Gardens Update

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Orchard Happenings and Updates

We are geared up and ready to get planting! This Saturday, we will be talking about warm season planting at 10am at Weaver Creek Park and getting our gardens started! Join us tomorrow morning for planting tips and tricks, and some free bulbs to celebrate Mother’s day! We have a limited supply of flower bulbs and it will be first come first served starting at 10am.

We are in the process of removing some of the orchard trees which are suffering from extensive fire blight infections. Just a reminder that if you see us out and about removing trees with cans or bottles of disinfectant, this is what is going on. Fire blight is a bacterial disease which is spread via pollinators (it does not harm humans), but removing infected branches is a laborious process because we must sanitize our tools after every cut to further prevent the spread of the bacteria to healthy branches.

Gardening Heads up!
We work around May 12 for our Frost date, and will be planting tender warm season plants these next two weeks. There are some key techniques to keep in mind when planting, check out the sections below for more information on Companion Planting & Garden Plans.

To ensure the most bountiful year possible, we are trying to get everything in the ground now. It is definitely time to plant spinach, lettuces, or other cold season plants if you haven’t done so already.

Strawberry Spinach Salad
A fresh recipe and great way to incorporate Spinach into your diet this spring!
Garden Planning 
Plant with the mature size of your plants in mind!

When I imagine the ideal mid-season garden, I think of each plant having space with good airflow throughout the plant’s canopy (especially for tomatoes) with great access to sunlight and water (although not too much).

My favorite planting guide which includes information for the mature size of many common vegetables can be found here: https://cmg.extension.colostate.edu/Gardennotes/720.pdf. Make sure that you aren’t crowding your vegetable garden, airflow is important for preventing disease and a less-crowded plant will be easier to monitor for pests. Pest problems are nearly always 100x easier to manage when caught early in the season.

Consider Making a Grid Garden Plan or use one of the guides linked below.

I am a fan of using a modified block layout, like what is described in this article: https://cmg.extension.colostate.edu/Gardennotes/713.pdf. To be honest though, I like to skirt the rules and plant root vegetables (like carrots and radish) along the perimeter of my raised garden bed to eek out just a little more productivity.

Some wonderful resources with additional insights can be found below. I would highly recommend anyone interested in garden planning to check them out!
Companion Planting
Some plants do very well when planted alongside one another.
Companion planting is a technique Jovial Concepts tries to incorporate in each garden bed we take care of. It helps us efficiently use space by pairing up plants that work well together.

For example, the shade provided by tall heat loving plants, like large tomatoes, can help prevent some crops from bolting (growing vertically very quickly to produce flowers & seeds). Basil and Marigolds intercropped with tomatoes can reduce thrips pressure. Carrots and Onions are a curious pairing which work well together; the onions help ward off predatory insects and can mask the smell of carrots, while the carrots bring in pollinators.

The Three Sisters Garden Bed with Corn growing tall, Beans growing up the corn, and Squash growing around the base of the corn to help ward off pests, is one of the most famous examples of companion planting.

For more information on this topic, I would highly encourage you to check out this page from West Virginia University. It has a nice concise list of companion (and not-companion) plants : https://extension.wvu.edu/lawn-gardening-pests/gardening/garden-management/companion-planting

For any new gardeners feeling overwhelmed by all of the information, I would like to share this article which is a great one-stop-shop of information for beginners: https://content.ces.ncsu.edu/home-vegetable-gardening-a-quick-reference-guide.

As always, I just can’t help but include a few additional resources on this topic.

The Co-Op at 1st Climate Action Challenge Story: 2021

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Check out a story from The Co-Op at 1st from the Jovial Concepts Gardens Program!

Gardening for All Podcast with Kristina

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Bring Out Your Produce

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Make Money from YOUR Jovial Garden at the Edgewater Farmers Market

Bring Your Produce to the HEALthy Edgewater Booth

All Local Residents with Gardens and Jovial Gardens are invited to SELL your produce at the HEALthy Edgewater Booth.

Feel free to harvest as much as you can and bring it down to the market. You may get lucky and find an opportunity to trade your produce for soaps, honey, and other delicious goods.

EDGEWATER FARMERS MARKET
Thursdays from 5-8pm
25th and Chase

Live Music  – Great Food – Fresh Produce – And More

                                           

Edgewater is one of many cities and towns in Colorado participating in the LiveWell Colorado HEAL Cities and Towns Campaign. In October 2014, Edgewater adopted a resolution that encourages the City to adopt policies that improve access to physical activity and healthy foods in the community. Policies range from improved land use and transportation policies that can influence increased physical activity; to the promotion of Farmers Markets, Community Gardens and local nutrition education programs that can help increase residents’ access to healthy food. Please, come out to the market and join your community in making Edgewater a healthier place to live and play!

Sustainably,

The Jovial Concepts Team

Garden Party – January 25, 2015

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What a fun party!! We had over 20 people show up and a ton of food.

We are overwhelmed and humbled by all the wonderful support and people that have helped create Jovial Gardens. Thank you all very much.

I want to send a special thanks to AJ again for all of his outstanding work! I also would like to special mention Chris Grant and Vicki Peterson for all their work and support as well! We couldn’t do it without gracious folks like you!

We also want to sincerely thank Shannon and Alyssa for all the work they put into making this party happen. The food was delicious and you lady’s did a great job organizing everything. Thank you!

Thank you all again and we can’t wait to see you next month!

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Jovial Gardens

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Combating Hunger in Colorado

Nearly 1 in 4 households with children reported food hardship1 and more than 25% of working families in Colorado do not have enough food to meet their basic needs2.

Colorado has one of the fastest growing rates of childhood poverty in the nation. Between 2002 and 2010, the rate of child poverty increased 86% in the state.3 Children aged 0-5 are most at risk of living in homes without enough food.3

By transforming lawns into organic gardens, we can provide the produce to feed 120 Colorado families throughout the growing seasons. Using gardens as a classroom, participants learn sustainability, environmental awareness, healthy food practices, and how to combat obesity and other health issues associated with food hardships.

 

Problem 1- Food Scarcity

  • In many urban neighborhoods, it is all too convenient to buy fast food and soda but nearly impossible to find fresh fruits and vegetables. These areas with limited access to affordable, healthy food are predominantly composed of low-income communities.4
  • Convenience markets with sweet and salty snacks are frequently the main dietary source for residents of low-income, inner-city neighborhoods which leads to high obesity rates among these areas.4
  • Research has shown that the presence of grocery stores selling fresh fruits and vegetables in a community helps residents maintain a healthy lifestyle.4
  • Increasing access to nutritious food that is lower in fat and calories is a crucial interim step in helping poorer communities reduce their rate of chronic disease and improve the overall health of Coloradans.4

Our Solution

  • By gaining the support of local residents, we can provide the access to fresh produce by growing it in the neighborhoods that have a lack of accessibility and need healthy food most.
  • All of our food donated goes directly to the nearest local area in need from where it is grown.

Problem 2 – Food Insecurity

  • Studies show that there is more than enough food to provide the World with enough nutrition to live a healthy life.5
  • The cost of fresh produce and healthy food restricts families from being able to provide proper nutrition in their homes.4
  • Even when provided with fresh fruits and vegetables, many at risk and low income households do not know how to prepare their food.

Our Solution

  • By providing fresh produce to those in need through active local food banks, we can make sure that everything we grow goes to a good home.
  • Through food education classes, we are able to give opportunity to teach people techniques of how to prepare and cook food. The provision of easy to follow recipes for the produce we give will reduce the need for pre-packaged unhealthy food and provide equal nutritional opportunity for entire households.
  • Having gardening classes and providing resources to create their own gardens, low income households will be able to provide for themselves and start to be part of the independent sustainable process.

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