Cold-Weather Squash Scramble
The frost that looked likely did not come to pass, but we took that as a signal to harvest all the winter squash. Gardeners planted fourteen rows of winter squash: buttercup, butternut, and delicata seeds. Some squash plants grow into widely sprawling vines. This is...
What else is growing at the garden?
It’s Food
Every season, there's prepping, planting, tending, weeding, baby crops, and then suddenly, food. That's where were at. I went out to the garden and saw someone had harvested peas and left them on the picnic table for others to enjoy. I wondered how the peas were...
Digging Flowers to Grow More Flowers
The garden's Flower Ladies strategize what to dig up to make room for planting annuals. Before long, the group was digging away, carefully unearthing what had been spreading in the flower beds. https://youtu.be/Gxt4GG5Zp5Q Gardeners were invited to take home...
All Planted Out
On a perfect cool, cloudy, comfortable day, gardeners worked all day long to get seeds and seedlings into the ground. Bed selection and prep, planting techniques, and camaraderie got the job done. Flower team dug out self-seeding Shasta daisies and ubiquitous...
A Great Start with Great Starts
Here at the Garden at 485 Elm, we acquire starts for some of our crops. At the beautiful Pleasant Mount Farm Greenhouse in Huntington, Vermont, we got our starts for hot-weather plants and herbs. We grow food and flowers to share among the 20 families who tend the...
Planting Trees
Food and flowers aren't all we plant here at the Garden at 485 Elm. The "back 40" is what we call the 7/10 of an acre beyond the garden fence. It had been lawn for over half a century. In 2015, we partnered with Friends of the Winooski River and U.S. Fish &...
Planting Potatoes, Planting Trees
With 16 percent humidity and a few clouds overhead, it was a perfect day to spend hours in the garden. Gardeners dug trenches and planted 30 pounds of seed potatoes. The varieties are Reba, Red Chieftain, and Superior. The weather's beautiful to be out in, but it's...
Planting Alliums: Onions & Shallots
https://youtu.be/O2DTFkZErBA Before planting, gardeners gently turn the soil. Tilling breaks up the soil structure and cuts up the worms who live here and add nutrients to the soil. Using this deep-spader (or maybe a broadfork) preserves soil structure while aerating...
A Perfect Day in May
After nearly two inches of rain, the soil was moist, fluffy, and perfect for gardening. Gardeners are edging the garlic bed. Grass is wonderful to walk on, but it relentlessly works its way into garden beds. Edging prevents the garlic from being choked out. It also...
Transplanting Edible Perennials
Today we relocated two perennials: asparagus and French sorrel. The right time is when the roots are robust but the plant hasn't yet done much leafing. Asparagus went into these two boxes in April 2020. They were too shaded and the plants didn't do much. This is a...
Spring Planting Is Here
Thanks to generous donations, we have delicious peas and seed for many other crops to grow. Pea seeds are just peas. Very special peas that grow into very delicious peas. The peas are planted and the soil is being mulched. This holds the moisture so the peas require...
