a The Learning Garden: September 2016

Friday, September 23, 2016

2016 - New year, new plants!

May Update:

Hello friends! The 2016 year has begun with a great start. We had some lovely volunteers help turn over the beds and do some weeding for the upcoming season.

Thea and Tao prepping the beds in late April.
I was out of town for a few weeks, and while I was away, we had seedlings carefully tended by a volunteer which are now ready to plant. Snow peas and lettuce, which were planted before I left are now strong and tall, loving the freedom of a garden bed. Surprise potatoes left over from last year have sprouted and the raspberry and blackberry have avoided the deer's notice as of yet. We also have sunflowers peeping up from the beds, and I look forward to enjoying their sunny blooms again this year!

New additions to the garden for this growing season include a slanted cucumber trellis, some snow pea trellises, and an arbour to help the squash grow without taking up too much space.

New cucumber trellis made with used materials.

First Snow pea trellis made with found wood and used materials.  

We have confirmation from the Kelowna Food Bank that they will take donations from us, and I look forward to being able to take in fresh produce once the season gets going. 
Herb garden and sunflowers booming in the early summer.
The last update for now: the chestnut that was planted last year is growing strong.


September update:

It has been a busy year! The garden trellises are all made and can now be used in successive years to help maximize the use of the beds for veggie growth. The squash love to sprawl outwards, and now they have a big tall arbour trellis to climb. Unfortunately I wasn't able to build it until later in the season, so the squash didn't have a chance to use it this year. We had sunflowers popping up all over the garden beds and their sunny blossoms really lit up the garden again this year.
Snow peas are growing steadily!
New squash trellis and happy sunflowers.
Cucumbers enjoying the trellis.
The weather this year made for an unusual growing season, and some of the veggies that thrived last year really didn't grow well this year like the beets and peppers. Fortunately the snow peas, lettuce, chard, and potatoes all did really well. We were able to donate several large onions, carrots, and potatoes to the food bank. There is another round of potatoes along with leeks and several pumpkins that we will also be able to donate!

With the help of some volunteers we are able to get the veggies harvested and donated to the Kelowna Food Bank. The friendly staff in Facilities also helped us put up a few signs to remind students that the food, apart from herbs and leafy greens are being donated to the food bank.

Despite the less than ideal growing season, we were still able to grow a beautiful garden this year and now we have some nice growing structures to help the plants grow next year!

Thanks for the lovely season.

- Sarah


posted by Sarah Bird @ 1:16 pm   0 comments