This Saturday, March 3rd - news

ATTENTION GARDENERS: We met this Saturday, March 3rd at 10:00 in the garden. We pressure washed the greenhouse, transplanted leeks into cell-packs (to add to the two flats of mesclun lettuce from last week) in the newly cleaned greenhouse.
We also started to sift and move a large blackberry vine compost pile. Hot dang: the blackberry vines composted beautifully and produced a rich black soil. And none sprouted! Highly recommended use for blackberry-overgrowth; vertical aerated compost piles! Go to digs and see them on the right hand side of the garden. (right next to the encroaching blackberry plants still growing!)

Garden news from today:

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News from Gardenwise magazine this month:
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Right now at home you can direct sow:
Corn Salad, Broad Bean, Kale, Giant Red Mustard, Mizuna, Onion Sets, Snow Peas, Snap Peas.

And indoors for later transplanting you can sow:
Lettuce, Broccoli, Cabbage, Leeks.

In greenhouse or cold frame, you can sow Argula, Winter micro-greens (lettuces), Mesclun (sprouts best at 75 degrees F - then after three days, move into protected frames in flats).

Also:
Top dress your garlic beds with compost, and use liquid kelp or fish fertilizer for nitrogen boost.

New Seeds (Westcoast) to try:
Slow-Bolt Butterhead "Gandhi" lettuce; slow to bolt; high resistance to powdery mildew; Certified Organic; pelleted.

Teeny-Zucchini "Buckingham": compact yellow; container suitable; tidy habit; 45 days maturity; edible flowers.

Pollinators appreciate these flowering spring/summer plants:
Crocuses, Tulips, Rhododendrons, Dandelions, Buttercups.

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And here is our updated planting plan for the DIGS beds this year:



Click on the above picture to enlarge.
Print-outable black and white verions of the above are available in pdf.

Planning for Fall Fair for Sept. 2012

FALL FAIR 2012 ANNOUNCEMENT

I know it's early BUT.... due to popular demand here are the judging categories
for this year's Fall Fair to be held September 15, 2012.

Cheers, Jim

Fall Fair Catagories
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VISUAL ARTS

1. Best Painting
2. Best Sketch
3. Best Photograph
4. Best Natural Beach Art

HORTICULTURE

1. Biggest Zucchini
2. Most Unusual Vegetable
3. Single Heaviest Onion
4. Flowers...Best Single Bloom (any variety)
5. Flower Arrangement...Three different varieties of flowers in a jam jar
(minimum of 5 blooms)

BAKING/PRESERVES

1. Best Pie
2. Best Bread
3. Best Sweet Loaf
4. Best Jam/Jelly
5. Best Pickles/Chutney
6. Best Cookies
7. Best Buns
8. Best Dehydrated Fruit or Vegetable

WINES

1. Best Homemade White Wine
2. Best Homemade Red Wine

HOME ARTS

1. Any Knitted or Crocheted Item
2. Any Type of Craft

JUNIORS:
1. Best Scarecrow
2. Best Art
3. Best Craft
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Judging for all the food entries in ourFall Fair (Sept. 15th 2012) will be based on the Manitoba Food Rules criteria. If you are submitting an entry in this category please check out the following link for necessary safety issues with canned food and container types to use: Food Judging Standards.
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Jen adds:
And if you want to re-visit last year's fall fair, here are some photos:

Feast your eyes!!


(double click and choose full screen slide show!)

Happy planning!

Flowers, Nature, Seen through Time-Lapse

Dear Garden Lovers,

Here are some good films:

A BBC documentary on restoring the earth through man-powered gardening:

http://www.open.edu/openlearn/whats-on/ou-on-the-bbc-hope-changing-climate

And to rest your eyes:
Flowers opening in time lapse, set to music: click here to view.


Also:


These films were found by Cate.

This Saturday 10 am Feb 18th

We met this Saturday, Feb.18th at 10 am in the garden to plant early potatoes in bed no. 2, oil the locks, power wash our greenhouse and do a few other jobs. We had cookies and coffee (thankyou to our cookie maker; totally needed that boost!).
Oh, there was a re-discovery that the garlic in bed 7 was only ONE BED, not two, and not to be mixed up with August's planting of garlic in beds 5 and 6. Meanwhile, we can put leeks or salad crops in 5/6 and wait to plant more garlic this summer.
And we'll finish washing the greenhouse and chairs next week with a smaller power washer.
Hope to see you there. Total fun! Like Niagra Falls "going under the mist".
Looks great too.

Feb 19th, Sunday AGM

Dear D.I.G.S. members and island gardeners,
Announcing: DIGS Annual General Meeting – 2012
1:00 – 1:30 – Membership Sale – single: $10.00 - family: $15.00
1:30 – 2:00 – Formal DIGS AGM Meeting
2:00 – 3:00 – Discussion of extra topics:

1) Capital expenditures for 2012 - Will purchase: New lawnmower, weed-wacker, canopy.
2) Harvesting in the garden & signage
3) Hiring Little Diggers - It was decided that more lawn maintenance could be done by Big Diggers, to avoid hiring extra Little Digger lawn care folk.
4) Social Calendar

All are welcome!!