Master Gardener Visits Karen's Garden

Charlie Behnke, a certified Master Gardener from Milwaukee, visited us after school today to evaluate our progress on the development of Karen's Garden. We showed him the new greenhouse, our worm bins, the garden, and how we collect and process compost. Charlie liked what he saw and thinks we are on the right path to making the garden program both sustainable and more successful. We learned a great deal from this gardening wiz and we hope he comes back to work with us again soon!

Here are a few notes from our consult with Charlie:

1. He liked the idea of doing a few container tomato plants/other vegetables outside of the LS/MS Dining Room for next year.

2. Longer term, he likes the idea of bringing the garden closer to the LS/MS kitchen...this will make if very easy for the kitchen staff to get involved.

3. Charlie had a great idea for the green tomatoes that will still be on the vines right before frost. He suggested that we pull out the entire plant and take it inside to a cool room. The plants can then be hung upside down where the green tomatoes will ripen. He said that tomatoes will often times ripen all the way through December! What a great idea!

4. Charlie said that January is the most important month in preparing for the garden. This is when we should start seeding plants and mapping out the garden for the coming spring. For seeding plants, he suggests that the fluorescent grow lights be placed very close to the plants...otherwise, the plants will be stringy and week. He also said to put a fan on the plants so they get stronger in preparation for being transplanted outdoors.

5. Charlie recommended JL Hudson seeds...he said their print seed catalog is a storehouse of information.

6. Plant some tomato companion plants next year like basil. Also, Charlie had a neat idea of planting some mint to act as a ground cover amongst the tomatoes...these serve several purposes including helping keep the soil loose.

7. He recommended a couple nice books to help us get our library going. Those books are pictured below: