A word from the Garden Manager:  As summer sizzles our garden needs extra attention.  

1.  Water deeply 2-3 times weekly.
2.  Make Certain that you harvest often to keep pests under control.
3,  If you choose to pull some of your plants out, the compost committee would appreciate you dropping off your greens onto the compost pile.
4.  If you have extra produce you would like to donate,  put them on the table next to the office shed.
     The Abundance Committee goes to “Friends in Deed” on Saturday around 11am and Tuesdays around 12pm
*A shout to PCG members:  Our three green wheel barrows need fixing.  Anyone interested in fixing these wheel barrow, email the garden manager, Cathy Morrison.

Compost Report – July 3

COMPOST REPORT:

Below is Bob’s Compost Report. We now have compost available. Remember, the honor system of 2 bucket limit. In 2 weeks, there will be another bin ready to go. Please continue to put all HEALTHY greens that you clip onto the compost heap. It would be helpful if you clip them to small compostable pieces first then put on the heap……

One of our garden members reminded me that our Master Gardener, Yvonne Savio recommends that we DO NOT put tomato plants into the compost heap.  So…put all tomato plants that you pull or trim into the trash bin.

Now that I’m on a roll…For those of you who’s beautiful bounty is spilling out onto the pathways, please trim and put cuttings into the compost.
For those of us that don’t know what to do with all of the veggies that are growing, you can place on the picnic table every Saturday morning and early Tuesday Mornings for our Abundance Committee Chairs, Rosamond Rodman and Dena Brummer to take to “Friends in Deed” food bank.

BOB’S COMPOST REPORT:

We accomplished a lot today. That is thanks to Rosamond, Wendy, Stella and Christina. A special thanks to all the garden members who came by and brought a variety of greens from their gardens to use for compost. That really helps.

We have a large amount of compost available (two buckets limit). In two weeks we will have another bin finished so all the additional greens will come in handy. We encourage garden members to bring more as they cut back their vegetation and remove plants that have run the course.

We are in the garden every Saturday morning beginning at 8 AM. Everyone is welcome. There is always much to do.

Pest Management: Powdery Mildew

Some of us are having problems with “Powdery Mildew” on or squash, melons, and cucumber leaves. Here is a suggested treatment:

Treatment for Powdery Mildew:

You can treat as a pro-active strategy or when you first see signs of infected leaves.

Fill a quart size spray bottle with 1/2 quart of any milk i.e. skim, 1% or full milk, 3 teaspoons of baking soda and a drop of liquid blue dawn dish soap.
Mix well then spray the top and bottom sides of infected leaves.

You also may want to remove shriveled infected leaves. Put into a plastic bag, seal then dispose into the trash bin. Do not place in the compost heap

Water Usage During the Summer Months

Water usage will be very important during the hot months. We are allowed by Pasadena Water and Power to water 3 times a week; Tuesday, Thursday, and Saturday. It is possible to get by with watering only twice a week if you water by hand deeply. Please pay special attention to using timer drip systems that they are not dripping or leaking. If the Garden Manager’s team notices that your system is leaking, your water will be shut off and you will be notified to fix the problem.

Bagrada Bug Update

Hello PCG Garden Members,

With the warmer weather, we can expect the dreaded Bagrada Bug to be looking for gardens to make a home out of. Let’s all be proactive and remove all mustard green plants, brassica, cruciferous plants from our plots no later than May 31st.

Plants in this family are as follows:

  • broccoli
  • cauliflower
  • kale
  • sweet alyssum

For more information, you can read this pest note from the UC IPM.

 

Tales from the Compost Production Committee

By:  Bob Ridley, Compost Captain

A lot accomplished at the Saturday, April 21st Earth Day Celebration.  Wendy and I got there first.  I finished off the straining of the old bin (lots of compost available) and then we started a new bin.  Rhonda arrived and started chopping greens.  She was assisted by Mary who was there as part of the work day.  We also had the services of two students from Ribet Academy, Bobby and Harry.  So we transferred the oldest bin (it’s not quite ready yet) and then transferred and added to the two newer bins.

That leaves for next week the possibility that the oldest bin might be ready to strain. As far as I know Melanie and I might be there alone.  If that is the case we will postpone straining the old bin until the following Saturday when we will have more folks.  Thanks to the chopping ladies we have a huge supply of green stuff that is ready to use.  In addition, there is an ENORMOUS pile of greens waiting to be chopped – many of them are small and thin and might be used without chopping.  And, thanks to our two students and Rosamond we have several barrels of mulch in the composting area thus eliminating the necessity of trekking over to the mulch pile every time we need to add brown stuff.  What we are very low on is stable sweepings so we might have to make a run next Saturday.

Thanks to everyone for your help and hope you can make it next Saturday, and, most important HAPPY BIRTHDAY WENDY.

Upcoming Events!

We have a few fun upcoming events that we would love to see you at!

To Celebrate and honor Pasadena Community Gardens members and volunteers on Earth Day, the garden board will be providing roasted hot dogs, assorted salads, desserts and lemonade on Saturday, April 21! Come and enjoy your garden and get to know your fellow garden members! Please RSVP to Cathy Morrison by email no later than Thursday, April 19th. Attendance will go towards your volunteer time obligation!

The following Saturday, April 28th, come join us at the Pasadena Community Gardens for another Garden Class presented by Master Gardener Yvonne Savio at 10 am. Among the things she will discuss include spring and summer planting plan, successfully transplanting your seedlings, and Q & A time to answer all of your questions! Please also RSVP to Cathy Morrison by email by Thursday, April 25. Attendance for this will also count towards your volunteer time obligation.