What's Happening at the Third Street Community Garden?

Arlington's community garden moved to a new location this year next to Presidents Elementary School on E Third St. I got involved with the garden in spring and decided to volunteer some time for the food bank patch. Here are some of the highlights from the first growing season:

Staking out an area at the north end of the garden. 

Removing grass and weeds. 4/21/19

Tilled with a layer of compost. 5/17/19

Added a fun rock pathway in the middle, using rocks we found while weeding and tilling the ground. 5/23/19

Seeds and starts planted. Corn, beans, squash, sunflowers, chives, and marigolds. 5/28/19

I also planted and cared for two food bank raised beds. This one had tomatoes, chard, cauliflower, marigolds, and pineapple sage. 5/28/19

Second food bank box. Tomatoes, chard, cauliflower, squash, and marigolds. 5/28/19

I experimented with woodchips to see if they would help retain moisture (or for that matter, negatively affect the plants). 6/2/19

6/2/19

The soil was pretty nitrogen deficient, so I watered with fish fertilizer. Made a big difference. 6/21/19

Makeshift bean trellis. This worked wonderfully in the beginning, but needed to be much bigger once the beans really took off. 6/21/19

6/21/19

Pollinators enjoyed the chive flowers. 5/28/19

First cauliflower. 6/21/19

7/25/19

7/25/19

7/25/19

The sunflowers were incredible! 8/3/19

So colorful! 8/25/19

I'm happy about well-pollinated ears of corn. 8/25/19

Tomatoes are here! 8/27/19

Harvests

Here are some of our food bank donations. Next year I'd like to keep a better log of how much we harvest. Not bad for a brand new location and a late start.

7/17/19

8/27/19

9/9/19

9/9/19

Snaggy Saturdays

I visited the Northwest Stream Center in Everett, WA this week. I loved the boardwalk nature trail, and guess what -- the folks here appreciate a good stump! Observed August 1, 2019.

Thank You, Blueberry

Happy Lughnasadh, everyone. I wish I had more to show for my gardening efforts, but it's been another challenging year with my physical and mental health, and I haven't been able to make as much progress as I would have liked. However, I was pleased to see that my neglected Peach Sorbet blueberry bush was loaded with fruit. I brought this bush home from the nursery five years ago, and it's unfortunately stayed in plant purgatory that whole time, despite my desire to get in the ground. I thanked it and said some kind words, which is not something I normally do. It's times like these when I remember why I fell in love with edible gardening.

First Harvest Meal

You know me, y'all. As soon as the first tomatoes ripen, it's Caprese salad time. I look forward to this so hard. Tomatoes are my favorite homegrown ingredients.

I just harvested a bunch of squash at the community garden, so I turned a few into a tasty...thing. :)

Donated to the food bank:

Appreciating the Heliotrope

I love the purple blooms and subtle vanilla-like scent of Heliotropium arborescens. This swallowtail seems to like it, too.

Snaggy Saturdays

Intentional snag at Portage Creek Wildlife Reserve in Arlington, WA. I love that they left so many perches, and hey, it's also a great post for a sign. Observed on April 28, 2019.

Snaggy Saturdays

Several natural snags found at Twin Rivers Park in Arlington, WA. Observed on April 27, 2019.

Introducing...The Patch!

(We haven't come up with a good name for it.)

A few gardeners and I have been clearing space for the food bank bed. We've dug up most of the weeds and brought over a layer of compost. I made a little dry river rock pathway for funsies. Recently we planted corn in the circles on the left, a row of my favorite mix of sunflower seeds toward the front [of this photo], and some squash starts. I'll plant some beans and whatever else takes my fancy on the right side of the path. I'm excited to see how this develops. The Patch will mostly be responsibility, so hopefully I don't screw it up!

Snaggy Saturdays

Intentional snags at the Country Charm Conservation Area in Arlington, WA. Birds love this place, and I want to remind myself to learn more about this place, since it's so local. Observed April 27, 2019.

Snaggy Saturdays at Horticulture School

Tangled tree remains incorporated into a garden at the Lake Washington School of Horticulture's arboretum in Kirkland, WA. Observed April 26, 2019.

Snaggy Saturdays

Ghost stump at Saint Edward State Park.

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Snaggy Saturdays

After my last post about the purpose of snags, I've been paying more to these natural structures whenever I find them in the forest or in landscaped areas. As anyone who's been hiking recently with me knows, I just can't help getting excited about interesting snags, stumps, and nursery logs. So I'm making it a thing now, because...of course I would.

Found this beauty in Saint Edward State Park on April 26. Bonus: hairy woodpecker at the top!