Long Beach Community Garden Association, Inc. Rules and Regulations Click here to download a PDF version of the Rules and Regulations. General The purpose of the Rules and Regulations is to maintain a neat and productive garden area and provide a pleasant environment for all persons in the garden.  As a member, you agree to abide by the Rules and Regulations of LBCGA.  The Officers and Board of Directors of LBCGA are final arbiters of any disputes or violation of garden rules and regulations.  Suggestions or questions about LBCGA should be brought to the attention of the Officers and Board, in person or in writing. Eligibility A member is a person assigned a plot who Actively Gardens within the By-laws, Rules and Regulation of the LBCGA and whose fees and dues are current. Plots may be assigned or reassigned at the discretion of the Board of Directors. The only qualification is a verifiable address of residence in the City of Long Beach, which must be shown at the time of admittance and upon yearly renewal.  Acceptable verification is as follows:  California driver’s license or California ID card plus a current bill.  If a question of residency should arise the following may be used to support residency verification:  a current property tax bill, mortgage statement or rent receipt and verbal statement from neighbors. One plot assignment per verified Long Beach residential address. Dues are payable on the announced and published schedule for the coming year.  Current year membership expires for non-payment of dues at midnight June 30th.  There is no grace period. Plots are assigned and cannot be transferred, exchanged or sublet to another person. It is the responsibility of each member to keep the First Vice President notified of your most current address and telephone number.  Any correspondence mailed to the current address on file is considered delivered. Each member will sign a LBCGA contract agreeing to abide by the current By-laws and Rules and Regulations. If a member dies, the spouse or significant other of the same address may take over the garden plot as a member in their own right. Member Responsibilities All Members Will: Be aware of and follow the Rules and Regulations of LBCGA. The officers and board members need not converse or otherwise meet with anyone unless the meetings are civil and respectful.  Nor will anyone be expected to respond to persons who are harassing, intimidating and/or threatening. Notify the association Vice-President when giving up a membership. Ensure that guests follow the Rules and Regulations of LBCGA; members are responsible for their guests’ actions. Only enter another member’s garden with their written permission.  Stealing anything is cause for permanent loss of membership. Not take anything (i.e. bags, produce or trays) from the food bank plots and/or from the produce collection table as it will result in immediate and permanent loss of membership. Read the bulletin board for current information upon entering the garden. Arrange for someone to take care of plot if ill or on vacation.  The association is not responsible for the upkeep of any plot.  Give opener, pass and copy of Rules and Regulations to person taking care of your plot. Attend two (2) work parties per year or give four (4) hours of service to the committee chosen.  Special work parties many be called as needed. Hours are pro-rated after January 1st for new members only to (2) hours. Be admitted to the garden during work party hours only if they are involved in the work part activities. Observe the 5 miles per hour speed limit in the garden and drive one way (south) on the center road and one way (north) on the east and west roads. Supervise and keep with them at all times any children brought to the garden. Properly use the equipment and tools of LBCGA and return them to their proper place.  Not destroy or damage any property of LBCGA. Return wheelbarrows and carts, EMPTY, to the chip/manure areas and NEVER leave one in a plot.  NEVER leave one with trash/crops in it at the dumpsters. Not consume alcoholic beverage, as per the rules of LBCGA and El Dorado Park. Not sell or use garden produce for profit and affirm that produce is intended for home use. Not bring any animals to the garden nor provide food or water for wild animals. Not skateboard, bicycle or roller-skate in the garden except for passage to your garden plot. Keep paths at their original width and keep the north and east paths free of weeds and chipped at all times.  All H and P plots must also weed/chip the west path.  All plots numbered 19, i.e. C19must also weed/chip the south path.  Plots A18 – H18 – I18 and P18 must weed and chip the south pathway, with G19 and O19 the east, west, north and south pathway.  Plot O01 and G01 the east, north and west. Keep crop trimmed and out of pathways and understand that if crop extends into a pathway it will be cut back.  Pathways are considered fire lanes by LBFD. Stay with the hose when the water is turned on, hand held watering only. No drip system, oscillating sprinkler, no diffusers and no soaker hoses.  Conserve water at all times. Not wash or rinse motor vehicles in the garden. Report problems with the water or hose to the Chair of the Water Committee or any Officer or Board member. Place trash and refuse from the garden into any of the dumpsters provided and if dumpsters are full, keep trash in your plot, not in a wheelbarrow.  Nor bring trash/garbage from outside the garden.  Wood must be cut to 4 feet lengths to fit into dumpster.  Clean up around dumpster of any crops/trash dropped. Not water, remove, relocate, alter, modify or change any plants in the orchard nor climb the trees or pick the fruit. The total percentage of your garden plot that is allowed to be used for pathway is not to exceed 20%. Members Share A Table – Edible Items Only When placing items on the share table, they should be clean and identified. Gardeners should check back and remove anything not taken Do not place anything poisonous or toxic on the share table i.e. Naked Lady bulbs. Take only 2 items of each fruit, per person, per plot and per day. Garden Plot Keep garden plot completely planted and harvested at all times with new vegetables of the season (token planting and cover crops are not allowed). Will remove and/or trim all diseased and pet infested plants. Plant no more than 10% of garden area in beneficial flowers and no more than 25% of garden area with anyone one crop, i.e. herbs, berries, tomatoes, mustard greens, squash, etc. Do not use pressure treated wood in garden. Fences must be constructed as close to 2 feet in height as possible and not be attached to the border boards.  Cannot be constructed of flimsy material like bird netting, the preferred material is chicken wire. Not alter, attach to, replace or paint the borders of the plot and will keep them free of soil, chips and plants. Not build raised beds in their plot without first submitting plans with measurements to the Board Chair.  Raised beds may not be built closer than 12 inches from the outside border boards and no more the 6 inches higher than the top of the border boards. Not raise the soil level in their garden plot more then 6 inches higher then the border boards. Keep the plot marker on the north east side of their plot clear and readable, if missing report to the maintenance committee. Not have trellises, supports, cages, crops or any structure including artwork in excess of six (6) feet in height.  Will not let anything shade neighboring plots. Keep plot free of all weeds i.e. Bermuda grass, morning glory, spurge and nut grass. See complete list at the table under the gazebo. Plant berries, asparagus, rhubarb and artichokes at least 4 feet from the plot borders and keep suckers dug up and out of other plots and pathways.  Trim artichokes up off the ground. Compost containers are limited to two (2) neither to exceed 3’x 3’x 3’.  All composting must be done in a covered container.  All crops in composter must be covered with dirt or manure due to flies, gnats and critters.  Open composing and leaving leaves on the soil is not allowed. Bring only one storage container to the garden (no wood), no taller than 42 inches (3 ½ feet) and not wider then 48 inches (4 feet). Only use items made for a garden, (i.e. no old windows, step ladders, screens or doors) in the plot. Hose Replacement The policy for hose replacement is that the plots that share the hose, share the cost of a new hose.  It is suggested that you purchase a Sears rubber hose, a 50 foot only, as a longer hose would break the hose holder.  The Sears hose has a lifetime guarantee and if leaks/breaks or whatever, cut off both ends and take to any Sears store for a full replacement. Banned Plants The following plants are banned and member will not plant them: Any “illegal” plant     Wild Dandelion Sorghum      Canna Lily Passion Fruit      Any succulent Petunias Jerusalem artichoke     Volunteer Tomato plants Datura (flowering vine)    White and Black Nightshade Any type of Morning Glory (weed, domestic, flower) Sugar Cane      Rose bushes Trees       Castor Bean Bamboo      4 O’clock (the flower) Plumeria Grapevines      Mint Horseradish Any perennial that grows over 4 feet tall and/or is hard wood Potatoes of any kind (including yams and sweet potatoes) Any invasive plants that spread aggressively from the original site of planting, which takes over or over whelms any near by plants.  BERRY PLANTS As of July 1, 2008 all berries are banned except strawberries and blueberries. BANNED PLANTS INCLUDE: Brambles- (thorny plants), blackberries, raspberries, olallieberries, loganberries, gooseberries, or any member of the Genus Rubus. This includes all berry plants that have runners or suckers or thorns. All berries plant in LBCG plots prior to July 1, 2008 will be grandfathered in and will be removed once plot is returned back to LBCG. Seasonal Rule Tomatoes, peppers, eggplant and all other members of the nightshade family must be removed from the plots by December 1st and not replanted until after March 1st of each year.      Termination Of Membership Membership in the LBCGA may be terminated if any rules (including El Dorado Park rules) are broken, or if false information is given. If membership is terminated, a re-application may be submitted one year after termination, if pass(s), opener(s) are returned and plot is in compliance with the Rules and Regulations of LBCGA, (See bylaws, Article 111). Upon loss of membership you may not enter LBCGA grounds for any reason. Termination for stealing or for drinking alcohol in the garden is cause for permanent loss of membership. Failure to make requested correction to garden plot, upon receipt of a Notice of Correction, in the specified time will result in termination of membership.  Plots receiving three (3) Notice of Correction within twelve months will be reassigned (the year begins upon receiving the first notice, not the membership year).  Abandoned by LBCGA standards means:  no crop, no activity i.e. planting, watering or weeding, over run by weeds or blooming weeds, crop going to waste or rotting.  Examples are not limited to the above. When a membership is terminated, voluntarily or for cause, the member so terminated is to collect their personal belonging within the period stated in their termination letter or by agreement. Any items left in the plot after the agreed upon date become the property of LBCGA to dispose of as the associated deems appropriate. New members are on probation for the first 90 days and membership may be terminated for cause or rules violation. Fees Annual dues for memberships are $50.00 and are prorated after January 1, with fees subject to change. Gate openers are $12.50 (non refundable) per opener (this is the fee for the life time of the membership).  Gate openers and passes are limited to 2 per plot by agreement with the City of Long Beach.  A $50.00 fee will be charged for returned checks and subjected to change. Garden Passes Garden passes are required for entrance to the garden by all members and guest vehicles whether driving a vehicle, bicycle or walking.  Passes are to be visible at all times with the pass number showing. Passes are valid for admission to the garden only and may not be used to gain admission to other areas of El Dorado Park. Board of Director Responsibilities The orchard is cared for by the foreman of the orchard and is off limits to any member without the express permission of the foreman and/or the Board Chairperson.  The orchard foreman or president will be responsible for supervising the picking and distribution of the fruit. In a garden emergency such as flooding, fire, unauthorized entry or other such events, the Board President, Vice-President or other Board members on site may take appropriate corrective action in consideration of the welfare of the garden and/or its members as a whole. LBCGA, through its food Bank provides free produce to organization approved by the Board of Directors including, but not limited to, the homeless, battered women, abused children, the poor etc.  Each member is encouraged to contribute a portion of their produce to the Food Bank Project.  The taking of produce from the Food Bank plots and/or from the produce collection table will result in immediate and permanent loss of membership. Members personal information will not be disclosed by any Officers or Board of Directors The Officers and Board of Directors are the determining bodies on the interpretation of the Rules and Regulation with all decisions being final. Information The Board of Directors of LBCGA meet on the second Tuesday of each month at 2760 Studebaker Road, in the Parks and Recreation large conference room.   Members are encouraged to attend Board meeting.  To bring any concerns or questions before the Board, in person or in writing, please contact the Board President to be added to the agenda.  Letters may be sent to LBCGA, Inc., P.O. Box 50167, Long Beach, CA  90815 or put in the mailbox in front of the small barn.  Members may also contact any Board member and express concerns by phone or e-mail at LBGC.org. The physical address of LBCGA, Inc. is 7600B E. Spring Street, Long Beach, CA. Members can appeal the loss of membership to the Board of Directors.  The appeal can be either in person or written.  The member requesting the appeal should call the President of the Board to be placed on the meeting agenda.  The appeal will be heard at the next Board meeting or at a special meeting called by the Board President.  The Board of Directors decision is final.  Decision could be loss of membership or probation of one (1) year.  Should probation be violated then loss of membership will ensue with no appeal.  Only one (1) probation allowed every seven (7) years. REV 7-1-2008