Community Garden

Woo hoo... It's going and growing. A group of members got together and started up the garden. Some might say "it's sooo small" but you gotta start somewhere, right? If you are interested in joining this happy bunch, let us know.

Life's focus! And apologies.

I have fallen so far behind in the e-mails, blog and facebook page. I want to offer my apologies. Life has gotten so busy, and I've had a hard time finding my focus. Yesterday I received news that a very good friend (and one of our members) drowned in a tragic accident on Saturday. Heather Bonser-Bishop and her daughters attended some of our meetings, including the bee class and the foraging class. She was a wonderful woman who loved growing plants of any kind and was always there to lend a helping hand. After falling apart for a while (and I'm sure I will again), I was reminded of the unexpected twists and turns life throws at us, and maintaining the "computer" part of our group is important to me. I am going to make it a priority. Please make sure to send me any information you would like to see posted. I would like to make a memorial plaque for Heather to be a part of the community garden. I am not sure what yet, as I'm not creative that way, but if you have any suggestions please let me know. My greenhouse is producing a lot of swiss chard and lettuce and I planted some beets and peas as well. We got our garden area tilled, but it's still way to early to plant. I have decided to tackle my mom and dad's garden this year. Right before they left for a trip to Washington state, my mom mentioned that the garden had gotten ahead of them this year and they might not have one. It was a rough winter with some physical problems thrown in for them. I know how much they love their garden though, so I am going to try to find the muscle and time to clean it up and plant some basics... corn, peas, beans, etc. The raised beds are really full of weeds, but I pulled a couple the other day and they pulled easily. In between the beds and raspberry plants it's a different story, they are going to be tough to clean up, but I really want to do this for them. It will help me focus on things that are important. Hope you are all doing well! Ruth

Updating the blog, meeting info!

Finally catching up on updates after a busy summer of gardening. We've changed the name of our group to reflect what we are really about!

oday was another great meeting! Everyone is feeling the joy of the bounty. The Community garden is ready to have the fence strung; poles are set and ready to go. The one bed we have is also ready. They talked about putting in some garlic today. We got the name down and we are now known as “Friendly Backyard Family Farming!” We will have our next meeting Saturday December 3 at 11 a. m. so mark your calendar. We had a couple new people today welcome Karn and Rusty, thanks for joining us. The mushrooms are coming on. Rusty talked about forging another way to meet the need, and is on track with sustainability, great information and great fun, visiting with our friendly backyard farmers!!!! We are on track to being what this country needs more of, stand up people who aren’t afraid of playing in the dirt.



Here is the list of needs

1. Chicken wire

2. Hardware cloth for the bottom of the beds.

3. Water barrels

4. Solid wood fencing

5. Pallets for a compost bin….. or a working plastic compost bin

6. Hand tools, a rake, shovel, hoe

7. Hoses

8. Wheel barrel

9. Green house materials woven polyester, clips, plastic.

Call Ruth at the Presbyterian Church office to leave a message 541-247-7351 a brief description of what it is that you have to drop off and she will arrange to meet you there.

Again Thanks for coming

Happy Family Farming!!

Gardening tips!

Sorry it's been so long since a blog has appeared. Life has gotten a bit hectic!

My greenhouse tomatoes, peppers and carrots are going great guns, the kale keeps getting ahead of me and we've eaten quite a few artichokes. The beans and corn were coming up beautifully, until the little chicks found a way from the chicken yard into the garden. They find the smallest holes, I swear! So my weekend will be spent replanting seeds, but that's an okay way to spend a holiday weekend.

Remember our next meeting is on July 9th at 11 am.

Here's a couple great links to help you out in the garden.

Earth Friendly Ways to Kill Weeds


Summer Gardening Questions Answered

Worm Bin!

Driftwood School in Port Orford did a worm bin project to teach students about the importance of composting.

It started with a small rubbermaid-type container and graduated to a larger project, with some bins available for sale.

Hooray for the kids and a big thank-you to the adults who are helping teach the kids the importance of composting in gardening.

Meeting Reminder and Garden Thoughts!

Just a reminder that our next meeting is Saturday, May 7th at 1 pm (changed this month due to a schedule conflict) at the Curry Public Library!

From member Ruth Dixon: I have finally started getting busy on gardening stuff. Our garden area is still too water-logged to plant, but with my husband's help, we have re-done one established area and created a new one.

This is the new bed, created pretty much entirely out of "scavenged" materials (the brick were given to us, as were the poles and cup hooks to hold the deer fencing in place). The deer fencing was saved from an old project, and most of the "filler" was collected from my livestock. The picture doesn't show the deer fencing and posts, sorry. I did purchase a couple bags of soil to mix in.

We transformed our old tomato plot into a enclosed bed using more of the above scavenged materials.

 I haven't done much in the green house lately, as it has recently been transformed into a nursery.  That will change tomorrow as we will be down to one calf and will move him down with the large livestock.

What have you done for your garden plans? Have you made anything using scavenged or recycled materials?

Spring has sprung!

At our last meeting at the Curry Public Library (who we'd like to thank for letting us gather there to discuss manure, seeds, dirt and so much more) everyone shared what they'd been up to garden-wise. Boy, what a diversified group we have and it's wonderful. From an energetic young man building a "cob" greenhouse to a member collecting kelp for container gardening to a lady who loves to weed, there is so much going on.

Some popular reading material was shared and the books "Backyard Homestead" by Carleen Madigan and "Growing Vegetables West of the Cascades" by Steve Solomon were both recommended highly by members. Curry Public Library has "Growing Vegetables..." and can request "Backyard..." from the Brookings Public Library.

Members are going to help get some composted manure to Edna Riley's garden (for those of you who don't know her, Edna is an incredible lady who has gardened for years, preserved fruits and vegetables (she's a Master Food Preserver)and is just a wonderful woman.) If you can help with this, let us know and we'll be in touch. We are hoping to do it during the week.

On May 1st (May Day, so appropriate) there will be a work party at Anita's Garden at the Curry Public Library, starting mid-day. Please come help and bring gloves...

Some of our members have some upcoming projects they'd like help with. Susan Golay wants to build raised beds in her backyard and is willing to trade green horse manure. She has some boards, but needs more and would like her beds to be made of "re-used" materials. You can reach Susan by Email

Speaking of green manure, Ruth Dixon has green horse and sheep manure "ripe" for the picking. Contact her via Email or call her at 541-373-0554 for directions and to set up a time. She'll provide the pitchfork.

Please Email us with pictures of your gardening projects, ideas or info that you'd like to share. We also now have a facebook page for those who are interested. Find it at Fog Bank Fresh Foods and become "friends". Regular e-mails will still go out to every one, and we may put together a phone tree for those who don't have internet access.

Happy Spring, everyone!