Seed Saving and Other Events

Hello Gardeners!

 I hope your gardens survived the last heat wave and lack of rain. During the rain last Saturday I felt like doing a ‘happy dance’ in celebration! Though the rain was very much welcomed, it still is not enough and next week looks like it will be very hot and we won’t get much needed moisture either.

When you water your gardens try to water early in the morning when the plants will have all day to dry their leaves. Watering in the evening means your plants will go to bed with wet leaves that encourage diseases. (I know that is not always possible due to people’s schedules, but it’s something to strive for.) You can also use soaker hoses or drip lines that keep the moisture on the ground where it is needed and not spraying in the air where much of it evaporates.

 If your plants are looking lackluster perhaps it’s time for some fertilizer. Flowers and vegetables grown in pots definitely need a mid-season boost as nutrients are easily washed out of pots, but even in ground plants could use a boost during stressful growing conditions.

 

Saving Seeds

If you picked up a packet of seeds for the Grow-a-Row project, some of your bean or pea pods may be close to harvesting. Please wait until the pods are brown and dry before picking as the seeds need to stay on the vines until they are dry to be viable.

Even if you didn’t pick up a packet of pea or bean seeds specifically for the Grow-a-Row project, you can still save seeds for yourself or the Seed Library. In fact, the Seed Library needs lots and lots of seeds this fall in order to stock the drawers for next season.

If you are new to saving seeds or want to learn more about this easy way to get free seeds, attend the next Seed Talk on September 13 at 6:30 pm. Right now it is a Zoom meeting, but I’m working on trying to have it both virtual and in person. Many of you have said you prefer an online Seed Talk, but I am guessing some like having an in-person event too. Please let me know your preference via a quick email to wblseedlibrary@gmail.com.  I appreciate your comments!

Register for this event at: Saving Seeds Event

 

There are many other events and resources of interest to gardeners:

 

WI Hazelnut Week

August 15-20, 2022

Learn. Discover. Get Started.

The 1st Annual Wisconsin Hazelnut Week is being held August 15-20.  Find an event nearest to you to learn about hazelnuts, connect with other growers, and get started on your hazelnut enterprise.  All events are free and open to the public, but registration is required

For More Information and to REGISTER

Watch the Hazelnut Week Trailer to Preview the Events

Event Schedule

Monday, Aug 15 - Hazelnut 101 Webinar

Thursday, Aug 18 - American Hazelnut Company Field Day, La Crosse, WI

Friday, Aug 19 - Central Wisconsin Growers Cluster Field Day, Amherst, WI

Saturday, Aug 20 - Northern Wisconsin Field Day, Ashland/Bayfield, WI

Saturday, Aug 20 - Southern Wisconsin Field Day, Spring Green/Barneveld, WI

Jason Fischbach, UW-Extension Emerging Crops Specialist:

jason.fischbach@wisc.edu

 

Garden Tool Sharpening

July 30^th, 5-6 pm at Jack’s Hardware and Farm Supply, Minneapolis

In the first of Jack’s Home Maintenance Workshops, participants will learn how to sharpen, oil, and maintain their garden tools. Shears, loppers, pruners, shovels, and other garden implements will be covered.

Please email questions about this workshop to services@jacksfarmsupply.com

Ian Sorlie is our resident Shop Manager. In addition to over 12 years of experience in the retail hardware business, he also is a graphic designer and fine artist. In his free time he loves to see live music and is a passionate vegan cook.

Register here

 

Minnesota Arboretum Fall Classes

Classes range from Chinese Garden Design, Climate Ready Gardening, Minnesota Plants, Stone Sculptures for your Garden, and more.

Register here.

 

Feeding the World: Localism, Ecological Resilience, and Farmer Agency

The widespread narrative on why we’re experiencing a food crisis is that it is because of high fuel and fertilizer prices, the disruption in market chains caused by the war in Ukraine, and lingering COVID impacts. But that’s not the whole story. When there is a food crisis, the common narrative is that increasing productivity is the answer and that global agribusinesses and global markets can meet these needs.

This “feed the world” narrative has been adopted by the media, businesses, and even American farmers who take pride in the idea that they are solving a world food crisis. But what we are seeing is not a food-shortage crisis. Rather, it is a structural problem of our food system that has resulted in high food prices.

In this episode of Voices from the Field, NCAT Agriculture Specialists Nina Prater and Lee Rinehart compare the “feed the world” narrative to another narrative centered around “food sovereignty” and discuss what farmers, organizations, and governments can do to enable communities to achieve that sovereignty.

Free podcast ATTRA podcast

 

Contact info for the Seed Library:

Email: wblseedlibrary@gmail.com

Blog site: WBL Seed Library

 

Pam

 

Updated link to register for Seed Talk July 12th

 

Hello Gardeners!

I apologize for the bad link to the Seed Talk next Tuesday.

The correct link is here.

If you are interested in encouraging wildlife into your landscape, tune into the next Seed Talk on Tuesday July 12. It will still be via Zoom as during the last Seed Talk I surveyed everyone attending and all of the people preferred a Zoom talk versus an in-person talk. Zoom does have its advantages as you can attend in the comfort of your own home, but it does seem to discourage conversation. Please feel free to participate at the Seed Talks. I’m sure you get tired of hearing my voice all the time!

The next Seed Talk will be Tuesday July 12^th at 6:30 pm via Zoom. This gardening talk is about Gardening for Wildlife. As a hint, Native Plants top the list for what to grow for wildlife! You can register for this Seed Talk via the Ramsey County library web site here.

 

Contact info for the Seed Library:

Email: wblseedlibrary@gmail.com

Blog site: WBL Seed Library

 

Pam

Gardening for Wildlife

 

Hello Gardeners!

Hope your gardens are full of beautiful flowers and tasty produce!

This is the time of year where we can relax a bit after the gardening frenzy of planting seeds and plants this spring. Of course, the weeds never stop growing, but I find myself able to enjoy my garden more without thinking of all the things I ‘need’ to do.

I appreciate is all the native bees and frogs and toads that visit my garden. Yesterday, I saw some baby toads hoping across one of the paths in my garden. Each one was less than a half inch big and dark in color that blended into the soil. I’m sure their color is a survival technique, but it did make it difficult to walk without stepping on any of them!

If you are interested in encouraging wildlife into your landscape, tune into the next Seed Talk on Tuesday July 12. It will still be via Zoom as during the last Seed Talk I surveyed everyone attending and all of the people preferred a Zoom talk versus an in-person talk. Zoom does have its advantages as you can attend in the comfort of your own home, but it does seem to discourage conversation. Please feel free to participate at the Seed Talks. I’m sure you get tired of hearing my voice all the time!

 

                                                            Upcoming Event:

The next Seed Talk will be Tuesday July 12^th at 6:30 pm via Zoom. This gardening talk is about Gardening for Wildlife. As a hint, Native Plants top the list for what to grow for wildlife! You can register for this Seed Talk via the Ramsey County library web site at: rclreads.org.

 

Grow a Row Project

There are still both peas and beans left for this project! It’s probably too late to plant beans, but you might be able to plant peas for an early fall crop. Peas need to be ready before the first frost which is around October 6^th in the Twin Cities. Peas need around 70 days to harvest, so you could try planting them in early August.

All you need is a 6’ row of space in your garden and be willing to care for a row of peas or beans. Let the pods ripen and dry on the vine and then return the seeds at the end of the season. The seeds, directions and a row marker are all provided.

Seed packets designated as the ‘Grow a Row’ packets are in a box on the Seed Library table at the White Bear Lake library.

Help the Seed Library stock up on these peas and beans.  As we continue to grow these varieties they will become more adapted to do well in our area.

 

Seeds Needed

The White Bear Lake Seed Library drawers are getting empty. Please donate open-pollinated seeds of peas, beans, lettuce, tomatoes or other vegetables or flowers to the seed library. There is a box on the seed library table.

 

Contact info for the Seed Library:

Email: wblseedlibrary@gmail.com

Blog site: WBL Seed Library

 

Pam