Hello Members,
CLEANING OUT PLOTS AND PLANTING IS THE NAME OF THE GAME NOW!
- We hope you all had successful summer crops. November 15 is the FALL planting deadline. Be sure to add amendments as plants need food to grow!
- NOV 15th is also the deadline for removing TOMATOES , PEPPERS & EGGPLANTS: All tomatoes, peppers and eggplants must be completely removed from November 15 through March 1. We give the garden a rest from these plants to reduce disease.
OCTOBER 1 – WORK PARTY: Remember that 2 of the 4 required hours must be completed by the end of December. If the 2 hours are not completed by Dec 31, you will automatically be given an extra 2 hours for required community service for a total of 6 hours. Hope to see you at 7:15 AM on October 1st. Even if you have done your 4 hours, consider coming to help because we are behind. We had to waive the hours for last year and roll them over to the current garden year so we are behind in work needed to be done. Please RSVP to this email if you plan to attend. It helps us to make the assignments and how much work we can expect to get done.
WATER CONSERVATION: We would like to thank our gardeners for conserving water during the MWD pipeline repair project. While the project has completed, we would like to remind our gardeners to continue to conserve water during this drought. An average plot owner uses about 36 gallons a day during summer according to our water meters. By comparison, the orchard with over 100 trees, uses about 2% of the water or about 6 plots average use.
Please take the time to learn how to detect and correct over and underwatering. Roots need oxygen and too much water causes dieback. Plants look unhealthy and are unproductive. Overwatering also damages the soil by killing beneficial organisms and compacting the soil. Please see our website http://lbcg.org/watering/ for more information.
As a reminder, you must hand water with a nozzle or wand on the hose. No exceptions. Excessive use of water such as flooding the plot will result in correction notices and possible loss of membership. ALSO, PLANTS DON’T LIKE WATER ON LEAVES – water at the drip line.
RECLAIMED WATER UPDATE:
After a thorough investigation comparing the differences between our current water source and reclaimed water, we have decided not to switch at this time. There were several issues but the primary problem was the much higher salinity of reclaimed water. Soil testing results showed almost all plots having elevated levels of salt and chloride which makes it difficult for plants to absorb nutrients. As a result, many gardeners respond by adding more fertilizer which adds yet more salt. Our website has more information http://lbcg.org/amending-your-garden/salt-issues. A good source about managing salinity in soil can be found at https://watereuse.org/salinity-management/index.html .
TRASH ISSUES: The trash trucks will NOT empty bins if wood, pvc or other material is hanging over the bins. This causes major disruption in the trash removal and availability of bins. Please cut the pieces up or if necessary, lay them behind the bin so a Board Member can cut them up before putting pieces in the bins. A few times the trash was not emptied from one of the bins due to long pieces of pipe extending over the sides.
LEAVING THE GARDEN? Please notify Nancy Bernstein, Membership Chair, at 562-477-1598 or reply to this email if you plan to end your garden membership. Please note that in order to leave in good standing and to be kind to your fellow gardeners, it is required that you clear out your plot and return the parking tag and gate opener. Please do not abandon the plot and cause weed problems for your neighbors and a mess for members to have to clean up after you.
SPEED CAUTION: Again, we are seeing vehicles “flying” down the roads of LBCG. The maximum speed is 5 mph. This is a major safety concern as people can easily slip out between cars and if you would not see them, you could be liable for causing major injuries as the driver. Please slow down and help avoid us having to install more speed bumps.
SPIDERS: Please be careful and watch for spiders. There are many spiders this time of year. Most are harmless and beneficial to your garden but a few such as black widows may be harmful. Learn the differences and watch your children closely.
MANAGING GARDEN HOSES: In order to reduce injuries and breakage, PLEASE roll up your hose in concentric circles above the ground so that others don’t walk and catch their shoes in the loops. PLEASE be careful when stretching hoses out to wind as it breaks the hose at the faucet.
TRASH BINS: Please Read all signage in regards to each dumpster. The dumpsters are for garden waste only. No outside trash or hazardous waste is allowed. We have had problems with outside waste being brought in and several times this year electronics including a large heavy T.V. were dumped and it took 3 members to lift it out and drive it to an electronic recycling center.
GREEN bins are for plants. Please no metal, wood, plastic, etc. Only plants including weeds should be placed in these bins located in the NE and SW corners.
GRAY Metal bins are for trash. Please place all garden trash in these bins and plants if the green ones are full.
BLUE bins are for plastics and recyclables located across from the gazebo.
FOOD BANK: The mission was so appreciative of all the summer donations. Let’s hope we have a successful season that will be plentiful for all.
Happy Gardening!
Greg Marcotte