News

2014 SBCG Member Survey now available!

Posted on by francine

<Please check your email for the survey link – especially your spam folder!>

Howdy South Brooklyn Children’s Garden members!

Thank you for your contributions this year to South Brooklyn Children’s Garden. Because of your hard work and engagement, we planted, harvested, hosted field trips, classes and member events, and most importantly came together as a community.? The continued success of the garden depends upon you!? We want to hear from each family ?- what you loved, where we can improve, and your ideas on how to build upon the mission of the garden:?

SBCG creates a green space for children and their families to learn about their food sources and connect with nature through gardening.? As a cooperative, we foster a sense of community through educational programs, public events, and working together to grow food.

The following?survey will ask you about your experience with the garden this season.? Specifically, we want to know what you thought about our events, education, garden planning, communications, and member benefits.? We ask that one member per family fill out the survey.? Should you find that there are differing opinions in your household, we welcome you to capture all input in the open comments sections of the survey.??

Please submit all surveys by October 12th.? The SBCG Board will then review and share themes and input during our mandatory all member meeting on Saturday, October 18th at 10 a.m.

Happy gardening!??

Sunshine Flint, Garden Planning Chair

Tracey Kitzman, Finance Chair

Shannon Mulholland, Board President, Events Chair

Francine Rosado-Cruz,?Member at-Large (Communications)

Sarah Starling, Member at-Large (Membership)

Erin Hopkins Weber, Education Chair

SBCG this week! All members meeting, Harvest Festival, and more! (October 2, 2014)

Posted on by francine

Howdy South Brooklyn Children’s Garden members!??Lots of fun events and important news coming your way!? In this edition you will find:

  • Shift needs – open hours – please help!
  • Save the date: October 18th – all members meeting at 10 a.m.??Member survey will be released on October 3rd.
  • Garden planning update
  • Needs for Harvest Festival on October 25th
  • Community happenings

Please sign up for the following shifts via our?calendar😕

Open Hours – shifts open all weekend!

  • Saturday,?October 4th?at 2 p.m.
  • Sunday,?October 5th at 10 a.m. and?12 noon
  • We also need Open Hours coverage for Columbus Day weekend – all shifts!

Watering:?

  • October 7 and 8 (Tuesday and Wednesday)

Save the date!? October 18th – all members meeting at 10 a.m.??

We want to hear from YOU!? Join other garden members to enjoy coffee and goodies, to discuss our 2014 season, and to plan for next year.? Prior to the meeting you will receive a link from Survey Monkey to share your feedback.? The board will share the results during the meeting.

We will also:

  • Review our mission statement
  • Call for an additional board member
  • Review our budget

A separate?comms with meeting details will be sent out in the near future.

Garden work and news:

For this weekend, we have one simple chore which is?to lay the white garden sheeting on the cole crop beds?to deter the cabbage worms.

Upcoming chores and general reminders: ?

We will be planting the garlic bulbs (in bed 6), crocus and snow drop bulbs in the wildflower garden?on October 18 (in bed 6) and that will be the final planting for the year.? It’s hard to believe we are already discussing the final planting!

Needs for Harvest Festival on October 25th

On October 25th we will be hosting our third annual Harvest Festival!? The events committee has planned so many fun activities, including a pie contest and an apple press!? More details to come in a separate email.

Here are some Harvest Festival needs we hope our community can help with:

  • Tractor – We’d love to have a tractor parked outside the garden so children can see the equipment and take photos with it.? Does anyone know of anyone who may have a tractor that we may borrow or rent?
  • Old clothes for scarecrows!? We need donations of old clothes to make scarecrows.? Kids’ clothes work well, and they should be stuffable (long sleeve shirts, overalls, hats, pillowcases – you get the idea!)

Community happenings

Columbia Waterfront Halloween Party and Parade – in its 11th year!??Join your neighbors and don your costumes one last time?on Saturday, November 1st.? It’s a morning event from 10 AM – 12 PM and the Underground Horns band will the parade around the neighborhood.? There will be?face painting and more!? More details to come.

Happy Gardening!

Best, ? Francine

SBCG this week! – 9/18/14 – Mandatory work weekend!

Posted on by Michael Foley

Howdy South Brooklyn Children’s Garden members!???The big news this week is – Mandatory Work?Weekend!? I’m looking forward to connecting with everyone!? And now, on to?what’s coming this week….

In this pumpkins-on-my-mind edition you will find:

  • Shift needs
  • Garden planning update
  • Education committee updates
  • Community happenings

Please sign up for the following shifts via our?calendar:

Watering:

  • September 24th and 25th (Wednesday and Thursday)

Open Hours:

  • Saturday, 9/20 and Sunday, 9/21?12 noon shifts both days

Garden work and news:

A big reminder that this weekend is our?fall planting weekend and mandatory for all members! The garden planning committee will have a person in charge of planting each crop. On Saturday?all the final summer veggies will be harvested?and pulled out and the beds fertilized. Depending upon how quickly that gets done, the?new seedlings?can go in on Saturday afternoon and/or on Sunday morning.

Additional chores:

  • Final Tomato Harvest
  • Pull summer plants and prep beds for Autumn crops
  • Transplant all cauliflower, broccoli, kale and fennel from greenhouse to beds
  • Plant beet seeds in Bed 3

We will be planting the?garlic bulbs on October 18?(in bed 6) and that will be the final planting for the year.? It’s hard to believe we are already discussing the final planting!

Community happenings

Columbia Waterfront Halloween Party and Parade?- in its 11th year!? It’ll probably be on?Saturday, November 1?(it’s an odd year because?Halloween is on a Friday – but it’s a last hurrah and chance to wear costumes one final time).? It’s a morning event from?10 a.m. – 12 a.m.?and the Underground Horns band leading the parade around the neighborhood, face painting and more.? More details to come.

SBCG this week! – 9/10/14 – Carrots, tomatoes, cucumbers, beans….mmm

Posted on by Michael Foley

Howdy?South Brooklyn Children’s Garden members!???Believe it or not we have been discussing Halloween costumes already in my household.??So far we?ve landed on Cinderella (again) and Jango Fett.??What will your kids dress up as???And now, on to?what’s coming this week….

In this pumpkins-on-my-mind edition you will find:

  • Shift needs
  • Garden planning update
  • Education committee updates
  • Community happenings

Please sign up for the following shifts via our?calendar:

Watering:

  • September 17th, 18th, and 19th (Wednesday through Thursday)

Open Hours:

  • Sunday, September 14th?10 a.m. and 12 noon shifts

Garden work and news:

Greenhouse: Please be sure to?water all flats in?the greenhouse for now.

This weekend we will be?harvesting all the carrots, picking ripe tomatoes, cucumbers and any beans?that are left and?planting beets.??We’ll continue to?weed and maintain beds.

We are also hoping the infrastructure committee can be around to?fix the rain barrels.

A friendly reminder that?September 20 and 21?is a?mandatory work weekend?for all members. We will be?pulling out the summer crops, fertilizing and turning over beds and planting the fall seedlings.? And we need to?lay the final soaker hose?in beds two and three.

Education Committee updates:

Adult education class on?Natural Pesticide Methods?will take place on?Wednesday, September 10th at 7 p.m.? Sign up online!

Community happenings ? THIS WEEKEND!

The?6th?Annual Fall Festival for the Carroll Gardens Association will be on Saturday, Sept 13.? The festival runs along Columbia Street, and is typically a very fun street fair.? There will be a garden walk again this year, and SBCG will be participating.?? The time of the garden walk is 12 – 1:30 p.m.

The Urban Meadow will be hosting a?Pete Seeger Sing-a-long on Sunday, September 14 from 3-6 p.m.?The jamboree/hootenanny will be led by Don Friedman and tickets are only $5 for adults.? Children are free (which Pete would no doubt want).

Things to look forward to:

Columbia Waterfront Halloween Party and Parade?- in its 11th year!? It’ll probably be on?Saturday, November 1?(it’s an odd year because?Halloween is on a Friday – but it’s a last hurrah and chance to wear costumes one final time).? It’s a morning event from?10 a.m. – 12 p.m.?and the Underground Horns band leading the parade around the neighborhood, face painting and more.? More details to come.

Planting/Harvest Schedule

Posted on by shannon.m.mulholland

For those who wonder how we decide what is being planted and where, the planning committee take the winning crops from the annual member voting and develops a calendar to ensure the crops cultivated optimally?for the season, space and yield. While this is a work in progress and weather patterns force the plans to change, this is what we based the 2013/2014 planting/harvest plans from.

Season Crop Days to Maturity Date Seed Planted Transplant Date Maturity Date Date Harvest Date
Spring Sugar Snap Peas 62 5-Apr-14 N/A 6-Jun-14 7-Jun-14
Spring Lettuce 50 12-Apr-14 N/A 1-Jun-14 7-Jun-14
Spring Spinach 50 12-Apr-14 N/A 1-Jun-14 7-Jun-14
Spring Parsley 75
Summer Amana Orange Tomato 90 2-May-14 14-Jun-14 31-Jul-14 20-Sep-14
Summer Basil, Genovese 68 2-May-14 14-Jun-14 9-Jul-14 12-Jul-14
Summer Black Krim Tomato 75 2-May-14 14-Jun-14 16-Jul-14 20-Sep-14
Summer Thessaloniki Tomato 78 2-May-14 14-Jun-14 19-Jul-14 20-Sep-14
Summer Koralik Tomato 61 2-May-14 14-Jun-14 2-Jul-14 20-Sep-14
Summer Amish Paste Tomato 81 2-May-14 14-Jun-14 22-Jul-14 20-Sep-14
Summer Mortgage Lifter Tomato 82 2-May-14 14-Jun-14 23-Jul-14 20-Sep-14
Summer Lunar White Carrot 60 14-Jun-14 N/A 13-Aug-14 16-Aug-14
Summer Scarlet Nantes Carrot 68 14-Jun-14 N/A 21-Aug-14 16-Aug-14
Summer Jaune du Daubs Carrot 68 14-Jun-14 N/A 21-Aug-14 16-Aug-14
Summer Dragon Carrot 85 24-May-14 N/A 17-Aug-14 16-Aug-14
Summer Spring Onion/Scallions 90 12-Apr-14 N/A 11-Jul-14 12-Jul-14
Summer Kentucky Blue Pole Bean 60 14-Jun-14 N/A 13-Aug-14 16-Aug-14
Summer Royal Burgundy Bush Bean 55 14-Jun-14 N/A 8-Aug-14 16-Aug-14
Summer Squash 49 5-Jul-14 N/A 23-Aug-14 23-Aug-14
Summer Cucumber 65 2-May-14 24-May-14 6-Jul-14 12-Jul-14
Summer Brown Tempest Garlic 270 9-Nov-13 N/A 6-Aug-14 12-Jul-14
Autumn Violet of Sicily Cauliflower 68 16-Aug-14 20-Sep-14 23-Oct-14 1-Nov-14
Autumn Romanesco San Guiseppe Cauliflower 90 26-Jul-14 20-Sep-14 24-Oct-14 1-Nov-14
Autumn Calabrese Broccoli 80 2-Aug-14 20-Sep-14 21-Oct-14 1-Nov-14
Autumn Fennel di Firenza 75 9-Aug-14 20-Sep-14 23-Oct-14 1-Nov-14
Autumn Popcorn 102 12-Jul-14 N/A 22-Oct-14 1-Nov-14
Autumn Kale 62 31-Aug-14 20-Sep-14 25-Oct-14 1-Nov-14