Getting Started Gardening with Mustard Seed Founders Alice McGary and Nicholas Leete, with guest appearance from Lois Fulton.
noon-1 CST

Join Zoom Meeting
https://us02web.zoom.us/j/87153508947?pwd=UkZXRXZmTHZBb29WaFQ0R2xnNFBTUT09

Meeting ID: 871 5350 8947
Passcode: 750800

ASK A FARMER is geared towards helping people get started gardening, and to help already-gardeners grow great food. We will meet once a month, with a different guest vegetable farmer from around Iowa. There will be a little lesson at the beginning, and PLENTY OF TIME TO ASK ANY QUESTIONS YOU HAVE ABOUT GROWING FOOD IN IOWA.

This first session, Our good friend Nicholas joins us from Madison where he is working as a community garden coordinator. We will talk about planning and preparing for starting a garden. How to get a community garden plot, how to choose a garden spot at home, getting seeds or plants, and learn about the timing of season. Bring any questions or wisdom about starting a garden, or food-gardening in general.

Even before the pandemic, many Iowans were facing food insecurity, and now the situation is much worse for so many. Growing a garden is a basic way that more people can have access to delicious, nutritious, fresh food for their families and to share with neighbors and a way that our communities can be more resilient. What’s keeping us from gardening? Is it a lack of access to space? Seeds? Knowledge?

At the Mustard Seed Community Farm we have a slogan, “Good food for everyone!” but we don’t think that we can actually grow enough food for everyone on our farm. Growing food to share is one aspect of our work, but we also want to help empower people to be able to grow food themselves, all the while working to transform our food and economic system into something just and dignified. What would that look like???? I don’t know! I imagine it would look like an infinite diversity of creative projects and efforts, honest, beautiful, and vibrant, of which we are all just a little part. But it definitely seems worth striving for.

So come join us in these little virtual efforts at community and learning this winter. Come join us out on the farm as the weather warms up. Share your wisdom, ideas, and questions. Or let us know how we can participate in and support your efforts for justice and goodness!

Future ASK A FARMER dates are

March 3 (with Carmen Black from Sundog Farm)
Starting seeds, season planning, bed prep, fencing. garden planning (apocalypse garden plan for
example)
March 31: guest tba
garden prep,first planting - getting ready to plant seeds outside - first cool crops.
May 5 (with Mark Quee from Scattergood Friends School farm)
intro to the apocalypse garden kit - planting cool and warm crops. Plant health and observation. pests
June 2 (with Kate Solko from Root to Rise Farm)
weeds, mulch, and more...

now that we had this first session, Here's some of the resources that we all shared with each other:
(all the links in this should work, though for some mysterious reason, they don't all work by clicking. if it doesn't seem active, just cut and paste it into your browser and window and it should work)

Resources from first class - getting ready for a garden

First - Gardening is super cool. You get to cooperate with nature, witness miracles, and get great food to eat. There’s so much to learn that it can be overwhelming, but also, it’s really simple. Seeds want to sprout. Plants want to grow. Start small, grow things you love to eat, and take time to pay attention to your plants. Don’t plant a bigger garden than you have time to attend to.

Link to alice’s 4 page growing food in iowa handout - on google drive
https://drive.google.com/file/d/1U-Ao0X68hvtaaXaqhtmxgBR_oYQpWkMn/view?u...

Finding a place for your garden:

Vegetables want full sun, rich soil, and not to be overrun by weeds or drowned. So pick a spot with good sun and soil. Avoid places where water puddles. Pick a spot that has easy to remove plants and avoid a place with plants that multiply or travel by their roots because they will take over your garden quickly. Normal lawn grass is pretty easy to transform into a garden spot. Make sure you have access to water and a fence..

SOIL

- in iowa, our soil is generally quite rich in nutrients and organic matter - very good for growing veggies.
In town, soil concerns might be: 1. Removal of topsoil from construction. Good topsoil is dark brown, like chocolate cake while poorer soil in our area is a lighter tan color.
2.Possible lead contamination from old lead paint. Plant your food garden away from old buildings and maybe test your soil.
Soil testing:
UMass Amherst also has a really great, quick and cheap testing service: https://ag.umass.edu/services/soil-plant-nutrient-testing-laboratory
State-by-State List of Soil Testing Labs - https://gardeningproductsreview.com/state-by-state-list-soil-testing-labs-cooperative-extension-offices/
Amy says, “I've had soil tested for lead at the state hygenic lab in Ankeny.”

Community Gardening:

Here is the link to fill out to be placed on the community garden interest list. 
https://www.cityofames.org/government/departments-divisions-i-z/parks-re...
Community garden plots are about $20-25 for the year
Other resources for community gardens
Setting up a community garden- https://www.rhs.org.uk/get-involved/community-gardening/resources/community-garden
Planning a Community Garden - https://www.chescoplanning.org/MuniCorner/Tools/ComGardens.cfm
https://www.communitygarden.org/resources
City of Wilmington, Delaware - Community Garden Start-up Guidelines - https://cdn.extension.udel.edu/wp-content/uploads/2015/07/19071227/DEUFFC-Toolkit-Final.pdf
Community Gardening Resources - https://seedmoney.org/community-garden-resources/?gclid=CjwKCAiAsOmABhAwEiwAEBR0Zh7BZHc0tWVG3kmhVQO9IXhNzDhNGuEMK_TILZZSrIInyjdbkrgcBxoChvUQAvD_BwE
Twin Cities Community Garden Start-up Guide - https://northerngardener.org/wp-content/uploads/2017/06/MNG-Twin_Cities_Community_Garden_Start_Up_Guide.pdf

Getting started making a plan

Hardiness zones
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Hardiness_zone#/media/File:2012_USDA_Plant_Hardiness_Zone_Map_(USA).jpg

Frost and freeze dates
https://davesgarden.com/guides/freeze-frost-dates/#b

What do you want to grow???
Start with easy things: annuals: peas, beans, cucumber, tomato, potato, pepper, kale, chard, beets, onions, lettuce, butternut squash, watermelon, kohlrabi, radish, basil.
Easy perennials: sage, strawberry, raspberry

Planting schedule:

March - start seeds inside
April - Cool Season Crops can take a light frost:
Direct seed: lettuce, spinach, radish, beets, carrots, peas, potato After April 1st in Ames
Transplants: broccoli, cabbage, kale, onion, kohlrabi, lettuce After april 15
May - Warm Season Crops need soil temp about 55deg and can’t handle frost:
After May 15/may 20, though you can plant seeds after May 1 if you are feeling risky.
Direct seed: beans, corn, cucumbers, melons, pumpkins, squash, zucchini
Transplant: tomatoes, peppers, eggplant, (sometimes melons) - (definitely after May 15)
June - sweet potatoes - after june 1

planting and harvesting times for vegetables
ISU EXTENSION - general list of good resources
https://hortnews.extension.iastate.edu/resources/publications?field_cate...
Where you can find PLANTING AND HARVESTING TIMES FOR VEGETABLES

Here's a PDF that auto fills and helps you plan when to start seeds based on your last frost date: https://kidsgardening.org/digging-deeper-interactive-spring-planting-calendar/

Places to get seeds:

https://www.johnnyseeds.com/vegetables/ (they aren’t selling seeds right now to home gardeners (Due to global seed shortages this year) but their catalog and website is an EXCELLENT source of gardening instructions)
https://www.seedsavers.org/
Brekkes town and country store - 515-232-7906
23827 580th ave , corner of hwy 30 and 580th - great selection of basics - not stocked yet. local grocery stores and hardware stores
Holubs T
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Good general gardening resources:
ISU extension
https://www.extension.iastate.edu/topic/gardening

general list of good resources:

https://hortnews.extension.iastate.edu/resources/publications?field_cate...

https://www.iowaagriculture.gov/Horticulture_and_FarmersMarkets/horticulturalOrganizations.asp - specifically, the horticulture hotline:  515-294-3108  I think they love getting questions.  

?From nicholas - some really great publications focused on wisconsin, but still some great resources:
Here https://danegardens.net/publications/
Lots of great resources from Wisconsin, including a 100 page beginning gardening manual:
From the Ground Up: A guide to basic organic vegetable, flower, and herb gardening for new gardeners (PDF)
and here https://danegardens.net/grow-a-garden/

Growing your own food resource link  - https://www.eatcommunity.com
https://www.detroitnews.com/story/life/home-garden/blogs/gardening/2019/...

https://www.naturespath.com/en-us/blog/guerilla-gardening-diy-seed-bombs/ very interesting movement!
Diversify your Landscape and Eat Your Yard March 3 and 10; zoom program through Story County Conservation:
https://www.mycountyparks.com/County/Story/Park/McFarland-Park/Events/17...