Planting workshop this Friday, February 9th! 3 p.m. to ~6 p.m.

Come witness and participate in the bed preparation and planting of ~150 sq. ft. of previously barren (and succulent-covered) backyard ground. We will be guided by Paul Maschka, Lead Organic Gardener for the San Diego Zoo, and any other experienced gardeners who attend.

If you're able to do so, bring some food, compost, plants, seeds, (or something else) to share, and if you'd like to eat, consider bringing your own utensils. Square-bladed shovels and digging forks could also come in handy.

If you know you are planning to be there, please send me an email--cleath -at- j9k.org--But don't let anything get in the way of at least stopping by to see what the backyard looks like now, so you'll be able to see how it has changed when we have the next gathering here later in the year.

Find us at:

4602 Seminole Drive, (phone: 619 582 7583 - ask for Colin)

at the northwest corner of the intersection of Seminole Dr. and Acorn St.

This is about two blocks southeast of the intersection of College Ave and El Cajon Blvd, and east of the back of the Campus Plaza shopping center (Vons/Woodstock Pizza/Starbucks) and the firestation.

If you go east on El Cajon from College and pass all that, you can turn right on Seminole after passing Rite Aid/the post office, and Seminole will take you back to the southwest past Clay Park, and Acorn will be on your right in less than half a mile.

Here is a link to the location on google maps: http://tinyurl.com/z7csv

If you think you might like to walk from the SDSU trolley station (about 20-30 minutes depending on your route) let me know, and I can help you find the wonderful trail through Baja Canyon. You can also catch a bus to take you as far as El Cajon Blvd.

Further details about the planting and the garden space follow.

I hope you can make it!

Colin

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Attend especially if you're looking to start a garden and are not sure how to begin. That is almost my situation exactly--I am generally following John Jeavons' book _How to Grow More Vegetables_, the tips from the garden page in the Sunday Union Tribune, and some permaculture ideas. See bountifulgardens.org for Jeavons' store.

I do plan to do a soil test, but we won't have the results by Friday, and my 91-year-old grandma has said fifty million times it is impossible to grow anything but sunflowers and snails (and the succulent people call "apple") back there. However, there is a successful gardener next door--who uses fish oil, fish heads, and steer manure to fertilize his broccoli and cauliflower and fruit trees. You can peek at his garden over the low wall on the north.

I have a large amount (5'x4'x3') of not-quite-cured compost to add to the soil as we prepare the beds.

The bed layout will most likely be a large rectangle with rounded corners with paths forming a cross with keyhole beds at the south and north ends and leaving the garden to the east and west.

We will be planting the cool season seeds, and perhaps starting some warm season seeds. The cool season seeds might include: (I'm listing off plants from p. 74 of Jeavons' book and a few other sources. I will make a more detailed plan later)

asparagus (as root)
rhubarb (as root)
beet
broad bean
broccoli
brussels sprouts
cabbage (I do have 6 cabbage plants in pots to plant!)
chard (various kinds)
collard
horseradish
kale
kohrabi
parsnip
radish
rutabaga
sorrel
spinach
turnip
lettuce (various kinds)
artichoke
carrot
cauliflower
celery
chicory
bok choi
endive
fennel
mustard
parsley
*pea*
potato
chicory
chive
garlic
leek
onion
salsify
shallot

Flowers: poppies, marigolds (?), what else?

Now is also the time to plant bare-root trees. . . any good bare root nut trees? Macadamia? Hazel? Pine Nut?

Additional attractions include:

- a collection of dusty indoor hanging plastic plants.

- a large sheet-mulched bed (cardboard on top of apple succulent, covered with wet leaf debris and some soil, inoculated with some oyster mushroom (?) mycelium), courtesy of Mike Thayer, permaculturist. This is potentially endangered--my grandma is not too keen on it.

- a plastic bag filled with straw from which oyster mushrooms will eventually grow.

- I have the following seeds to share (thanks to Paul and Ellee of SD Food Not Lawns):

marigold
moonflower
red chard
red lettuce
mustard
poppy (iceland)
mizuma lettuce
green beans
corn (various)
fava
tepary bean (a good dryland bean)
amaranth
eggplant / aubergine
kambocha squash
passion vine (well- I don't have extras of these)
cilantro
watermelon (no extras)
lentils

This workshop is made possible by San Diego Food Not Lawns--because of the inspiration of gardeners I met there--in particular the garden at a house where members of the organic collective live and also the garden of Paul Maschka.