Lasagna Gardening Workshop

Bethel Community Garden will be the location of a free Lasagna Gardening Workshop.
Saturday, October 17th. 1:00-3:00pm.

Just like the lasagna you cook, a lasagna garden is made by layering. It’s a great method to turn organic materials from your garden into rich soil right in your garden bed. No tilling or turning required!
As part of this hands-on workshop, you will build a lasagna garden and learn all the basics necessary to get started building your own at home.

This class is free, Pre-Registration is required so that we have a count of who's coming.
A big thanks to Kris Potter our amazing teacher and the Master Composter/Recycler Program.

Register here: www.columbiasprings.org/programs/mcr/workshops/

Please invite your friends, sign them up too!

Can't wait to see you there!

Free Tomato Plants

Bethel Community Gardeners,

Come to the garden Saturday from 1:00 - 3:00pm to pick up your free tomato plants....10 varieties for your selection.

See you then,
Dean Sutera
Bethel Community Garden Coordinator 

Ready for Planting.... and Weeding

Bethel Community Gardeners,

The in-ground beds have been tilled for the second time, and are ready for planting.  Soil has been added to the raised beds, and they are also ready.    Free seeds are available in the garden shed, so help yourself, and get them in the ground.

Because weeds have taken over almost all of the pathways, I am going to spray them with Roundup today.  The use of herbicides and pesticides is not allowed by community gardeners, but this needs to be done now to get the pathways under control.  After the weeds die, please remove them.    I will not be spraying on the edges of the in-ground beds, so please weed those soon.

Weeding the pathways all around your bed is your responsibility; please do it on a regular basis.   Weeds are much easier to pull when they're young.
We hope to have more wood chips available soon; please add them to your paths when needed.

If the weather continues like it is now, it's going to be another fantastic year!   Welcome to the 2015 Gardening Season at Bethel Community Garden.

A Garden to Admire

We wanted to take a post to showcase Oscar Rivera's beautiful pepper and tomato beds. His method of staking peppers and tomatoes is unique. Take a look at the plastic twine used to support the plants.  He learned how to do it from his dad.

Not only does this method keep the plant under control, but it makes it easy to pick from both sides of the plant, and opens up the space between the rows for lettuce, carrots and other crops. The lettuce pictured was his second crop this year.

Great job, Oscar and the family! We love learning from your garden.

2015 Gardening

Fellow Bethel Community Gardeners,

I hope everyone had a Merry Christmas and a Happy New Year.

It will probably be two months before we can prepare the beds for planting, but now is the time to sign up for this year.  Please print and sign a copy of the attached 2015 Garden Rules, and then take it with your $15 per bed to Judy in the church office.

Please share this information with friends who don't have email.  Judy has copies of the rules in the office for them to sign when they pay.

I hope to see you soon,
Dean Sutera, Garden Coordinator

Recipe: Pomegranate and Goat Cheese Delicata Squash

I am itching to try this recipe I found online. It's from the blog "Peanut Butter and Peppers". Pretty straight forward, but I'm excited about the pomegranate, squash and goat cheese flavor combination. You can use some of the Delicata Squash you harvested from your garden bed, right?

"A sweet, creamy roasted winter squash topped with pomegranate arils and crumbled goat cheese. A perfect Fall side dish.
Ingredients
1 Delicata Squash (536 grams)
2 tsp. olive oil
¼ tsp cinnamon
¼ tsp. salt
⅛ tsp cayenne pepper, optional
2 tbsp. pomegranate arils
½ oz goat cheese

Instructions
Preheat oven to 375 degrees
Line a baking sheet with aluminum foil, spray with cooking spray
Wash delicata squash, cut off the ends. Slice squash in ½" pieces. With a spoon take the seeds out. Place the squash in a bowl and toss with olive oil, cinnamon, salt, pepper and cayenne pepper. Place squash on the prepared baking sheet. Bake for 10 minutes, flip the squash and bake for another 10 - 12 minutes or until fork tender and skin slightly blistering.
Place squash on a plate and top with pomegranate arils and goat cheese."