Dear Gardeners,

Thanks to all who have been working at the garden in the common areas recently and to the many gardeners who have cleaned out their plots and prepared the soil and plots for winter. The garden looks much better maintained this year than last year. It is greatly appreciated!

Here are some notes for this year’s gardening:

1. Our main method of communicating with gardeners is by email. Please make sure the garden email address is in your safe senders list and that you check it regularly (perhaps weekly) for garden information. Some info will be for all gardeners, and some may be when we need to reach you directly.
2. WORK HOURS PARTICIPATION: Six hours of whole-garden work are required each year and can be completed on fun and social scheduled work days and/or with work that is arranged with the work day coordinator and done independently. As usual, the work day hours need to be completed by the last scheduled work day of the year, which is usually in September in order to register for the next gardening year. Please start working on your work hours early in the year when the need is greatest for removing weeds when the soil is still moist. Small grasses and weeds are already popping up in our gravel pathways. You can get started very early in 2025 as you note areas that need attention. Just email the garden to arrange the work with the work day coordinator, and then you will be abe to email the garden back with the work you did and the time you put into it. Remember the weedy mess we had last year?! We need to start much earlier this in 2025 to keep it under control. 🙂
3. YEAR-ROUND GARDENING AND MAINTENANCE: Please remember that year-round gardening is required at the Morgan Hill Community Garden. Be sure to go to the garden regularly, even in the winter, to make sure your plot is well-maintained with old plants removed and that you have fall/winter plants in and/or cover crop or a mulch or straw cover over the soil. Pathways around your plot are to be clear and weeded with added cardboard and mulch as needed. All personal items need to be stored inside your plot or taken home for storage and not left outside of wooden plot boundaries. There is an area on the east side of the garden for items like tomato cages, but be sure to put them on cardboard so weeds don’t grow up into them, and keep them out of view of the garden plots to keep our garden looking tidy.

Thank you,
MHCG