Ladner Community Garden

We would like to thank all our volunteers at the community garden for all they have done this year. From building a fence and arbor to painting and helping with garden classes, so much has been accomplished. Its been a busy building year and we are going into 2014 with less to do. We will be focusing on planting some new gardens and getting our herb spiral built. Thanks to those who attended our Christmas party. It was nice to have such great conversation. That's what community is all about. As we go into the new year, we will be looking for a few new directors. If you have some time to spare, we meet a few times each year to organize potluck dinners and work parties. In order to keep our garden going we need five directors so if you can help out, we would be very happy to have you on board. This past season was a very abundant one at the garden. We had peas and beans growing like crazy and at times it was hard to keep up with the harvest. The grade three class h

Yesterday the grade three class that comes to the Ladner Community Garden had a fun time building scarecrows. At the end of the school day we placed four of the scarecrows in the garden as we like to show the public what the community garden is all about. Well, we may never do that again. Sometime between 3pm on October 9 and 10am on October 10, three out of the four scarecrows were kidnapped, gone, vanished! These guys are a bit awkward to carry as the wooden supports are long and a bit heavy if you are walking with them. The three scarecrows that went missing are the ones with pillow cases for heads in the top photo. If you saw anyone walking by with scarecrows under their arm yesterday or any suspicious activity near the garden on Holly Park Drive in east Ladner please let me know. All the clothes were bought from the local thrift shop out of my own personal money. When I visit the thrift shop the ladies are going to ask me how it went with the scarecrow day. Won't the

As we reach this time of year, we are thankful for the abundant harvests we have had at the Ladner Community Garden. What grew well this year were the peas and beans. Loads and loads of beans just kept coming until the temperatures dropped. This season comes to a close soon but we have accomplished a lot. Our new fence is up and its looking great. The work on our hedgerow began this year and we have more shrubs coming. We just need a volunteer work party to get it done. If you have been by the garden our pergola is coming along. The cement work is almost done and we are preparing to build some new flower gardens using recycled concrete. Did you know our front rockery is made from four recycled driveways? Now that's recycling at its best. The grade three class has had a lot of fun learning at the garden. We have a couple more classes this month and the students will return in the spring. So far the students this year have donated 100 pounds of fresh vegetables to the

A garden tour is coming to the Ladner Community Garden. I can't wait to join this tour and see all the wonderful community gardens. If you would like to join us, be sure to register soon as the cut off date is September 1, 2013. Alexandra House Community Gardens Bus Tour – Itinerary and Schedule September 8, 2013 Register by September 1 to ensure your place! See below The tour will visit five community gardens in Metro Vancouver on this one day outing. We have selected locations to provide a good cross section of garden organizations in different municipalities. Anyone who wants to learn more about different ways to organize and operate community gardens will have ample opportunity and those who just want to relax and enjoy the tour will be rewarded. Of course, in this season, any visit to a garden brings pleasure. Bring your camera.   The tour leaves Alexandra Community Garden on Sullivan St. in Crescent Beach at 9:00 AM sharp.   Plan to bring a lunch. You a

To all our allotment holders and fellow gardeners, our new composting program is now in effect. Even though we had lots of composters, the green waste was not being chopped up sufficiently enough to make decomposition work fast enough. Whole plants do not compost as quickly as ones chopped into smaller pieces. So what could we do?   We sent out a message asking gardeners if they wanted to take over a composter to make their own black gold. So far we have over eight composters that are being managed by allotment holders for their own use. You will know if the composter is for private use of that gardener by the numbers painted on top. This is also the same for West Coast Seeds who have their name on one large wooden composter.  You will also notice that several composters are displaying this sign. Please do not add green material to these composters as they are full of 'almost ready to use' compost which we hope to use for a new garden. It just needs a few weeks

Things are heating up at the garden and this is proving to be one of our best years yet. I think its that great soil we ordered from West Creek Farms. The plants are growing like crazy.  Thanks to all who signed up to water over the summer. It takes the load off of the directors who have been managing to water more than was expected. Now that our trees and shrubs are going in we have to make sure they gets enough water which is so essential during the first year of growth. Have you noticed the numbers on our composters? We are trying to start a management program so the composting is done properly. If you see a composter with a number on it , it corresponds to the allotment bed taking care of it. You can no longer just toss your trimmings just anywhere. We really want to make our own black gold. If you don't want to be part of the program, please use the large wooden composters. If you would like a composter, please contact a director.  Okay, I really think th

The community garden in Ladner is bursting with all sorts of great vegetables.We think this is going to be our best growing year to date. I came home with a huge handful of Russian Kale tonight for Sunday dinner. Did you know we have community meals at the garden? Yes, we try to have a community meal at the end of every month from June to September. Tomorrow, June 23 at 6pm is our first get together of the season and we hope to see lots of people come by. If you would like to join us, just bring a dish to share, your cutlery, dishes and a glass. We will supply some cold drinks. Its a great way to meet other gardeners. So much has been happening at the garden that I haven't had time to write. The pergola floor is almost done. Laying recycled cement pieces is no small job. Each has to be levelled carefully. Our next task will be placing a different floor between our two pergolas. Right now its a secret as to what is planned but hopefully it will be done by the end of summ

Here it is almost the middle of May and once we get passed this patch of rainy weather it will be time to get our heat loving crops in the ground. Start to plan your garden and add vegetables such as beans, squash and  pumpkins. They can go in any time after May 15. Be sure to harden off your plants to prevent shock when setting them out. No one likes to go outside from a 25C greenhouse to a 10C garden overnight. Place your new plants outside for a few days giving them a bit more sunlight each day. If in doubt when buying new plants, ask your garden center staff if they have been hardened off. Towards the end of May, plants such as cucumbers, peppers, basil and corn can be started as long as the weather is consistently warm. I don't recommend planting Basil until the first week of June. It just doesn't handle the cold nights. Planting too early just sets your plants back.  Don't forget that when planting corn the soil needs to be around 15C for the seed to germina

April has been a busy month at the Ladner Community Garden. We have a full allotment garden, with a few new gardeners this season. If you see someone you don't know in the garden, please take the time to say hello. If you have been at the garden in the last week, the pergolas are being prettied up. Gord and Jim are working on a new roof design and they finished the new arbor at the back of the garden. The fence has been pegged out along the back and sides of the garden. We are starting to plant the hedgerow along the front sides. We have plans to bring in some road base to fill in the wet area on the east side of the garden. As soon as that is done, we will hold our herb spiral class. The children have been busy planting in their garden. They have peas, broad beans and onions already up. Their next big project is the annual tea cup plant sale on May 9 at Southpointe Academy. Next week we will be planting up over 300 tea cups! Thanks to all for the donations o

Now that spring break is over, the grade three class is returning to the garden. This week they will be planting the seed tapes they made in March. It was a great rainy day project for them to do. In all, they made 62 feet of seed tape. That's a lot of vegetables! They will be planting lettuce, spinach, spicy greens, radishes, carrots, beets, potatoes, onions, broad beans and peas in the one hour they are at the garden. Did I tell you there are 28 students this year so many hands make light work. The students come by bus from Southpointe Academy in Tsawwassen. They learn everything about gardening from starting seeds to harvesting and tasting their own vegetables. They usually start their day by spending time just observing in the garden. There is so much to learn by seeing the changes nature brings. From the buds that swell in spring to the light frost that covers kale in the fall, they learn to see the changes and identify the different seasons. When planting