santa barbara country n news-food for those in need

SANTA BARBARA COUNTRY N NEWS-FOOD FOR THOSE IN NEED

thats ms b watering my garden plot at the community garden where i garden

ive done it long enough so that i know just the right amount to grow so we dont have to put too much
veggies up by canning or freezing

right now i have 4 broccoli which gives us four big broccoli heads for a month
usually one a week lasts us
then
the side shoots that develop provide us with a steady supply of smaller broccoli heads until the broccoli goes to seed in the late spring

i have 4 cabbages which i do the same as broccoli
the side shoots off the cabbage also provide us with more smaller cabbages that sometimes dont make it out of the garden
ie
i eat then while working in the garden

i have a large 20 ft row of sweet peas that provide us with a steady supply of these peas
i cant keep my hands off them and eat usually about half before they make it home
mr h loves them
as does ms b and her friends

i have a short row of lettuce mix plants that i trim down in stages so that we always have lettuce growing and always have lettuce mix to eat at home

i have onions and garlic that i will store in our garage when they are harvested in the late spring to early summer

i have 3 different types of kale and swiss chard that we eat in salads with our lettuces
its the plant that keeps on giving
i still have last years curly leaf kale still growing and producing leaves
its nice to garden where i doesnt freeze

i also have cilantro that i use in the salads

sometime this winter i will make a pot of greens with kale chard cabbage leaves and broccoli leaves and green onions
broccoli and cabbage are cousins to collards so i use their leaves like collards
they go good with cornbread

i have a batch of multiplying onions that i have had since the early 1990s that my dad gave me
i brought a few with me from texas
they occupy a spot near the entrance to my garden walkway so i can reach down and harvest them as we need green onions

if i do have extra veggies from my garden i leave them for the community garden to donate to need organizations like soup kitchens food pantries womens shelters etc

this winter the community garden cleared out most of its plots which occupy the center of the large garden area with the 25 rented plots being in 200 sq ft plots around the perimeter

the soil was dug out deep through out with a large tractor
then tilled with a large commercial size tiller
several yards of the best compost ive seen yet in this area and bags of organic fertilizer was also then tilled deep into the soil

then new planting beds were reoriented based on the amount of shade and the location of water sources

then the entities we donate all this food to were asked what did they really want
now they take any fresh food we given
they wanted onions leeks celery brassicas tomatoes peppers lettuce kale to name a few

so
we widened our beds
redid our drip lines
then
started planting stuff

these above are the only old beds left with its kale collard trees and cabbage

i planted many of these new beds along with other volunteers
long rows of cabbage and broccoli and kale
long row of onions well over 300 plants
long row of leeks around 200+ plants

long row of various lettuces all mixed together
long row of celery
shorter row of swiss chard

we are about 30% planted

soon
tomatoes and peppers and beans squash cukes etc will be planted in the spring

so in the spring when you walk into this place it will be completely full of edible veggies all going to those in need

i didnt even mention the bushels and bushels of citrus that is harvested from approximately 20 trees all going to these same places

so
after planting stuff for 4 hours
i stand up to straighten out all my creaky joints
look around
i thought they dont pay farmworkers enough

i feel good about what i just did
knowing those in need will benefit

this is what volunteering is all about

the organicgreen doctor