Celebrating Bugfest
"Celebrating" might not be the best word, but gardeners who tackle garden pest management are enthusiastic. Tomatillos attract three-lined potato beetles. They're easy to spot, but they're fast and hard to catch. The pest team leader recommends H20 gloves, one of...
What else is growing at the garden?
River Corridor Protection
The Garden at 485 Elm sits on a piece of property with 400' of frontage on the North Branch of the Winooski River. We situated the garden on the southeast corner of the property. The riverbank area is in the 100-year floodplain. That was a piece of prevention. The...
Interlude: Invasives eradication
Last week was the beginning of the end for the Japanese knotweed infestation at The Garden at 485 Elm. The knotweed is growing in a quarter-acre patch in the southeast corner of the property along the North Branch of the Winooski river. People came and mowed down our...
Garden workday flow
It begins as friendly chaos. People gather and introduce (or reintroduce) themselves. We chat. Our garden coordinator Cindy assesses the needs of the day. We determine who is willing and able to do what. We snack. Work begins. Then momentum takes over and the time...
Garden workday mid-thaw
Snow has finally melted off the garden. But the ground remains frozen a few inches below the surface. There is much to do. ...
How raised beds happen
Thanks to a generous friend who has ended her experiment with raised beds, The Garden at 485 Elm now has four ready-to-assemble 4' x 4' raised beds.
Let gardening season begin!
We had a fun and productive first workday of 2015 at the Garden at 485 Elm. When the garden looks like this: The work happens in here. ...
Attend the Grow It! workshop — many locations & dates
When we attended Vermont Community Garden Network's Grow It! workshop last year, we had some seeds started in pots and The Garden at 485 Elm was still a lawn. This year, it's a whole different story. We hope to see you at the May 7 Barre Town workshop, or that you'll...
We Heart High Mowing Seeds
Thanks to the generosity of High Mowing Organic Seeds in Wolcott, Vermont, The Garden at 485 Elm has a great supply of seeds to start our 2015 planting. Our acceptance letter said that High Mowing Organic Seeds will ship donations if recipients pay shipping fees....
Tell your food story Feb. 15 at the Winter NOFA VT Conference
Make your 30-second pitch by Jan. 23 to tell your story of five minutes or less at the 33rd annual NOFA Winter Conference. The “Story and Poetry Slam” will serve as the's year's conference keynote. On Sunday, Feb. 15, at 9:30 a.m., the floor goes to "farmers,...
Happy New Year & Happy Garden 2015!
The Garden at 485 Elm went to bed slowly. It reminded me of a super-productive person who couldn't resist doing "just one more task" before going to bed. With the new year upon us, let's make it official: The Garden at 485 Elm has gone to bed. But bed is...
