Potato and Shallot Harvest
The potatoes were ready, so gardeners dug them up. They were divided into shares, with each of the garden's households getting a bucket of red and purple and a bucket of white potatoes. Unlike potatoes, which must be dug up, shallots lift easily out of the ground....
What else is growing at the garden?
Warming Up for Warm-Weather Crops
Chris plants ground cherry (or husk cherry) seedlings. We decided not to grow tomatoes this season, as they take many, many hours of care every week. Ground cherries are a tomato relative that's much easier to grow and is delicious to eat right off the bush like fresh...
How Crops Get Here: Rhubarb
An email arrived from the person who sold her Montpelier home to the mother of one of the garden cofounders. Rhubarb was growing in the garden beside the house, and the seller thoughtfully suggested we might want it for the community garden. Garden cofounder Chris in...
Safe, Successful Small-Scale Composting in a Pandemic
Back in the beforetimes . . . Compostville at the Garden at 485 Elm was built from 2017 to 2019 with help from a generous grant and partners including the Vermont Community Garden Network, the Composting Association of Vermont, and the Central Vermont Solid Waste...
A Day in May on Planet Vermont
This, too, is Vermont gardening. Tender young peas Garlic and herb beds Boxes of salad and leafy greens
Giving Food on Giving Tuesday
The Garden at 485 Elm made an offering on Giving Tuesday: Garden donation team leader Caitlin Roseen brought our extra—and still beautiful—onion starts to the Montpelier Food Pantry. Caitlin writes: These onion starts will be offered to shoppers along with seed...
Planting Days Are Here Again
The new health-and-safety considerations for work parties and gardeners gardening here on their own are working well. Seed and seedlings are in the ground: peas, onions, carrots, salad greens, kale, and more. Art projects and experimental crops are under way. We...
Time to Conduct a Potato Experiment
What better time to try new things when absolutely everything seems like an entirely new thing? Years ago, the garden grew potatoes in one of the fenced garden’s plot. It was labor-intensive and not greatly beloved. The results were delicious, but local potatoes are...
Safe Community Gardening in the Time of COVID-19
Gardening here this season means adhering to the COVID-19 rules. Our new garden health and safety team devised them to support three groups we identified: Gardeners taking recommended precautions while still visiting public spacesGardeners in high-risk households who...
Safe Gardening Has Begun
Gardeners are long accustomed to change being the only constant. Every season is different, but this year has redefined the word "different" for everyone on earth. Gardening means access to food, along with promoting mental and physical well-being. And so we grow....
“To plant a garden is to believe in tomorrow.”
May you be safe and well in the midst of this. (Meme creator unknown but appreciated)
