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Today was our first comfortably warm day at the Garden. Another new member, Agnes, joined up, bringing with her a wicked fine camera. We were also visited by a half dozen curious kidlets with young parents in tow. 

Today we planted eight more veggies: basil, cilantro, arugula, bok choi, kale, Swiss chard, collard greens, and sunflowers. Avery put the finishing touches on his excellent drywell that surrounds our now-working faucet.  Alan, Mike, and Steven started a pea trellis that will strech half the length of the garden. We also added a spindly arbor at the Garden’s front gate with the hope that this summer’s nasturtiums will make it beautiful.

Cold nights and lots of rain have kept us from planting much the last two weeks.

Today we made up for that, getting over a dozen different veggies into their beds.

Yesterday we would have normally planted the seedlings Elizabeth and Lisa started a month ago. Unfortunately, Mother Nature has not been cooperating. Overnight temperatures dropped close to freezing several times last week; so there’s been little chance for the seedlings to harden off, and the schedule had to slip.

So yesterday was mostly maintenance and get-acquainted conversations with the Garden’s four new members: Yue, Susan, Corinna, and Ed.

We did finish placing the new posts on the playground side of the Garden. We added another stone container for one of the more slopey plots, plus repaired our rabbit defense system and finished up the dry well that should reduce runoff from the Garden’s spigot.

Meanwhile, the veggie signs stand silently off to the side awaiting their postings.

With temperatures in the mid-30’s, we opened the garden yesterday.

We sorted compost, dug post holes, turned soil, added amendments, and planted seeds for spinach, peas, and fava beans, things we hope to harvest come June and July.

We’re also looking forward to warmer days.

 

 

Greetings patient Arlington gardeners! The unseasonably cold weather has delayed Opening Day at the Garden until April this year, but we won’t be dismayed. There is plenty of heavy and light work to be done and we look forward to seeing everyone at 9 Saturday morning at Robbins Farm Garden. Happy spring!

A big thanks to Alan, Lisa, Steven, Mike and Oakes for their help with the Robbins Farm Garden table at this year's EcoFest. This uniquely-Arlington event is a terrific way to let more people know about the garden and to learn more about what others are doing around Town.

Oakes' trademark tri-fold poster boards with the wonderful array of garden scenes really drew people. The dual-screen slide show Alan put together looked really great — especially with the Ken Burns-style auto-zoom-in and auto-zoom-out effects. And our supply of garden leaflets held out despite the high demand.

Many people stopped by to find out more about the garden. All were invited to visit and those with children were encouraged to bring them to participate without worrying about membership (allowing kids to get a hands-on experience without the parents having to get their hands dirty).