Wild Garlic Is No Match for the Peterson Kids

Teddy and sister, Lily, love to harvest our most prolific weed this year, wild garlic. We're thrilled that they're thrilled with the challenge.
 
Lily and Lily eradicate Canadian Thistle.
 
This wild garlic is headed for the dinner table, or so I've been told.
 

Warren Wilson Draws a Crowd

While waiting for the Obamas to show this past Saturday
we cleared a bed of kale that had been planted last summer.
The snow cover helped this crop overwinter so well that we
were able to bring kale to Food For Fairview on three different
distribution days. Here, high school board member Zack (right)
and friend, Andrew, along with the Peterson family, tackle
the hard job of picking off every last leaf and pulling the tough
roots out of the ground.











Steve, also a board member, shows his students how to scythe a cover crop of winter rye and hairy vetch.






Elizabeth and Freesia use machetes on more rye and vetch, making a space for the new children's garden area.

Tonight Food Inc. is Showing on PBS @ 9:00

Our Bluebird Man Checks the Houses He Installed

Here's Rob's report when I asked if he'd check the bluebird houses:

The Middle Box; on the corner of the fence, has a nest and four bluebird eggs with a female in attendance. Let's not disturb that one at all from now on.

The one nearest your shed has the start of a bluebird nest.

The one on the top corner (near the lime pile)has a nearly complete nest. On my arrival two beautiful purple martins were sitting on the bex.

Guess what our next bird project is?

Plowing With Belle

Not wanting to take up so much room at The Lord's Acre growing sweet corn (a crop that takes a lot from the soil, ties up space for a long time and has low yields comparatively), Franklin & Susan decided to plant this summer favorite at the upper garden at their house. The Sides borrow Belle the draft horse every few weeks from a neighbor to 'mow' their lawn and have plowed with her before. She's a gentle giant that's well-trained and quite patient. Since she was already at the Sides' and had finished 'mowing' it was a good time to turn over some earth. Here, Franklin shows our intern, Kelley, the ropes. Kelley's an experienced horsewoman so "gee"(turn right) and "haw" (turn left)came quite naturally to her.
 
 
 
 

An Experiment in Rye

This week we began an experiment in a bed that had been 2/3 cover cropped with winter rye and hairy vetch all winter. One third was left bare all winter. We began by skimming off the cover crop using a sharpened spade but you can also use a knife. This left 2/3 of the bed in rye stubble. We then laid the just-cut rye/vetch back onto 1/3 of the bed as mulch. Next, Franklin marked the positions as to where the cabbage and broccoli transplants should go throughout the entire bed and on Wednesday worknight, volunteers planted. So now, one third of the bed is bare soil, one third is rye stubble and one third is mulched with rye that was cut down. We'll be keeping an eye on which section of the bed, if any, does best then trying to come up with reasons why that's so. Such experimentation is available to all of us and makes gardening all the more exciting.

 
 

Transplanted Collards & Cabbages

 

The Art of Transplanting Vegetables

By Susan Sides
(This article will appear in the May issue of the Fairview Town Crier)


Transplant: 1.) To uproot and replant 2.) To transfer from one place of residence to another, resettle, relocate.


You first have to be unsettled to be resettled. Many of us have been unsettled transplants at one time or another, moving from the familiar to the unfamiliar. Many of the folks The Lord’s Acre serves are transplants as well, whether that refers to residency, illness, or occupation. Sometimes all any of us needs is a little orientation and kindness to get our bearings in a new setting, while other times factors beyond our control make getting established much more difficult. Transplants of the vegetative kind aren’t really all that different. Thinking in these terms can make the difference between plants that thrive and those that adjust poorly to their new surroundings and continually struggle.


Whether your plants hale from your windowsill, greenhouse, or a nearby nursery, a little attention to their needs as they are settling in can make all the difference in how well they grow. The first step in doing this is to let the transplants get to know their new surroundings slowly. They need to get used to the fact that the garden is quite different from the greenhouse. To do this, set them outdoors some each day so they can experience direct sunlight, dew, light rain, light breezes, and changing temperatures. If frost or inclement weather threatens, be there to welcome them back in again. Once they’ve had a week or more of ‘hardening off,’ it’s time to transplant. That nurturing task is best done in the evening. A drizzly or “it’s going to rain tomorrow” evening is best. If you’re used to transplanting in the daytime, this tip alone will make a huge difference in how well your garden does.


As you’re gently transferring each young veggie-to-be into its newly troweled or dibbled hole, pay close attention to the roots. A C.A.R.E. package of compost and whatever soil amendments you’re using can be worked directly into the ground around where the plant will reside. Think of it as yourself as being the type of friend who brings meals over when someone who’s just moved is too overwhelmed to fix their own food. Next, loosen any tightly bound roots by pulling at them a bit from the sides and bottom (kind of like helping them unpack). Handle one plant at a time so young roots won’t dry out while waiting their turn. Some folks wrap the roots of a dozen or so transplants in a wet cloth as they work down the row for just this reason. Brassicas and tomatoes particularly appreciate their bottom leaves being pinched off and most vegetables like to be snuggly placed up to these lower leaves. I often make a little well with my fingertips when filling in the hole to create good contact between soil and roots and to create something of a shallow bowl for holding water.


If the soil is particularly dry, you’ll want to water the plants in after each half dozen or so are planted. If the soil is moist and the weather is cool, you can wait to plant the entire row or bed before watering them in. “Watering in” should consist of a long drink around the base of the plant, one that soaks the ground thoroughly. Leaves that remain wet overnight are more likely to get and spread disease so water the soil and not the leaves. Take care the water isn’t scalding if the hose has been in the sun all day. Continue watering daily if needed for a week, then let the roots ‘reach’ for deeper water before again soaking the ground with at least an inch of water per week.


Transplanting is one of the most tender of all gardening acts. It’s almost like that moment in parenting when you send your little babies off to the real world. And as with our own children, we want to do everything we can to help them. That way they’ll be better prepared to meet whatever comes their way.

Warren Wilson Students Finish the Job

Then the real work began. Students helped finish digging out the marked trenches, spaced the spuds down the rows, covered them with compost and then hoed the trenches in with soil.
 
 
 
 
Afterwards, we all shared a potluck meal together where we were better able to get to know one another. It was inspiring for Franklin, Steve and Susan to see and hear the passions of these students as they think about their lives and their place in making the world a place of more justice and more beauty.

Warren Wilson Students Plant Potatoes

On April 3rd, Steve Norris, who teaches at Warren Wilson and who is also on the board of The Lord's Acre, brought the enthusiasm of some of his students to help us plant potatoes. Here students cut Kennebec and Red Pontiac seed potatoes into walnut-size pieces, each containing at least one 'eye'. Then they were dusted wih sulfur powder to prevent disease while sitting in the cool, spring soil.
 
 
 
 

Recent Student Comments

Recently a crew from Warren Wilson College came out to help us plant a quarter acre of potatoes. From cutting the seed potatoes to digging trenches to finally burying those humble spuds, the students worked with great enthusiasm and joy. Here are two students' comments:

"The Lords Acre garden helped me to understand how much of a problem fresh food is - but more importantly that I could actually do something to help out, to set an example for other struggling communities. This trip helped me to realize that Environmental Justice is not solely about legislation, but about the individual efforts of people in a community, about personal one-on-one interaction, development, and respect for the environment."

"For me, Lords Acre garden is a testament to the beauty and justness of community organizing for the greater good while respecting the land in a gentle appreciative manner....I respect them all the more for their using their deep breadth of knowledge to feed the hungry, inspire people to cultivate the bounty of the earth and to share their time."

Collards, Cabbages, and Asian Greens

Flying Cloud CSA in Fairview had lots of transplants leftover after their planting and donated scads of collards and some cabbages and Asian greens to The Lord's Acre. Here David Fletcher and Mike and Meggan Dale help plant them into a prepared bed. We plant them in such a configuration that when the leaves are mature, they just touch each other, thus shading the soil and choking out weeds while conserving soil moisture. Yesterday, while watering, I noticed the cabbage moths hoovering around. Soon it will be time to use a bit of Dipel to discourage the cabbage looopers. A good shot of fish emulsion, a little Chilean nitrate and some alfalfa tea is on order as well to boost their resistance.
 
 
 
 

April 2010 At The Lord's Acre

On our second Wednesday worknight, Dawn (a new volunteer) helps plant garlic. I'll go ahead and embarass her a bit by saying what a great smile and positive attitude she has about whatever it is she's doing.
 
Here, Kelley Hurst, our first of three interns, waters in the peas and spinach. Kelley is just the perfect fit for the garden and our family. We are so appreciative of her eagerness and the fact that she's a quick study. She's been here three weeks and has done everything from digging beds to help install our new irrigation line and freeze-proof spigot.
 
We invite everyone to come out and participate in this incredibly beautiful garden. Sometimes we hear rumors that we have enough help. Nothing could be further from the truth. This garden is about food for those in need, community and education. It's about all of us working together and learning together and helping together. We hope to see you on Wednesday worknights from 6:00 - 8:00. We'll be adding another worknight soon and if you have a group that can help at another time, let us know. We can probably rearrange our schedules to make that happen.