Sunshine Community Gardens

Sunshine Weekly Weeder Newsletter

15 September 2016

www.sunshinecommunitygardens.org

Gardener's Picture page

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Compost

Due to popular demand we have ordered another truckload of compost. It should be delivered on Thursday.

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Clear the Hackberries Workday - Earn TSBVI Hours

When: Saturday 9/24, 8:00-10:30 am

On Saturday 9/24 we will be clearing the hackberries in the fence line along Sunshine Dr. and 49th St.

There will be a special effort to remove the hackberries at below ground level to "discourage" their coming back. 10-12 gardeners are needed.

They will be divided into two teams and work both sides of the fence simultaneously to get those hackberries which seem to end up on the other side of the fence.

The work will range from digging down and cutting off the hackberries below ground level to hauling the hackberries to the dumpster.

Johnson grass and other weeds will also be removed. The fence on either side of the entrance gate will be cleared of all vegetation. This work counts for TSBVI hours.

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All Gardeners Meeting - Saturday

When: Saturday 9/17

Agenda:

• Recognize Good Lighthouse and presentation
• Financial report
• ACGA conference report from Jen Woetz, Nicole Fisher and Steve Uecker
• Plant sale
• Voting on rule changes
  1. Secondary gardener & Service hours for pathways
  2. Encroachment, one-foot buffer zone, active gardening pilot
• General Reminders / notices
  1. Compost area guidelines
  2. New zone coordinators in zone 7

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Site Rule Amendments

The Sunshine board has adopted five site rule amendments which will be presented to the membership for ratification at the All Gardeners meeting on September 17. The amendments address garden operations and minimum standards for how plots are gardened to maximize the gardening experience for all Sunshine gardeners. Read additional details.

The following is a brief summary of the five amendments:

1. Encroachment on Shared Borders
   The layout at Sunshine Gardens means most plots have at least one shared border with another gardener. Gardeners need to be considerate of their neighbors and not encroach on these shared borders. This amendment adds a new site rule identifying the type of practices which constitute prohibited encroachment.
2. Maintaining One-Foot Weed Free Strip Along Shared Borders
   When a gardener fails to maintain a plot's borders shared with adjoining plots weed free, the weeds quickly become a problem for the adjoining gardener. This amendment adds failure to maintain a one-foot weed free strip along shared borders with adjoining plots to list of what constitutes non-compliance. It also makes some minor changes to process for addressing non-compliance.
3. Active Gardening of Plot
   Sunshine Gardens fulfills its purpose of providing "opportunities for the public to engage in organic gardening" only when its members actively garden their assigned plot(s) to produce vegetable and/or ornamental crops. Currently, it is possible to maintain a plot in compliance with site rules without actively gardening the plot, but doing so is not consistent with the purpose of Sunshine Gardens. To evaluate the effectiveness of amending the site rules to require active gardening of plots, this amendment directs the board shall pilot test requiring members to actively garden their plot(s) and a process for enforcing requirement. It also defines "active gardening" for purposes of the pilot.
4. Secondary Gardener Becoming Primary Gardener
   This amendment incorporates into the site rules the current process used by the board for a secondary gardener to become the primary gardener. Since the process affects rights of members, the board believes it should be set out in the site rules so gardeners know what the process is.
5. Service Hours for Maintaining Pathways Other than Common Paths
   The site rules currently permit earning service hours for "maintenance of pathways and common areas." A question has come up if term "pathways" includes pathways between adjacent plots even though not designated as a common path. This amendment clarifies that it does.

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The Proposed Site Rule Changes - Editorial

by Charlotte Jernigan, Coordinator -- Zone 6

The Zone Coordinators recently worked with SCG VP Jim Willmann and the rest of the board to draft changes to the Site Rules. You will all have the opportunity to vote on these changes this coming Saturday at the September All Garden Meeting.

I wanted to take a moment to give a Zone Coordinator's perspective on these Site Rule changes and encourage you to vote YES for the changes.

I have been a Sunshine Zone Coordinator for almost 4 years and I am also a past president of the SCG. For the most part being a coordinator is a great opportunity get to know a few of my garden neighbors! On the educational side, it is a pleasure to orient new members to our zone and to pass along gardening tips and discoveries that we have made as a community during my 16-years at Sunshine.

The difficult moments of the job come when plot neighbors conflict and in the rare case where Site Rule enforcement requires the Non-Compliant Plot process to kick in.

My experience is that the more gardeners know about what is expected, what being a "good plot neighbor" means and what being "plot compliant" means, the more neighbors can respect each other and keep things reasonable without getting their Zone Coordinator and the board involved in disputes.

We put a lot of thought into the clarification, wording changes and the new "12-inch weed free border zone" changes as well as the new "active gardener" pilot program ( a one year trial of greater clarity about using your assigned plot to garden.) I hope you will support the Zone Coordinators with a YES vote on these proposed changes.

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Ken Early Remembrance - May 16, 1949 - August 29, 2016