End of Season Plans

There are some things that need to be addressed to close up the garden for this year. Details are listed below. Also be sure to fill out the e-survey sent by Wendy. You should have received the email earlier today.

End of Garden Business:
1. Clean Up Date
2. Compost pick up/Water shut off
3. Presentation to City - volunteers!
4. Garden Survey
5. Theft/Sign
6. Winter Events
7. Returning Next Year
8. Recipe Submissions!

1) End of Season Clean Up
We will NOT have a formal clean-up date this year, which will allow people to have cold season crops going as long as the weather cooperates. However,
**all plots are expected to be cleared of debris and any decorations/support/objects by the onset of winter!**
Once your garden is no longer producing, you are expected to clear it out. Failure to do so could result in ineligibility to garden next year.

2) Composting/Water
The city will pick up a load of our compostables to haul away later this month (October). I'm checking on the date, but expect it to be around 10/15-10/20. More details will follow, but this is your chance to get rid of all your dead plant material without having to drive it to the compost center yourself! Anything left after the pickup will need to be removed by you. Expect WATER to be shut down around mid-October as well.

3) End of Year Presentation
The garden makes an end-of-season report to the city of Falcon Heights in October or November. We need volunteer(s) to do this quick (5-10min) presentation. The past two years we've had simple PowerPoint presentations to guide us, and I have copies of those if anyone would like to modify them to reflect this year's achievements.

4) Garden Survey
We had paper copies of the garden end-of-year survey at the potluck, and thanks to all who filled those out! Wendy sent a follow-up e-mail with an electronic copy of the survey. Everyone is encouraged to fill one out and give us feedback! This year's survey also includes questions on allowing perennials in the future, and the community service requirement.

5) Theft and Sign
There was significantly more theft reported at the garden this year. The city has alerted their patrol to watch out for us (thanks!), but we had also discussed creating a sign to notify visitors that the garden and its produce are for members only. I'm sure the city will be happy to have a sign created for us, but we need a gardener to design and okay the language so we can get it implemented for next year. Please let Wendy know if you're interested in spearheading this project!

6) Winter Events
Although the gardening is winding down, there's been some interest in having more presentations by master gardeners or other folks in the off season. One idea brought up at the potluck was a canning and preserving class! If you have ideas or want to set up a fun or informative meeting for the garden, you're welcome to dive right in, or contact me or Jean with any ideas! Also, we can plan to have a booth at the Falcon Heights winter get-together (usually late January) if anyone is interested in representing the garden there.

7) Next Year
Assuming you've complied with rules and regulations throughout this season, you will automatically be notified when garden registration opens up for next year. This is managed by the city/Justin Miller, and usually occurs in February/March. As it currently stands, existing gardeners will be given priority to return if they so desire.

8) Recipes!!
We had some FABULOUS dishes at the potluck this year, and most of us are always looking for new and delicious ways to use our harvest. If you were at the potluck, or just have a great dish to share, send the recipes to Wendy (wendy.illick@gmail.com) and we will try to compile them and post them here!