Today was the first garden work day of the month. Turnout at the garden was low because of the heat and the San Antonio Spurs game scheduled that afternoon. Linda, Karla, Charlotte, Suzanne and Margaret replanted some of the bunching onions, so a few more of those will be growing in another month. They weeded wire grass and Bermuda grass in raised beds, planted jicama seed, weeded around trees, applied several layers of newspaper and added mulch around trees. Only one load of mulch was used to work in the south orchard. They also placed gator bags around the trees in anticipation of the continuing drought, fed tomatoes, peppers and eggplants. There were plenty of beets and onions harvested and laid out on the picnic tables at the end of the day. Linda gave positive feedback from Bexar County-Texas A&M AgriLife Extension agent David Rodriguez' presentation at the Children's Garden at the Botanical Garden Sunday morning. She said he advised gardeners to cut back on watering of garlic until it is ready to harvest, and also to source seeds from local sources. He and other people involved in the Extension at the garden are working on developing specific types of cabbage and other vegetables that are resilient in the hot, dry Texas weather. Mona Kandeler worked last Monday and this Monday to re-pull grass from the beds in the north orchard because it had regrown, as well as Bermuda grass in the raised beds. She also cleaned around the trees by the path to ready them for mulch and trimmed stickers on the dead wood so no children visiting or playing around the garden would get stuck. She noted that orange vinegar water will kill more than ants so it should be used carefully. She put extra newspaper in the shed to be used before mulch to deter Bermuda grass. Please bring extra newspapers to the garden -- we need them to continue layering before mulch is spread!. We look forward to seeing you at the next garden work day. Bring your sunblock lotion, hat, short sleeves (or light-fitting long) and your basket to collect veggies, get your hands dirty and have some fun meeting fellow gardeners!
3 Comments
Leizy
7/10/2014 08:55:54 am
I am a part of a community garden and was planning to plant jicama next year. I read that the entire plant is poisonous above ground. My beds have always been harvested by someone else and I have been looking into planting more things people aren't familiar with to decrease the amount of theft. I love jicama, but my friends have urged me not to plant it in case someone steals it and then gets sick. Did you have any concerns about planting jicama?
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AHGarden
7/14/2014 11:27:40 am
Leizy: It's true that the entire jicama plant is poisonous above ground. The garden leaders put up signs alerting people that the plant was toxic when they first planted it. Despite this toxicity, jicama produces a beautiful bloom and seed pod. It is grown all over Mexico and Central America, and they recommend that you give it a try. It needs a trellis to climb and it takes at least six months to grow, Linda, the garden coordinator, said. Let us know if you have any other questions!
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Leizy
7/18/2014 01:37:23 pm
Thank you so much for your reply. I'll give it a try next planting season. :) Leave a Reply. |
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