Hi gardeners, 

It feels like summer is truly upon us! Plants (and weeds) are growing in leaps and bounds, pollinators are swarming, gardeners are busy - such a beautiful sight.  

Planting Deadlines

Many of you are already hard at work getting your plots prepped and plants in, which is inspiring! Quick reminder of DCG's rules for planting (from section 4 and 7). 

• Your plot must be clean, fully prepared, and at least half planted by June 1. Any plot failing to meet these conditions is considered abandoned and will be reassigned immediately, with no refund provided. 

• If your plot is not fully planted by June 15, the unplanted portion may be used by the Garden, and you may be assigned to a smaller plot the following year. 

Water is ON

The water has been turned on at Dowling and water barrels will continue getting filled up over the next couple of weeks. A couple of reminders:

• Larger-diameter couplers are used in the North half of the garden and can be found in the small yellow shed near the herb garden (circled in blue in the attached screenshot). Couplers for the South half of the garden are located in the tool shed. 

• Please be mindful of water use at the garden, since it's a valuable natural resource. Aim to water your garden in the morning or evening to avoid significant loss to evaporation. Be mindful of overwatering, both for the health of your plants and to avoid runoff/water waste. We have had a very dry start to the season and want to be responsible with our water use. 

• Always return the spigots to the correct location. The spigots are very expensive to replace and should be managed with care.

Free Plants

Free tomatoes and basil are available by the shed as of 5/26. These plants were picked up from MN Green. Please be mindful of your fellow gardeners and take only what you need.

Upcoming Events 

Our wonderful events team is starting "Mingle Mondays". Join us for the first mingle on 6/1 from 6-7 PM to walk the garden, share information, show of your plot, ask questions, and get to know your fellow gardeners. Poster attached!

Garden/School Boundaries

Please be mindful of the boundaries between the garden and school. When looking at the garden map online anything in light green is a grass path, which marks the boundaries of the garden. Couple of key reminders:

• Don't park within 20 feet of the crosswalk across 46th Ave. This is a city ordinance and you may be ticketed or towed if you're not in compliance. This crosswalk is a key entry point into the garden and we don't want to block safe access and visibility for pedestrians.

• Don't use the Dowling school's big compost bins (located much closer to the school) or any woodchips piles dropped by the school. Gardeners may use any woodchips located just inside the woods. Screenshot below shows the approximate location of the woodchips for gardeners.