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Manhattan Community Gardens
Riley and Collins Lane Gardens
September 2013
Annual MCG Meeting
November 9th
Collins Lane Gardens
Workday: 9-11am
Annual meeting and election:
11:15-12:00pm
Potluck: 12:00-2:00pm
Fall
Election of new board members:
Nominees:
Carol Barta
Megan Duever
Andrew Kaberline
Theresa Straub
Come join us for lunch. Bring a dish to
share with the group.
Bring your friends and family.
In case of rain the meeting and potluck will be held the following
Saturday, November 16th.
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Fall plot cleanup
The growing season is over for most crops!!
You may think you are done for the year, but you still have a job to do until the first
hard freeze hits. Grass and weeds will continue to flourish. In less than a week,
they can mature and begin to seed, produce hundreds of seeds (maybe more) that
will blow and migrate into your neighbors’ gardens. Even worst, they will sit in your
plot and cause you problems next season.
Please continue to control the grass and weeds in your plot – including the borders
to your neighbors’ plots and to the pathways – those are also your responsibility.
If you do not maintain your plots and fail to respond to warnings about weeds and
grasses in your plots, your plot could be declared abandoned.
We appreciate your collaboration in taking care of your plot.
Donation to Gardens
On July 13th the gardens
had a special celebration,
where representatives from
our local HyVee store presented a donation to the
Manhattan Community Gardens.
We greatly appreciate their
support.
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Lessons From My Garden
by
Sylvia Beeman
Lesson of Patience: Gardening teaches me that things unfold according to their own plan, not mine. Plants, people, and events have a
course that is not for me to determine. I can prepare the bed and responsibly nurture it, but I cannot coax a beet from a chard seed
(although they are the same species), nor can I force a person to do something against their
will. A seed or a person will germinate when conditions are right for it, not because I am
ready.
Lesson of Cycles: Each season brings to my garden its unique blend of riotous growth, flowering, and fruiting; maturation and decay; dormancy; healing and renewal. Each year brings a
repetition with variations on the same themes. One season in my garden is like a fast forward preview of my life. It grounds me in nature’s realm.
Lesson of Wonder and Discovery: My garden is an endless source of interest, amusement,
drama, mystery and magic. It keeps me fresh in body and mind in a world that could easily
become numbingly humdrum. I am always amazed that a tiny seed, using air, water, and
sunlight, can to turn into a plant taller than I am!
Lesson of Cooperation and Camaraderie: My next door neighbor and I worked side by side
for about 10 years in our shared plots at the Community Garden. We soon learned that she
excelled at planting, and I at weeding. While our hands toiled, our minds sorted through
quandaries about kids, spouses, jobs, and what to make for supper.
My garden teaches me that it doesn’t exist just for my benefit. It is a complex cooperation
between me, soil microbes, pollinators, beneficial and deleterious insect pests, spiders, lizards, snakes, little mammals, birds, and my gardening neighbors. I like to think that there is
plenty of food to share with all creatures in my garden and other people too.
Lesson of Relationship: The mint family, including spearmint, hyssop, oregano, thyme, bergamot, rosemary, and catmint all have square stems, similar flowers, and most have fragrant
foliage and antimicrobial properties. Even though these plants are so similar, they are each
unique.
The mint family in my garden reminds me that all people are connected by their humanity, by their similar requirements for a happy life. The individual types of mints,
however, remind me that each person has unique attributes, strengths, and weaknesses that I will discover if I take the time to know and appreciate them as they are.
Editor’s note:
Sylvia Beeman has been an enthusiastic organic gardener at Riley Lane for 20+ years .
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Returning Gardener Registration
Monday, December 2, 6-8pm at Pottorf Hall
Thursday, Jan 9, 6-8 at UFM
If there are no changes to your plot rental, you can
submit your plot registration by mail to UFM.
Last date to register as a returning gardener is January 15th.
New Gardener Registration
Saturday, January 25, 1-3 pm at Pottorf Hall
Thursday, February 6, 5-7pm at UFM
Monday February 24, 5-7 at UFM
Address:
Portoff Hall—1710 Avery Ave. in Cico Park
UFM—1221 Thurston St.
If you know that you will NOT be returning to the community gardens next year, please let us know by emailing:
communitygarden@tryufm.org. This will expedite the process of determining which plots
Growing your own food is like printing your own money.
Ron Finley
(Mr. Finley grows a nourishing food culture in South Central L.A.’s food
desert by planting the seeds and tools for healthy eating. You can see his
TED talk on line at:
http://www.ted.com/talks/ron_finley_a_guerilla_gardener_in_south_central_la.html )
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To all Gardeners and friends of the MCG
We appreciate your efforts and dedication to the
Community Gardens
Meet the Nominees!!
By
Cybil Perkins
The Nomination Committee (Cybil Perkins, Ron Downey, and Max Urick) is pleased to present the
following slate of nominees for the up-coming Board of Directors election at our November 9th Annual Meeting.
Take a moment to get to know them and you’ll see why we are happy that such a diverse, enthusiastic, and accomplished group has agreed to serve.
Carol Barta became a MCG member 3 years ago to expand her home garden space. She currently serves on the Collins Lane Long-Range Planning Committee, and is hoping to help expand the
Collins Lane site with exciting possibilities for all our gardeners. Carol has been gardening her entire life and has a certificate in Permaculture Design. She has board experience and an interest in
marketing.
Meagan Duever has 13 years of professional experience in horticulture. She is currently on the
Collins Lane Long-Range Planning Committee, and has been gardening at Riley Lane for 2 years.
Meagan is a librarian at K-State.
Andrew Kaberline has been gardening for as long as he can remember, and tries to grow something new every year. He has been gardening with MCG for the last two years at both the Riley
and Collins Lane sites. He looks forward to serving and being able to share his knowledge with
new gardeners. He currently works at the USDA as a Gardener and Safety Officer and has a degree in Horticulture.
Theresa Straub participated in our mentorship program, with Chuck Marr as her mentor, when she
began gardening 3 years ago. Her first-year plot was in our “North Gardens,” which was on the
north side of the tracks at Riley Lane. When the MCG lost that area, she moved to Collins Lane,
where she’s been for 2 years. She has found gardening to be such a rewarding experience, that
she is happy to have the opportunity to give back to MCG by serving on the board. She is particularly interested in garden beautification and introducing more young families to the many benefits
of gardening at the MCG. Theresa has held I-Tech and secretarial positions at K-State and Fort
Riley.
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MONTH YEAR
Manhattan Community Gardens
c/o UFM
1221 Thurston Street
Manhattan KS 66502
WWW. TRYUFM. ORG/COMMUNITY_ GARDEN. HTM