Garden

Garden Resources
Piedmont Planting Guide

How to Grow More Vegetables by John Jeavons

Southern Exposure Seed Exchange Growing Guides & Library

Carrboro Community Garden Coalition

Growing Small Farms Sustainable Ag Resources

Cornell University Home Garden Vegetable Growing Guides

The New Organic Grower by Eliot Coleman

Soil Temperatures (click on Soil Temperatures under Station Displays)

NC Soil Testing (boxes are available at Fifth Season)

Tasks

 * Water any new seed beds and anything looking sad unless it rains. Under or overwatering can cause nutrients to become less available for the plants.
 * Weed (ask if you are unsure what is a weed) & mulch planted beds where the vegetable is visible & viable. Don't weed recently planted beds unless you are sure it's a weed and not an emerging seedling and it won't disturb a germinating seed. Retain as much soil as possible in the beds while weeding. Follow weeding with leaf mulch whenever possible to prevent more weeds from sprouting. Give weeds to chickens. If the bed is empty using a hoe or digging (not pitch) fork is often a better use of time than simply hand pulling; always follow with planting crop, cover crop or leaf mulching. Stirup hoes can also be used on smaller weeds between rows of plants - baby weeds can then be left to dissecate on the top of the bed unless it's bermuda grass (aka enemy #1) or mint (which both propagate vegetatively on as little as a node). Don't use straw/hay to mulch unless there is no sign of seeds in the straw. Leaf mulch is free and works awesome.
 * Pull dead and dying plant debris and rebuild beds for planting annual vegetables (talk w/ someone if unsure).
 * Remove all mint from Asparagus bed (leave asparagus, oregano & pineapple sage).
 * Build up paths with leaf (b/t rows) and wood (main) mulch.
 * Turn + groom Compost piles.
 * Make Signs + Markers for Garden (to-do list board) - communication on what's been planted/prepped/shouldn't be weeded/needs to be weeded, etc.?
 * Make sure fencing is secure (fix fencing in the back with neighbor fence and use extra fencing for behind 100?)
 * Get folks together and go get Leaf mulch [by truck load from Carrboro Public Works (free - just bring yer truck & pitchforks) open Monday - Friday until 4:30pm]

Map of Garden




Rotations
cover crop

Notes:


 * 2009 Garlic had disease on beds 2 & 3, which affects garlic and onions. Lives in soil for 25 years.

Soil Test Results
Spring 2013 Results for the Central Established Annual Garden. Veg01 is beds 1-5. Veg02 is beds 6-10. ''Notes: CCCC soil science teacher, Kristin Hicks, said that we have over fertilized and our pH is slightly high (optimum range is between 6 and 7). She says we don't need to add any more manure or nutrient amendments to the soil this year at very least and should do a test every year to see where we are before adding more, including nitrogen (which leaches) if we grow winter cover crops of legumes and mow & till them in at 1/2 flowering. Just adding organic matter (aka mulch) over time will lower the pH and is something we need to do anyway to maintain the HM% and soil health. She said that VEG02 is in better condition than VEG01. There is a potassium recommendation but potassium is not going to be readily available at our current pH so it would be a waste to add plus the recommendation is slightly higher than necessary and we actually have adequate levels once the pH drops. They don't measure nitrogen in the soil because it leaches so, we should just add a little at a time as we need it and/or grow legumes as a cover crop and mow & till it in which will provide a slow release of nitrogen for subsequent plants. Those are Kristin's recommendations. More about nitrogen from a former Bogger!'' All in all our soil is in good health! The CEC (cation exchange capacity) and HM% (% humus) is high for our region which is excellent news!

Fall 2013 Results for the back of 100 building coming soon!