Hello Garden Members,

The gardens are looking so nice.  Many of us are harvesting and the food bank donations are growing.

Upcoming Work Party — Saturday, July 6:  We have a lot of maintenance projects so if you are able to attend and complete at least 2 of your required Community Service hours (more if you bring additional workers) we would really appreciate it. Please let us know if you will be attending by replying to this email so we can plan accordingly. As a reminder, the garden will be closed Saturday morning to the general membership during the work party and will open at 9:30.

Annual Garden Picnic July 20:  Save the date, July 20 starting at 4 PM. Please join us for our annual picnic and get to know your garden neighbors. Flyer and volunteer letter will be sent out following this update.

Animal Trapping: See updated information below regarding Animal Trapping

Orchard Work Parties: The Orchard work parties are usually every Tuesday from 5 to 7 and are by appointment only by signing up at the Gazebo. Also, individual appointments are available by contacting Alan Coles at:  lbcg.orchard@gmail.com. Your help is greatly appreciated.

Garden Reviews: We’re implementing the Row Monitor program once again. The new row monitors will be checking all plots the first week of the month.They will be sending out an email letting you know who they are so watch for that email. Please have your garden and pathways in compliance. Reminders and corrections will be issued.

Food Bank Delivery: We are looking for help delivering to the Long Beach Mission. We need help on Sunday mornings and on call when needed.

Thank You for the Food Bank Contributions:  The amount of produce contributed to the Long Beach Mission has been amazing this year.  We are having a stellar year. Those of you who contributed your 10% and more should feel very good about this.

Wheelbarrows:  Wheelbarrows are expensive and take a lot of wear and tear so try to take care of them.  Here are reminders about the wheelbarrows:

  1. Place wheelbarrows inside the green holders.
  2. Return wheelbarrows to the corner taken from OR if that corner has too many, take to a corner with less wheelbarrows.
  3. Place broken wheelbarrows in the NE corner of the garden by the Brown Shed so we know it needs repair do not leave it in the garden corners.
  4. Please do NOT dump dirt from the wheelbarrows into the corners. Place loose dirt in the Dirt Pile at Q-14 or small amounts in the dumpster.

Happy Gardening!

Greg Marcotte, LBCG President

ANIMAL TRAPPING
The LBCG Board has been notified by the California Department of Fish and Wildlife that “illegal trapping is a misdemeanor violation that will be enforced. All owners of rat traps are responsible for any animal that is caught-killed in their traps.”

For the LBCG, wild animals have always been a part of our local environment, especially due to our location next to the Nature Center. The LBCG abides by the rules of the City of Long Beach and Eldorado Park which includes the following statement from the City of Long Beach Department of Parks, Recreation & Marine:

The LBCG and its members shall be prohibited from attempting to trap any wildlife, including but not limited to coyotes, opossums, raccoons, skunks, rabbits and squirrels.

Some considerations you can implement to reduce harmful effects to your crops include:

  • Do not create locations where wildlife can create nests and habitat under benches or equipment.
  • Shield ground crops with row covers, fencing, etc.
  • Discourage squirrels by inter-planting with varieties that they avoid, like marigolds or mustard.
  • Apply a mixture of cayenne, chili peppers or coffee grounds around plants (reapply every 2 weeks).
  • Spray pumpkins and surrounding area with a repellent, like Liquid Fence, peppermint oil or apple cider vinegar.
  • Shave bars of Irish Spring and sprinkle around areas that squirrels may affect – even around the border boards.
  • When fencing your plot, bury the fencing 6-8 inches to keep squirrels from digging under the fencing.
  • Use decoy owls or spinning windmills.
  • Flood their holes and then cover them with dirt and a brick.
  • Do not attempt to feed wildlife or encourage unnatural behavior.  Our food is unhealthy for them.
  • Do not use poisons

We have a legal gopher control program and any concerns regarding gophers should be referred to the President or Gopher Control Committee.