Monthly Archives: April 2012

Hello Fellow Gardeners and Happy Belated Earth Day!

Just wanted to touch base with a few updates. Thankfully we finally had some rain, which should help the dry soil. I heard several of you were out there on Saturday, and I just wanted to say thank you to you all. The open area is progressing nicely, and the new gates look wonderful! We continue to make outstanding progress! We will continue with more work on Saturday, April 28th. Hope to see you there!

Susan Matacavage ask that I spread the word to all of your gardeners that we have coupons for Dan Schantz Greenhouse. They are free coupons that you present with your order. You present one coupon for every $10.00 that you spend, and the greenhouse gives Wesley Church’s Family Ministries $2.00; up to $4.00 per visit. This is a great way to help other ministries as we purchase our plants. A stack of the coupons will be at the Fair Trade Coffee table in the Atrium.

Lower Saucon Township Historical Society and the Saucon Creek Watershed will sponsor a rain barrel workshop at the Lutz-Franklin Schoolhouse, 4216 Countryside Lane, Lower Saucon Township, April 28th. Come out to the schoolhouse sometime between 9:00AM-1:00PM to make a rain barrel for your yard. The cost is $40 with all materials supplied. (Garden store rain barrels can cost up to $160.) Please contact Ron Horiszny if you are interested so he can have the necessary supplies on hand. Ron’s email: rwhoriszny {at} hotmail [Dot] com

Clarke also shared some Earth Day ideas with us:
http://www.kintera.org/cms.asp?id=3081426&campaign_id=137685&enString=x

Thanks Everyone,
Jason & Jaimee Walters

Concerned about “fracking” in Pennsylvania?

Wesley Church and the Community Garden will be hosting a screening of the Josh Fox documentary “GASLAND” which explores “fracking,” also known as hydraulic fracturing. Fracking is the process used to extract natural gas from shale rock formations deep within the earth. Fracking makes it possible to extract natural gas that was previously considered unreachable. Large portions of Pennsylvania and New York are considered part of the Marcellus Shale region, which contains a large, but untapped reserve of natural gas. The process involves drilling deep into the shale and injecting high-pressure chemicals and massive amounts of water that fracture the shale which releases the natural gas. Because of the chemicals involved and the potential to contaminate drinking water this process is very controversial. Following the movie, Julie Edgar, organizer of Lehigh Valley Gas Truth will take your questions and provide ways to share your concerns. Please come, and invite anyone who would like to become aware of these issues.

Hello Everyone!

We will be having our next Garden Work Day on Saturday, April 14th at 10:00AM. We have made excellent progress on the fencing (about halfway), and cutting out the area for our extended growing area. The sod has been cut out for the most part and the next step would be to start tilling the soil and moving the sod pieces we cut out. We will continue with that effort on Saturday! Hope to see you there!

I’ve enclosed a tentative sketch of how we might utilize the extended area after discussing with Rich. I’m still open to input. We talked about having Asparagus and strawberries in the Northeast corner, with corn or perhaps (three sisters: corn/squash/beans) along the eastern boundary. That would leave space for larger crops like pumpkins, cucumbers, more squash as well.

Also, Clarke mentioned the winds and lack of rain over the last several days have made the ground very dry. If you have already planted, please make sure to water probably daily so seeds have sufficient moisture to germinate.

Thanks for all your help!

WesleyGaren2012

Hello Everyone!

I thought this video from Burpee about Staking and Caging tomatoes was useful. Click on the link below.

Tomatoes – Staking and Caging

Hello Fellow Gardeners,

I thought I would pass this along!!

If you have old electronics including televisions, computers, monitors, etc. 　at home that you have been waiting to dispose of, 　there is a place that will take them for free.　 They are over in the industrial park by LVIA.　 Many municipalities charge a per item fee for the same equipment, and have limited events where you can bring your gear.　 I dropped off some of our electronics yesterday and met the president, and they have been expanding by word of mouth.　 There was recently a short blurb about him in The Morning Call.

http://www.mcall.com/business/retailwatch/mc-allentown-freecycle-appliance-20120324,0,5587821.column

www.gersolutions.net

Phone: 484.866.0927

Address:
795 Roble Road
Allentown, PA 18109

Hours:
Monday, Wednesday, Friday – 10AM to 5PM
3rd Saturday of Every Month – 9AM to 11AM
Call for Drop-Off Day

President:

Johnny S. Johnson