Garden News 5-22-23

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May 222023
 

Planting and Harvesting Underway the Garden

We are finishing up planting about 600 pepper plants today. We planted 43 varieties of peppers; some bells and other sweet peppers, some mild peppers, as well as hot peppers and flaming hot peppers.

We serve diverse communities through food pantries and people like peppers of all kinds.
Next we will plant beans, squashes and melons.

Later this month some 3,000 sweet potato starts should arrive at the garden. The sweet potato starts will spend 7-10 days in a planting medium in our greenhouse in order to develop robust root structures before about 2,000 of the plants will be set out in the garden during the week of June 12.

The rest of the sweet potato plants will be given away to other donation gardens and refugee farmers in the area.


Children from Covenant Presbyterian Church harvested about 25 pounds of spinach on Wednesday evening.


Harvest and donation results through May 21

Asparagus 15 pounds
Spinach 230 pounds
WDM Human Services 145 pounds
Trinity Las Americas 100 pounds
Soon we will harvest lettuce and radishes.


Leaves, Leaves, Everywhere!

Lots of Mulching Going on in the Garden

We use leaf mulch (mainly maple leaves) to promote water retention and weed control in the garden. We spread 4-6 inches of leaves around the plants and in the rows between the plants each season.
We thank our many garden volunteers for their help with the important task!

Over 60 Waukee High School students helped mulch the garden on Thursday!


Regular volunteer hours for individuals and small groups:

Monday through Friday 9:00 am – 11:00 am through June 2
Monday through Friday 8 am – 10 am from June 5 – September 15
Monday through Friday 9:00 am – 11:00 am from September 18 through October 27
Tuesday evenings 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm starting May 2 through August 22
Tuesday evenings 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm from August 29 through October 24

No experience necessary. Bring a hat, water bottle and garden gloves if you have them. Wear clothes that can get dirty and hard-soled shoes. Sunscreen is a good idea as is bug repellant later in the season.

To volunteer during our regular volunteer hours please sign-up here.

Large groups volunteer by appointment. School, church, civic, and corporate groups are always welcome in the garden by appointment. Contact Tim Goldman at timothyjgoldman@gmail.com to volunteer as fits your schedule.

 Posted by at 12:07 pm

Garden News 5-4-23

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May 042023
 

Planting is winding down this month

If the weather cooperates, we should be finished with most of our planting by May 19.
We still have peppers and lots of row crops to get in, but with help from our volunteers, the work has moved along quickly.
Once we have the garden planted our focus will turn to water…water….water as the weather warms up.

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Last Thursday, we planted nearly 300 tomato plants.This year we will have 41 varieties of mostly heirloom  tomatoes in the garden.
On Sunday, volunteers from Revision Church once again helped us out in the garden by mulching around all the new tomato plants.

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The only vegetable left to plant in June will be sweet potatoes.
Due to their nutritional value, long storage life, and presence in the diets of many of the ethnicities we serve, sweet potatoes are probably the most important plant growing in the Faith & Grace Garden. We will plant 1,000 – 2,000 sweet potato starts during the week of June 5 or June 12, depending on when our shipment arrives.

Can your group help us in this important work? Call Tim Goldman at timothyjgoldman@gmail.com or by calling 515-745-9842 to plan this volunteer service project for your work, church, school, or civic group.

Warm Weather Vegetable Plant Giveaway – this weekend!
Grace Garden Greenhouse
1020 24th Street (park in lot north of St Timothy’s Episcopal Church)
Saturday, May 6, 9am – 3pm
Sunday, May 7, 11:30am – 1:30pm
FREE Warm weather organic seedlings: tomatoes, peppers, herbs, squash, melons ready for your garden
Donations gladly accepted – cash, check or online at: sttimothysiowa.org/donate

Regular Volunteer Hours for Individuals and Small Groups

Monday through Friday 9:00 am – 11:00 am through June 2
Monday through Friday 8 am – 10 am from June 5 – September 15
Monday through Friday 9:00 am – 11:00 am from September 18 through October 27
Tuesday evenings 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm starting May 2 through August 22
Tuesday evenings 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm from August 29 through October 24

No experience necessary. Bring a hat, water bottle and garden gloves if you have them. Wear clothes that can get dirty and hard-soled shoes. Sunscreen is a good idea as is bug repellant later in the season.

To volunteer during our regular volunteer hours please sign-up here

 Posted by at 12:24 pm

Garden News 4-28-23

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Apr 292023
 

Planting and Harvesting Underway in the Garden

During April we focus on planting cool weather crops in the garden. So far, we have planted potatoes, cabbage, kale, Brussel sprouts, Swiss chard, lettuce, onions, garlic, spinach, turnips, beets. We have more cool weather crops to plant. Next week, we hope to start planting warm weather crops; first tomatoes and peppers. We are also harvesting spinach that was planted last fall and a little asparagus.  Volunteers have planted about 5,000 onions in the past 2 weeks. We grow a purple variety of asparagus. It’s really tasty….

Regular volunteer hours for individuals and small groups:

Monday through Friday 9:00 am – 11:00 am through June 2
Monday through Friday 8 am – 10 am from June 5 – September 15
Monday through Friday 9:00 am – 11:00 am from September 18 through October 27
Tuesday evenings 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm starting May 2 through August 22
Tuesday evenings 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm from August 29 through October 24

No experience necessary. Bring a hat, water bottle and garden gloves if you have them. Wear clothes that can get dirty and hard-soled shoes. Sunscreen is a good idea as is bug repellant later in the season.

To volunteer during our regular volunteer hours please sign-up here
Please sign our Risk Management Policy Here: https://www.growthefood.org/volunteer-today/

Large groups volunteer by appointment. School, church, civic, and corporate groups are always welcome in the garden by appointment. Contact Tim Goldman at timothyjgoldman@gmail.com to volunteer as fits your schedule.

 Posted by at 3:30 pm

Garden News 4-18-23

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Apr 192023
 

All of the food grown in the Faith & Grace Garden is donated to feed local hungry people.
Last fall we doubled the size of the garden from one acre to two acres.

In 2023, our hope is to double the amount of organic fruits and vegetables we donate each year. Last year we donated 17,000 pounds. In 2023 we aim to donate over 30,000 pounds of fresh, organic fruits and vegetables to local food pantries.

Planting Time Continues in the Garden
Last week we planted 300 pounds of seed potatoes, 3,000 onion sets, and rows of lettuce and cabbage.
This week we will finish planting lettuce and cabbage and start planting broccoli, cauliflower, and kale.

Here is how you can help in the garden:

We heard you, NEW Garden Volunteers Times/Dates:

Tuesday evenings and cooler morning times in mid-summer
Regular volunteer hours for individuals and small groups:

  • Monday through Friday 9:00 am – 11:00 am through June 2
  • Monday through Friday 8 am – 10 am from June 5 – September 15
  • Monday through Friday 9:00 am – 11:00 am from September 18 through October 27
  • Tuesday evenings 6:00 pm – 8:00 pm starting May 2 through August 22
  • Tuesday evenings 5:00 pm – 7:00 pm from August 29 through October 24

No experience necessary. Bring a hat, water bottle, and garden gloves if you have them. Wear clothes that can get dirty and hard-soled shoes. Sunscreen is a good idea as is bug repellant later in the season.

To volunteer during our regular volunteer hours please sign-up here

Large groups volunteer by appointment. School, church, civic, and corporate groups are always welcome in the garden by appointment. Contact Tim Goldman at timothyjgoldman@gmail.com to volunteer as fits your schedule.

 Posted by at 6:53 pm

Garden News 4-12-23

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Apr 122023
 

All of the food grown in the Faith & Grace Garden is donated to feed local hungry people. Last fall we doubled the size of the garden from one acre to two acres.

In 2023, our hope is to double the amount of organic fruits and vegetables we donate each year. Last year we donated 17,000 pounds. In 2023 we aim to donate over 30,000 pounds of fresh, organic fruits and vegetables to local food pantries.

Its Planting Time in the Garden

Planting time is upon us! Yesterday Mark Marshall planted 300 pounds of potatoes using our new potato planter.  Today we will start planting onions….we need your help!

Here is how you can help in the garden:

Regular volunteer hours for individuals and small groups during 2023 are Monday through Friday, 9:30am – 11:30am.No experience necessary. Bring a hat, water bottle and garden gloves if you have them. Wear clothes that can get dirty and hard-soled shoes. Sunscreen is a good idea as is bug repellant later in the season.

To volunteer during our regular volunteer hours please sign-up here.

Large groups volunteer by appointment. School, church, civic, and corporate groups are always welcome in the garden by appointment. Contact Tim Goldman at timothyjgoldman@gmail.com to volunteer as fits your schedule.

 Posted by at 6:45 pm

Garden News 3-16-23

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Mar 162023
 

2023 Growing Season now Underway…In the Greenhouse

Garden volunteers have been busy in the Faith & Grace Greenhouse since February, first planting cool weather vegetable seedlings and more recently transplanting those seedlings into larger containers. Our cool weather seedlings include broccoli, cauliflower, Brussel sprouts, kale, onions, lettuce, mustard, shallots and garlic.

At the end of March and into April, many of these plants will be given away free of charge to local church and school donation gardens. Others will be distributed to refugee farmers enrolled in the Lutheran Services Global Greens program.

Volunteers needed in the greenhouse next week (3/20 – 24) and in the garden the following week (3/27-31) in the morning, and Saturday, 4/1 in the afternoon. Please sign-up below.
Greenhouse Sign-Up: Next week we will continue transplanting from 10am – Noon.
No experience necessary. Please sign-up here.
Garden Sign-Up: We will be planting onions in the area north of the greenhouse.

No experience necessary. Wear clothes that can get dirty. Please sign-up here.

——————————————————–For more information about how you or your group can volunteer or provide financial support to the Faith & Grace Garden, please contact:

Tim Goldman: 515-745-9842 timothyjgoldman@gmail.com  Mark Marshall: 515-988-5381 wdmmarshall@msn.com

For more information about the Faith & Grace Garden see:  www.growthefood.org

 Posted by at 1:14 pm

Garden News 1-16-23

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Jan 162023
 

Celebrating 23 Years of Feeding the Hungry – Looking Back at the 2022 Growing Season

Last year was a challenging one in the Faith & Grace Garden with plenty of hot days followed by the devastating hail storm in August.

Appraising the damage after the hail storm, chief gardener Mark Marshall said, “It was as if the whole garden had gone through a blender.” Mark estimated the garden lost all of the 1,000 tomato plants and 800 pepper plants growing in the garden.

Fortunately, our root crops were spared by the hailstorm, and we were able to harvest some of the tomatoes, peppers and other above ground crops prior to the hailstorm. We finished the year donating a total of 16,993 pounds of organic fruits and vegetables to feed the local hungry as shown below.

What we grew

Lbs

What we grew (con’t)

Lbs (con’t)

Apples

40

Peppers

472

Asparagus

50

Radishes

195

Beets

215

Spinach

33

Bush Beans

130

Summer Squash

385

Blueberries

60

Sweet Potatoes

950

Broccoli

65

Swiss Chard

185

Cabbage

3,599

Potatoes

5,236

Cauliflower

50

Tomatoes

2,225

Cucumbers

1,510

Turnips

230

Garlic/ garlic scapes

120

Total Harvested

16,993

Kale

198

Where Donated

Lettuce

390

Trinity Los Americos

7,533

Mustard

75

Johnston Food Pantry

2,113

Onions

500

WDM Human Services

7,347

Pears

80

Total Donated

16,993

Looking Ahead to the 2023 Growing Season

While gardeners always tend to be hopeful about the next growing season, we are especially excited about 2023 as we will nearly double the size of the Faith & Grace Garden – to almost 2 acres!

We are adjusting our sites now and hope to donate 30,000+ pounds of organic fruits and vegetables in the coming growing season to feed the growing number of hungry people in central Iowa. It’s a lofty goal for us but with the continued efforts of our volunteers and our financial supporters we believe it’s possible.

Work is already underway; a tract of approximately one acre north of the present garden site is cleared, tilled and manured. We are fundraising now to fence in the area. In the spring we will plant the new area.

In addition, the Faith & Grace Garden Greenhouse is now brimming with about 70,000 onion, garlic and shallot starts. Some of these plant starts will go in our garden, but many (most) of these plant starts will be donated to other church, school and refugee gardens. Some will be given at no charge to our community neighbors for their gardens.

In February, we will start more cool weather plants like broccoli, cabbage, cauliflower, and Brussel sprouts in the greenhouse. In April, we will start warm-weather plants like tomatoes, peppers, and eggplant in the greenhouse.


Mark Marshall on the Mend

As some of you know, chief gardener Mark Marshall fell on the ice while walking his dog two weeks ago, and broke his leg and ankle. Mark is mending now, but will be in a boot for awhile.

Notes of care may be sent to Mark at:
5617 Orchard Drive in West Des Moines, IA 50266.

 Posted by at 3:18 pm

Garden News 6-19-22

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Jun 192022
 

Serving Hands Donates $5,000 to the Faith & Grace Garden for the purchase of a tractor trailer

Jan Stegeman of Serving Hands presented a check for $5,000 to Mark Marshall and Tim Goldman of the Faith and Grace Garden on Friday for the purchase of a tractor trailer.

Serving Hands, Inc. is a non-denominational, not-for-profit Iowa corporation dedicated to helping Iowans who are struggling to support themselves and their families. Serving Hands, Inc. is a public charity funded by individual and corporate sponsors and is run by volunteers. Established in December 2018, they provide meals to emergency shelters; supplies personal hygiene products, laundry and cleaning supplies to food pantries and shelters; and give financial support for specific needs.

The new trailer will allow the garden tractor to be used to help other donation gardens, refugee gardens, and school gardens with heavy tasks.

New Volunteer Times and Dates to Beat the Heat!!
We have changed our volunteer times to 8:30-10:30am and volunteer days to Monday, Wednesday, Thursday and Friday.

We have discontinued volunteering in the evenings.
To volunteer in the garden, please sign-up here.

Why sign-up? It helps us to plan our activities and to communicate with you, especially when the weather looks bad and we need to cancel.
There are also opportunities to volunteer in the garden by appointment, contact Mark Marshall at 988-5381 or wdmmarshall@msn.com to arrange a convenient time.
Bring garden gloves if you have them. Gloves are also available at the garden if you do not have them.
Volunteers should dress for the weather and wear hard-soled shoes. Hats, sunscreen, and water bottles are also good ideas.

If you cannot volunteer your time, consider a financial donation to continue this important work. Send your check to St. Timothy’s, 1020 24th Street, West Des Moines, IA, 50266. Please note Faith & Grace Garden in the memo line or go here to donate online: https://www.growthefood.org/donate/

What’s growing in the Faith & Grace Garden:

How many plants (approx)

Progress

Onions & garlic

9,000 or so

Planting complete

Cabbage

1200

Planting complete

Broccoli

170

Planting complete

Cauliflower

170

Planting complete

Kale

One row

Planting complete

Potatoes

400 pounds of seed potatoes

Planting complete

Peppers

600

Planting complete

Sweet potatoes

2,000

Planting 1,000 more.

Swiss Chard

One row

Planting complete

Tomatoes

850

Planting complete


The following plants will be row planted from seed into the garden this year: radishes, turnips, mustard, and beets.
Asparagus and blueberries are growing in established beds now. We will harvest  blueberries this month.


Garlic scapes available for pick-up.

Scapes are the stem and the seed head of the garlic plant. They have a more mild garlic flavor and are good in many recipes. We like to toss them with olive oil, salt, pepper and throw them on the grill or to use them in a pesto.

We detached the scapes from our garlic earlier this week and have plenty to give away. If you would like to try some please text Mark Marshall at 515-988-5381 to arrange a convenient pick-up time.

For more information about the Faith & Grace Garden contact:

Mark Marshall: 515-988-5381 wdmmarshall@msn.com
Tim Goldman: 515-745-9842 timothyjgoldman@gmail.com

 Posted by at 4:43 am

Garden News 5-30-22

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May 302022
 

Thanks to the volunteers from Walnut Creek Church and Revision Church for turning out over the weekend and getting so much planting and mulching done!

The next volunteer time will be on Wednesday from 5pm – 7pm, please join us.

To volunteer in the garden, please sign-up here.

Why sign-up? It helps us to plan our activities and to communicate with you, especially when the weather looks bad and we need to cancel.

There are also opportunities to volunteer in the garden by appointment, contact Mark Marshall at 988-5381 or wdmmarshall@msn.com to arrange a convenient time.gloves if you have them. Gloves are also available at the garden if you do not have

Volunteers should dress for the weather and wear hard-soled shoes. Hats, sunscreen, and water bottles are also good ideas.

If you cannot volunteer your time, consider a financial donation to continue this important work. Send your check to St. Timothy’s, 1020 24th Street, West Des Moines, IA, 50266. Please note Faith & Grace Garden in the memo line.

For more information about the Faith & Grace Garden

Tim Goldman -745-9842 timothyjgoldman@gmail.com
Mark Marshall -988-5381 wdmmarshall@msn.com

 Posted by at 4:38 am