Winter Garden Prep
The community garden folks have been busy prepping the beds for winter. We’ve expanded the garden enough that it is time to plan on adding another compost bin, as fall cleanup overloads the initial composting bin. By spring, after it thaws out, the bin will be manageable and will be turned into the 2nd of 3 bins for further composting, but it is difficult to add kitchen scraps throughout the winter when it is in this condition!
The fruit trees were also given a spray of neem oil (emulsified with dish soap) combined with molasses, microbes and kelp compost. They’ll receive another spraying of this mixture in the spring before buds open.
Finally, the asparagus and rhubarb beds were cleared of this year’s growth and covered with 12” of loose hay. Since the compost bin was overly full, the asparagus cuttings were laid on top of the hay. Perhaps some of the berries will find their way into the bed and germinate! All of the insulating material will be removed in the spring when the plants start sprouting, with some hay left behind to surround the rhubarb plants to help conserve water and prevent weeds from taking hold. Additionally, each of the two beds will benefit from our good friend Moo Doo ("Udderly The Best") to help provide extra nutrition for the young shoots.
There are still a few clean up chores left to do over the next few weeks, giving us more time in the garden before it is buried in snow.
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