We are having a terrific year in  the garden!!
Last week alone we harvested and donated 3,689 pounds of vegetables. The greatest weekly harvest by far in the history of this garden!
As of August 5, we harvested and donated 10,702 pounds of vegetables. For reference, while 2022 was a good year in the garden, last year at this time we harvested just 4,229 pounds of vegetables.
Here are harvest and donation results through August 5:

Potato harvest delayed…we hope to start later this week.
VOLUNTEERS NEEDED NOW
Many of our volunteers are not available for the next 2 weeks (vacations, back to school, etc). Now is a great time to become a garden volunteer. Give it a try! Sign-up at the end of this message.

About the Photos Below:
Left to Right:  1. We are growing tomatillos again this year, an essential addition to many Latino dishes. 2. Longtime garden volunteer Sheila with beets. Each beet in the picture weighs over a pound! 3. Theo and his dad are a great help in the garden picking tomato

Become a Garden Volunteer…feed the hungry…..love your neighbor….live your faith….could it get any better?!

Regular volunteer hours for individuals and small groups:
Monday through Friday 8 am – 10 am through 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 repellent 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.

Hoping for rain…

Seems like all the rain has been going around the garden, but tomorrow looks promising!
Here are harvest and donation results through July 8, 2023

Fruit/Vegetable Pounds Harvested

Asparagus 15
Beets 245
Broccoli 73
Cabbage 120
Cauliflower 105
Collards 145
Cucumbers 212
Egg plant 8
Garlic/ garlic scapes 102
Kale 137
Lettuce 453
Mustard 115
Radishes 50
Spinach 230
Summer Squash 180
Swiss Chard 215
Turnips 292

Total Harvested
2,697

Garlic harvest 30% complete.

We grow several varieties of hardneck garlic, including Spanish Roja, Italian purple, German red, and Music.
Watering, weeding and harvesting are keeping us very busy in the Faith & Grace Garden. Your help for even an hour will be most appreciated!

Donation sites/Pounds Donated

Lutheran Services 190
Trinity Las Americas 1,052
Johnston Food Pantry 185
WDM Human Services 1,270

Total Donated 2,697
Become a Garden Volunteer…feed the hungry…..love your neighbor….live your faith….could it get any better?!

Regular volunteer hours for individuals and small groups:
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 repellent later in the season.

To volunteer during our regular volunteer hours please sign-up here. https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10c0a4aa9a82ea6f58-2023#/

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.

News from the Garden

Over 100 blueberry bushes are planted in the garden

Tomatillos are coming on….
We do not grow tomatillos every year as they spread aggressively.

Hazelnut brushes are budding….
There are 3 large hazelnut bushes growing outside the fence NE of the garden. The squirrels get the nuts before we do.

Refugees from LSI Global Greens are back in the Garden :
Refugees from Congo, Jordan, Myanmar, and Nepal now join us in the garden on Fridays. They will be with us on most Friday mornings through the summer. Many of the refugees depended on communal gardens in their homeland. Now they still like to grow their own food and talk with friends while doing something they enjoy.

Harvest and donation results through June 20, 2023

Fruit/Vegetable?Pounds Donated

Asparagus 15
Cabbage 15
Garlic 95
Kale 65
Lettuce 353
Mustard 115
Radishes 50
Spinach 230
Swiss Chard 110
Turnips 292

Total Harvested 1,340

Donation sites
Pounds Donated
Lutheran Scvs 30
Trinity UMC 530
Johnston Food Pantry 185
WDM Human Services 595

Total Donated

1,340

Become a Garden Volunteer….sunshine….fresh air…great people…feeding the hungry….could it get any better?!

Regular volunteer hours for individuals and small groups:
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 repellent 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.

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.

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.

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. 

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.