The Compost Heap, Overwinter 2002-2003

The Steering Committee met on Wednesday, November 20, 2002 at the Del Mar Center. Present were Tom Warnock, Mary Austin, Sally Skibbins, Jer Skibbins, Ken Holmes, Jim Grenwelge, MA Brauer, Diane Rasmussen, and your faithful scribe, Chester Case.

The Committee bemoaned John Horn’s painful and immobilizing injury...he took a spill at home and broke a kneecap..and sent best wishes for a speedy recovery.

Everyone is reminded that the Organizational Meeting for next year is on Saturday, February 8, 2003 at 10:00 AM at the Del Mar Hall. Remind people who have been asking you how they can join the Garden.

Work Parties were announced for Thursday, Nov. 21 and Friday, November 22. Day leaders are to contact Gardeners. Tom will contact Reva to post the announcement on the Garden Website. Tasks involve putting the Garden to rest for the winter, and getting winter crops going, per the Chore Book, including planting garlic and shallots, fava beans, mulching, take up water systems, take down the tent greenhouse, prepare winter compost heaps.

Chester asked that the weekly sheets from this year’s Chore Book and planting plans be preserved for the archives, as they contain detailed information on the life of the Garden.

The Great Kelp Expedition of November 15, 2002 was reviewed. About 10 Gardeners, armed with machetes, hatchets, and pitchforks, gathered at Shell Beach to collect from heaps of kelp washed ashore abundantly in recent storms. Kelp was loaded into two pickup trucks, taken to the Garden and dumped, glistening and sinuous, in a pile below the shed. Some will be used to experimentally to mulch a bed. Most will be stirred into composting material. (See the Posh Squash Website for information on garden uses of kelp and its properties).

A long discussion and planning session regarding preparing the Garden for winter and allocation of beds. The plan is to allocate beds as follows (subject to change, depending):

Beds for winter garden	22 beds
Remain in perennials	14 beds
Mulch with paper and chips	10 beds
Mulch with straw	15 beds
Mulch with kelp	1 bed
Plant in vetch	2 beds
Plant to fava beans	10 beds
total beds	74

Mulching, which the Committee is determined to accomplish before winter sets in, was discussed at length. The goals of mulching are to suppress weeds, improve the soil, counteract rain erosion and soil compacting. Presently, four methods of mulching are in use: green manure or cover crop (fava bean, vetch), newspaper covered with wood chips, straw, and kelp. Plastic will not be used. Diane Rasmussen spoke of pomace, what’s left of the grapes after the juice is extracted, as a potential mulch and will look into its availability at the Annapolis Winery. Critical questions were raised about the paper and wood chip technique because arguably it does not improve the soil, even degrades it. The Steering Committee decided to leave the beds presently thus mulched but to do no more, then evaluate the results in the spring. (Note: work parties mulching subsequently found that the straw mulch technique is much faster than planting. The bed mulched with kelp bed is experimental).

The Garden needs a new Treasurer. Iris Borg steps out of that job this year, and goes with the thanks and great appreciation of all for the serious and thorough way she handled the work. Anyone for Treasurer? Duties include writing 6-8 checks a month, keeping the accounts and reporting balances to the Steering Committee, collecting dues and preparing the annual roster of Gardeners. This job is ideal for someone who wants to maintain connections with the Garden but requires lighter duties than the daily chores.

Jer Skibbins retires as Greenhouse Coordinator this year after stepping in to take on the job this season. He and the Greenhouse crew have had great success this year. The new Greenhouse Coordinator is MA Brauer.

Sal Skibbins retires as Planting Coordinator this year. In that busy and important role, she has specialized in ordering seeds this past year in addition to very active supervision of planting. Ken Holmes will take up Planting Coordinator duties this year.

Maria Bardini-Perkins volunteered to take on the Giant Posh Squash Scrapbook, which needs updating and is the centerpiece of the Garden’s archives.

The all-important Planting Coordination Team now consists of Mary Ausin, John Horn, MA Brauer and Ken Holmes. With consultation from Jer and Sal, it will set to work selecting and ordering seeds. Already! Well, successful gardening is in large part planning ahead and keeping the lead time. Sal and Ken will inventory seeds on hand in December. In the week of Jan. 6-10, 2003, the Planting Coordination Team will order seeds. Diane of the Herbs will give the Team a list of seeds.

As the Steering Committee pondered what to do about the Tent Greenhouse, Jer pointed out we have yet to come to grips with and understand the challenges of culturing plants in that demanding, special environment. A lot remains to be learned about climate control, moisture, soil, as well as the optimum selection of plants. After a long discussion the Steering Committee decided unanimously to not erect the plastic tent next year and to use the raised beds for other crops. Diane asked for and received permission to use the pvc hoops from the greenhouse for the herbs and flowers.

Jer presented his written valedictory to the Steering Committee and the next stewards of the greenhouse. His “A General Guide to Greenhouse Success,” is a succinct, well-written, wise, thorough and right-on summation of what it takes to make a greenhouse work. It is rich with the fruit of experience and the Gardener’s spirit. Copies will be placed in the greenhouse and posted on the Garden website. He concludes with thoughts on the rewards of working in the greenhouse, which applies equally to working in the Garden as well:

Finally, and above all, have fun in the greenhouse. It’s a nursery, a place of birth and hope. Don’t yield to any pressures to make it a place of deadly chores; just go along with your schedule of bringing wonderful plants to life. It’s the seeds, plants and weather that really control the greenhouse. We workers are just their helpers. And as helpers we need to enjoy what we do and to respect and adjust to each other’s contributions to the Posh Squash. Just as the plants need your care, observation and concern, your other greenhouse workers need your care, observation and concern.

Sal favored the Steering Committee with insights and observations on the various roles Gardeners take to make the Garden work, and how the Steering Committee works. Further representing her experience and wisdom on what it takes to keep the garden growing well, Sal has pulled together a Planning Notebook. It will be housed in the shed for Gardeners to consult.

The next meeting of the Steering Committee was set for Friday, December 20, 2002 at 1:00 PM at the Del Mar Center.