gmail.com
- Zone 5, Mary Gifford mgifford@austin.rr.com
- Zone 6, Charlotte Jernigan charlotte@cybermesa.com
- Zone 7, Jing Li jingli.80@yahoo.com
- Zone 8, Irina Kaducova irina@austinshrooms.com
- Zone 9, Cheryl Hazeltine cph@austin.rr.com
- Zone 10, Christopher Schroder christopher.s.schroder@gmail.com
Other Coordinators
- Weekly Weeder Newsletter - Margaret Powis purslane2013@gmail.com
- Plant Sale - Michael Hall fibercable@austin.rr.com
- TSBVI Liason & Volunteer Coordinator - Janet Adams jartdaht@gmailcom
- Plot Rental - Kay McMurry scg.plots@gmail.com
- Carpentry & Repairs - Robert Jarry r.jarry@sbcglobal.net
- Water Leak Repairs - Stewart Nichols sgwater@math.austin.tx.us
- Tools & Wheelbarrows - Bob Easter beaster1@austin.rr.com
- Website Coordinator - Sharon Rempert scgardenweb@gmail.com
Record Service Hours Online - the Virtual Green Binder
