December 2021 E-Newsletter
“If more of us valued food and cheer and song above hoarded gold, it would be a merrier world.”
J.R.R. Tolkien
Featured Instagram Photo of the Month: Late Fall Dahlias
We’ve made it to December and what a year it has been! Any guesses for what 2022 will bring? It’s hard to be optimistic when so many things seem uncertain in this world. But of course, how many acts are more hopeful than planting a seed or tiny seedling and dreaming that it grows into something wonderful? My wish is that your gardens of 2022 will repay some of your sewn hopes and dreams.
It’s been nice to have a little December rain, let’s hope the rain continues next week as predicted. It would be lovely for the soil to finally get a good soaking and give our water bill a bit of a break. The holidays can be a busy time but if you can put in an hour of work a week, you can keep your plot in tip top shape. When it hasn’t rained, you can maximize your garden time by putting a bubbler on the hose, setting it down and letting it deep water your plants while you work. Here is the regular list of things to do around the garden in December. Happy holidays to everyone. Remember the days will be getting longer (if not warmer) again soon. I’ll see you in 2022!
Upcoming Garden Events:
Dec. 11 - Saturday Workday - 9:00 AM - Noon
Dec. 11 - Community Lunch - Noon
Dec. 11 - General Meeting - 1:00 PM
Dec. 26 - Sunday Workday - 1:00 PM - 4:00 PM
OVF Announcements:
Workday/ Meeting Updates
We hope you can join us for the last general meeting of the year. It’s looking to be a cooler day, so please dress accordingly. Once again, attendees are encouraged to bring their own lunches as we’re still not able to offer a potluck at this time.
Everyone will be encouraged to sign into the meeting through the meetings.oceanviewfarms.net link. Ed Chair Andy Morris will be on hand to demonstrate how the sign-in process works. Members will need to use a smartphone with “location services” activated. Please note, you will only be able to sign in while present in the meeting area. A clipboard will be available for those who were unable to sign in, but signing in online is highly desired and automatically gives you credit for attendance.
Stealing Avocados, In Any Quantity, Is a Felony
Here's an interesting conversation peice for you: If you run into a store and grab less the $950 of merchandise, the crime is condsidered a misdemenor. However, if you steal any quantity of avocados, you could be charged with a felony. Hopefully, you would never steal an avocado because it is a jerky thing to do, but in case you were ever thinking about becoming a professional avocado theif, maybe pick a crime with a less harsh consequence if caught.
An Update From Phase 4
Phase Rep Angie Mason shares this update from her phase.
After two years of Covid distancing, Phase 4 gathered again for their semi-annual educational potluck. Members munched on cheese pesto pate, chicken salad, mac and cheese, hummus and many garden vegetable salads as they listened to Christy Wilhelmi (the Garden Nerd) discuss growing strawberries and the launch of her new novel Garden Variety next year. The release party will be at OVF, Sunday, April 3, 2022. Upper Phase 4 member, Fabian Corlier taught gardeners about his neem/garlic oil spray for powdery mildew while Lower 4 member Charles Frieder showed examples of bindweed, nut grass, and devil's grass and how to set gopher traps. Lower 4 member, Emmanuel Annor showed members how to set TRex rat traps with corn and cheese. Following the presentations, garden president Donn Hoffman toured members' plots with phase reps Angie Mason and Steve Reich exchanging ideas on watering systems, plants and plot organization.
Way to put the community in community gardening Phase 4!
A Humorous Story from The Garden Master
The OVF Board had requested I purchase some small wheelbarrows for the smaller gardeners and seniors for use in the garden. I ordered them online expecting to get them in cardboard boxes (unassembled) as we usually do. We then take them back to the garden and assemble them. However, when we arrived, we found that Home Depot had already assembled the wheelbarrows. Steve Ballantine, Bob Gallion and I had to figure out how to get six wheelbarrows into my Ford Taurus wagon. We put 2 inside the wagon and 4 on top, tied down with the cargo net we use for taking recycles to the recycle yard. Needless to say all the traffic was giving us a wide berth on the way back to the garden!
Ed Mossman
P.S. OVF now has six new, smaller wheelbarrows for gardeners to borrow while at the garden.
As always: we want to hear from you! Send us an email, reach out on Facebook, or tag us on Instagram @oceanviewfarms.
That’s all for now. Happy gardening!