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From Linda Rominger, Director of Ahwatukee Community Garden Project:
Happy Fall All ! What's new in your garden? Below is a brief report about our collaboration with Desert Pointe Garden Club at Colina Elementary School to help 4th and 5th graders plant native wildflowers etc. in their desert tortoise habitat. Native Seed Search provided the seeds through a Community Seed Grant, and nature provided rain on Thursday to sprout the seeds. November 15th -December 15th our Seed Money Challenge Grant Opportunity will be live! Last year we just came short of earning matching funds. We don't want to miss out this year. We have plans for a shed and an herb spiral that we really want to add to the garden and maybe a few more fruit trees to replace the apples. We have a space picked out for a mural,too. All these have been ok-ed, now we just need funds Seed Money Fundraiser The first 75 campaigns to reach $600 in funds raised will receive a $400 challenge grant from us. We are only $35 away from being one of the first four campaigns!! Please donate today! Campaigns that don't win challenge grants will automatically be entered into consideration for one of 50 $400 merit grants that we'll be awarding in late February 2017. NOV. 18th UPDATE: We have raised $870 so far. We were in the first 20 to reach $600, so we have won $400! THANK YOU to all our generous donors! PLEASE DONATE HERE: https://www.seedmoney.org/campaign/201/ahwatukee-community-garden-project Our next Ahwatukee Farmer's Market booth will be held on December 4th from 9:00 - 1:00. Kelly Athena, Master Gardener, will present workshops on Hula Hoe weeding, an alternative to toxic sprays; The Rare Elephant Tree of South Mountain; December Gardening Tips; and giving TOURS of the GARDEN! Our garden is accessed from the same parking lot as the Sunday Ahwatukee Farmer's Market. We meet from 8:00 - 9:30 or later on Sundays. The Market is open from 9:00 - 1:00 with over 50 vendors of natural products, organic produce, herbal remedies, sharpening services, ready-to-eat food like homemade desserts and tamales; locally grown honey, and always the cool guitar music of John to entertain us! Ahwatukee Farmer's Market acgarden.weebly.com/blog-and-photos/halloween-gardenAhwatukee Community Garden |
Feeding Franklin
The Ahwatukee Community Garden Project has an expansive vision for Ahwatukee. We develop and nurture community gardens and gardeners in Ahwatukee by planting and maintaining the demonstration/participation garden in the park at 48th Street and Warner Road. Other components of our vision are to connect neighbors of all ages in our projects and to promote an appreciation of the wildlife that shares our Sonoran Desert. We accomplished both of these on Tuesday, November 1, 2016 at Kyrene de Colina Elementary at 13612 S 36th St.
The school has a marvelous habitat for their desert tortoise, but irrigation problems caused a loss of seasonal vegetation. Everyone at Colina was afraid that Franklin, the desert tortoise, wasn’t getting enough nutrition. So the Ahwatukee Community Garden Project Board decided to see what we could do to help Colina and Franklin. After talking to Colina Principal, Dr. Kelley Brunner, Linda Rominger of the Garden Project applied for a Community Seed Grant from Native Seeds Search in Tucson. Laura Neff from Native Seeds called a few days after receiving the application to say the project had been selected to receive their support. A few days later, a selection of seeds specific to our desert arrived for planting. Some of the packets were actually labeled Desert Tortoise Mix. Others were desert wildflower mixes and seeds for plants that attract butterflies.
Now, that the repaired irrigation system at Colina has the perennials in the garden looking healthy , the calendar and cooler weather indicated it was time to plant the wildflowers. Linda Rominger representing the Ahwatukee Community Garden Project and Jan Miner and Suzanne Thompson from Desert Pointe Garden Club joined with a group of Colina 4th and 5th graders to sow the seeds for a Spring bounty. Franklin came out of his burrow to check on our efforts. His appearance thrilled the children and seemed to be his way of saying "thank you." He certainly inspired the kids. Even though they were giving up their lunch recess to participate in the planting, they eagerly asked to participate in whatever the next garden project might be.
Now we are waiting to see what sprouts!
The Ahwatukee Community Garden Project has a community work session at the demonstration garden every Sunday morning starting around 8 A.M. from October to May. Sessions last about 2 hours. We host an informational booth, monthly, at the Farmers’ Market. Bring your plant questions and get a few seeds for your home garden from our seed library.
Visit us online for the latest photos and news at ACgarden.org, on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Ahwatukee-Community-Garden-Project-327051960685015/?fref=ts, and Twitter https://twitter.com/AhwatukeeGarden, or contact us at ahwcomgarden@gmail.com
Come on by the Ahwatukee Community Garden and play in the dirt with us!
Linda Rominger is a U of A Master Gardener, 25 year Ahwatukee resident,
and current ACGP garden director
Ahwatukee Community Garden
The Ahwatukee Community Garden Project has an expansive vision for Ahwatukee. We develop and nurture community gardens and gardeners in Ahwatukee by planting and maintaining the demonstration/participation garden in the park at 48th Street and Warner Road. Other components of our vision are to connect neighbors of all ages in our projects and to promote an appreciation of the wildlife that shares our Sonoran Desert. We accomplished both of these on Tuesday, November 1, 2016 at Kyrene de Colina Elementary at 13612 S 36th St.
The school has a marvelous habitat for their desert tortoise, but irrigation problems caused a loss of seasonal vegetation. Everyone at Colina was afraid that Franklin, the desert tortoise, wasn’t getting enough nutrition. So the Ahwatukee Community Garden Project Board decided to see what we could do to help Colina and Franklin. After talking to Colina Principal, Dr. Kelley Brunner, Linda Rominger of the Garden Project applied for a Community Seed Grant from Native Seeds Search in Tucson. Laura Neff from Native Seeds called a few days after receiving the application to say the project had been selected to receive their support. A few days later, a selection of seeds specific to our desert arrived for planting. Some of the packets were actually labeled Desert Tortoise Mix. Others were desert wildflower mixes and seeds for plants that attract butterflies.
Now, that the repaired irrigation system at Colina has the perennials in the garden looking healthy , the calendar and cooler weather indicated it was time to plant the wildflowers. Linda Rominger representing the Ahwatukee Community Garden Project and Jan Miner and Suzanne Thompson from Desert Pointe Garden Club joined with a group of Colina 4th and 5th graders to sow the seeds for a Spring bounty. Franklin came out of his burrow to check on our efforts. His appearance thrilled the children and seemed to be his way of saying "thank you." He certainly inspired the kids. Even though they were giving up their lunch recess to participate in the planting, they eagerly asked to participate in whatever the next garden project might be.
Now we are waiting to see what sprouts!
The Ahwatukee Community Garden Project has a community work session at the demonstration garden every Sunday morning starting around 8 A.M. from October to May. Sessions last about 2 hours. We host an informational booth, monthly, at the Farmers’ Market. Bring your plant questions and get a few seeds for your home garden from our seed library.
Visit us online for the latest photos and news at ACgarden.org, on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/Ahwatukee-Community-Garden-Project-327051960685015/?fref=ts, and Twitter https://twitter.com/AhwatukeeGarden, or contact us at ahwcomgarden@gmail.com
Come on by the Ahwatukee Community Garden and play in the dirt with us!
Linda Rominger is a U of A Master Gardener, 25 year Ahwatukee resident,
and current ACGP garden director
Ahwatukee Community Garden