Garden know-how
The first and only true rule of the garden is good husbandry. A well manured, well mulched and well turned garden will have more strength and vigour than any that is left to it’s own devices.
Everyone is asked to continue to conserve water.
Mulch, mulch, and mulch.
Can you water twice or even just once a week?
Mulch, mulch, and mulch.
Can you water twice or even just once a week?
ORGANIC VERSES CHEMICAL FERTILIZERS
Organic fertilizers feed the soil, not the plant. They break down slowly and contribute organic matter to the soil and plant nutrients. They form a store house of plant nutrients which the plant takes in as it needs them. This is a long term benefit for the garden. You do not need to fertilize often.
Synthetic / chemicals fertilize the plant which can only use a small amount at a time -- and the rest is washed away into the soil and can create possible side effects which suppress beneficial soil organisms and leave acid salts.
Organic fertilizers feed the soil, not the plant. They break down slowly and contribute organic matter to the soil and plant nutrients. They form a store house of plant nutrients which the plant takes in as it needs them. This is a long term benefit for the garden. You do not need to fertilize often.
Synthetic / chemicals fertilize the plant which can only use a small amount at a time -- and the rest is washed away into the soil and can create possible side effects which suppress beneficial soil organisms and leave acid salts.
CONSIDER THESE AMENDMENTS FOR A GARDEN OUR SIZE!
A Master Gardener passed along a few soil preparing secrets for a "grow-like-crazy garden with big results and plentiful harvests".
I am going to try these this year. I can't wait to see the results! Fairfax Nursery and Goodman's Hardware carries all these. (call before visiting to be sure)
two - 1 cubic foot bags- horse / cow manure - improves soil structure and fertility and provides nutrients for plants.
4 lb. EB Stone Cottonseed meal 6-2-2 - for acid loving flowering plants .
4 lb. EB Stone Blood Meal 12-0-0 - nitrogen for plant growth.
One - 1 1/2 cubic foot bag Worm Castings - beneficial nutrients for vegetables, flowers, perennials, fruit trees, herbs.
5 lb. Epsom Salt (Magnesiun Sulfate) - for keeping tomatoes leaves healthy green.
15 lb. bag E.B. Stone 5-5-5 -general all round fertilizer -It is also sold in smaller box sizes.
AND of course-- add some compost and organic matter to the soil.
Greetings Community Gardeners,
WHAT’S THE BIG DEAL ABOUT TOMATOES??!!???
1. Tomato diseases are very contagious and, in many cases, live through the winter in the soil.
2. Many Community Gardens in the Bay Area can no longer grow tomatoes because the soil is infested with tomato diseases. (Remember, you are a member of a Community garden. Your practices affect all of the other gardeners.)
3. If we want to be able to continue to grow tomatoes in the Larkspur Community Garden, we ALL need to abide by these simple rules:
See you in the garden,
Stephen
Please ask any questions so there will be no misunderstandings.
WHAT’S THE BIG DEAL ABOUT TOMATOES??!!???
1. Tomato diseases are very contagious and, in many cases, live through the winter in the soil.
2. Many Community Gardens in the Bay Area can no longer grow tomatoes because the soil is infested with tomato diseases. (Remember, you are a member of a Community garden. Your practices affect all of the other gardeners.)
3. If we want to be able to continue to grow tomatoes in the Larkspur Community Garden, we ALL need to abide by these simple rules:
- NO TOMATO PLANTS (or any part of a tomato plant) IN THE COMPOST. EVER.
- ALL tomato plants must be completely removed from the garden by the Garden Work Day
- Choose disease resistant varieties for planting
- Keep it clean - remove dead leaves, harvest promptly when ripe - strict sanitation is a must
- Remove any plant that shows symptoms of disease (see below)
- Familiarize yourself with symptoms of tomato diseases (see below)
- Rotate your crops
- Fusarium Wilt
- Verticillium Wilt
- Late Blight
- Blossom End Rot
See you in the garden,
Stephen
Please ask any questions so there will be no misunderstandings.
Uniform Set-Up for All Drip and Soaker Irrigation Systems
Only this set-up may be used in the Larkspur Community Garden.
PLEASE email with any drip system concerns or questions. We will show you or can show your plumber this set -up to install your drip system. (See attached photos showing this assembly).
The “main” faucet ( also called a "hose bib”), may not be removed, changed or tampered with, in any fashion, and must remain open and functional all season. Duct tape can be placed over this as a reminder, to the good intentioned neighbor, to leave it open.
A wye, “Y"-shaped hose connector, made of metal instead of plastic, is attached to the “main” faucet. This “Y” allows you to convert one spigot into two water sources.
Attach an independent secondary faucet to each side of the “Y” (this allows separate use of hose and separate operation of the irrigation system). We require a faucet, Not just a lever with a shut off valve which may leak or get stuck and hard to use. We find that people are more familiar and dexterous with normal faucet use.
First we attach the garden hose to one secondary faucet. The other secondary faucet is attached to the timer and drip irrigation system. If there is a leak, each can be shut off independently without affecting the other hookup.
The timer, which is battery powered, should be able to water every three or four days for about ten to fifteen minutes. Be sure watering doesn’t flood the area or come into the aisle. If so, you will need to water for less time. Gardening stores have a variety of battery powered timers. Some better than others.
Please do not use a timer that waters every 12 hours or less. That is watering too often. With sufficient garden compost/mulch to hold water you need not have to water more than every three or four days.
After the timer, some people install a small 'in-line' 30 psi water pressure reducer to prevent the water pressure from blowing off any connections or emitters to their system.
Drip systems can have just a few basic main line parts or can include additional smaller irrigation lines. The more basic, the easier to maintain. There are ways to cover an entire garden with just one 1/2 inch irrigation line, (700 series line), with emitters placed along its’ length at the root area of the plants to be watered. It only requires that you plant along the irrigation line pattern. We only suggest using the 700 series line because it is a standard size. There are other sizes, however, keeping a "one size fits all" system, eliminates problems of finding ways to connect different sized systems together.
Learn about your drip system and its’ interconnecting parts. FYI there is a difference between hose thread connections, eg. on the timer; and pipe thread connections, eg. on a pressure reducer - and again returning to hose threads at the drip line. Secure all connections. Plumber’s tape should be used on all threads to prevent leaking.
Using “compensating emitters” allows the same amount of water to flow from the beginning of the system to the very end. Generally you need only 1/2 gallon emitters (for small plants) or one gallon emitters for large plants. There are also smaller drip lines with weep holes every 6 or 12 inches. Any more water than a plant can use usually wastes water- it by-passes the roots and seeps into the ground. It will travel outside the garden border and flood the aisle.
NOTE: Gardeners adjacent to or across the aisle from the water supply— simply attach their timer and pressure reducer to the secondary faucet and use the 1/2 inch irrigation line, (700 series), to go beneath the wood border and buried under the aisle and under your wood border, up into your plot. (so no one will trip on it in the aisle.)
—In a different way, if you choose to have the timer in your own garden, your system must attach to the secondary faucet using only PVC Schedule 40, (not copper piping), to cross under the wood border, beneath the aisle and under the wood border to your garden timer. Reminder: Nothing may be attached to the wood border.
Suggestion: Bring this set-up information with you when you go to the Irrigation and Landscaping stores.( eg. Horizon Irrigation 1261Anderson Drive San Rafael, CA.) They have all the parts and will gladly help you put your system in place and assemble it together with the fittings you need and explain how the components fit together.
If any malfunction, we will turn off the system and notify you to make the necessary adjustments or repairs.
Maybe you don’t want a drip irrigation, (no timer, pressure reducer, possible leaks, etc…
Consider using a porous soaker hose which you connect to the main garden hose when you visit. They lessen watering time to 6-8 minutes because the amount of water is equal to the amount put out by the hose.
Finally, Enjoy hand watering too. A drip system is not a substitute for visiting your garden.
