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Galego

Be brave and start your growing season this fall

As the bright light of summer gives way to the richer colors of autumn, it is easy to think the gardening season is over. However, fall is, in many ways, the beginning, not the end of the growing season. Kale and beets that struggled in the heat of summer begin to grow thicker and darker, reaching their peak of sweetness as temperatures drop. You might still capture a crop of radishes that take but a month to form tubers in the cooler weather. The first “killing” frost will wipe out weeds and pests.

Egyptian onions

Top photo: Garlic shoots growing up through a deep layer of fall leaves. Above: Perennial Egyptian onions can be planted now, and will reward you throughout the next growing season.

Fall is the time to make big structural changes, to start new beds and resize old ones. It is also the time to plant bulbs: garlic, Egyptian onions, daffodils, and tulips are eager to go in the ground. You can even experiment and plant wildflowers and cilantro seeds in hidden places you will forget, only to be surprised when they emerge in the spring.

When it comes to alliums, Egyptian onions are a favorite. They provide year-round green onions for the kitchen, growing tender shoots in spring and fall, and create a formidable aromatic shield against deer and rodents. These perennial green onions emerge at the end of winter, before most plants have begun to grow, and provide protection to young neighboring plants from the very beginning of the new growing season.

As spring turns into summer, Egyptian onions bloom, and become a favorite stop for native pollinators, eventually blending in with the lush green in your garden. But, make no mistake, even in the background, these pungent guardians remain on active duty, creating a barrier that is imperceptible to humans, but so very disturbing to deer and rodents.  

Having planted your bulbs, autumn holds the key to unlock the fertility of your garden. This is the season when Master gardeners rush in with piles of manure, mineral amends, and mulch to replenish nutrients. They know that it is in the darkness of winter when cover crops, manures, and mineral amends are transformed into plant-ready nutrients by the soil food web. Your main job as a gardener is to protect this living web with a rich and thick layer of mulch, preferably in the form of fallen leaves that will slowly decompose and help remineralize your soil year after year. 

Covering your bed with cardboard and a deep layer of leaves on top is a great way to enrich your soil and suppress weeds.

If you had a hard time with weeds the previous season, fall is also the time to get ahead of them. Find plenty of plain cardboard—without glossy inks or colors, just the regular brown stuff. (Bike shops are a great place to find very large cardboard boxes that can cover an entire garden bed without interruption.) Remove tape or staples and place the cardboard on top of your beds or any area where you want to suppress weeds. Then, cover everything with a thick layer of leaves, as much as 9” deep, to protect and feed your soil ecosystem over winter. Rain and snow will soften the cardboard and compact the leaves on top, worms and arthropods will break through it, but young weeds will not—this applies to your bulbs too, so do not cover garlic or other new bulbs with cardboard. 

When spring comes, you can plant right into it; but do not remove or disturb this rich layer of cardboard and leaves beyond what is strictly necessary to plant your seedlings. This is a way to build good soil, and this is how you become a pro at creating a virtuous cycle of fertility that requires less work to grow stronger plants year over year. 

Be brave, take a leap, and this fall start your next growing season by building or rebuilding a strong foundation under your garden. 

–Francisco Cabas 

 

Francisco is a gardener at Galego Community Farm in Pawtucket. You can learn about vermiculture, natural pest control, overwintering crops, harvesting garlic, and much more from his gardening videos on Youtube @GardensofNewEngland

 

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Seeking youth, 14-18, for summer jobs in Providence and Pawtucket

Southside Community Land Trust is offering 6-week summer jobs based at urban farms in Providence and Pawtucket, from July 5 to August 15.

As SCLT youth staff, you will work together to help build a community food system where food is affordable, healthy, and culturally appealing. You will also:

  • learn how to grow delicious, healthy food
  • learn about sustainable growing practices, environmental resilience and land stewardship
  • learn about nutrition and cooking, and make healthy lunches for the program
  • work towards/earn certification in food and workplace safety (ServSafe and OSHA 10)

Providence activities will be based at Somerset Hayward Youth Enterprise Farm in South Providence. The Pawtucket program will be based at Galego Community Farm in Pawtucket.

Youth staff will be selected based on their interest in positively impacting their communities and willingness to engage in hands-on farming, cooking and food access tasks.

Applications are available here.

The deadline for applying is 5 p.m. on Tues., June 13. 

This project is funded by the RI Governor’s Workforce Board, One PVD for Youth, the Papitto Opportunity Connection, Amica Charities Foundation, the Island Foundation, Bank of America, Textron, and other funders. Thank you for your support!

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Farms across RI got hands-on help from AmeriCorps crew

If you’re a homeowner, you know there’s always something needing to be repaired, rebuilt or replaced. If you run a land trust with 25 properties spread over 77 acres, that to-do list can seem endless.

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Saturday youth jobs now offered in Providence & Pawtucket

We’re adding on to our fall Youth Program this year! Young people between 14-24 are invited to apply for Saturday jobs located at SCLT urban farms in Providence and Pawtucket.

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Seeking high school youth for summer jobs

Southside Community Land Trust is offering 6-week summer jobs in both Providence and Pawtucket from early July to mid-August.

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We’re hiring!

SCLT is looking for a full-time support professional who can work comfortably in two realms: Youth Education and Garden Facilities Management.

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SCLT & the CDL offering youth fun, outdoor jobs this summer

Are you between 14-17 and live in Central Falls or Pawtucket? Are you looking for a fun, outdoor job this summer?

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Supporting the farmers who feed us

Two years ago, SCLT received one of the largest grants in its history: nearly $600,000 from the U.S. Department of Agriculture, National Institute for Food and Agriculture, to be spent over three years. The funds would provide training and other support for beginning farmers and help increase the acreage for food production in Rhode Island. SCLT would share funding with several local partners to achieve these objectives.

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High school students invited to apply for summer jobs at SCLT

SCLT has been working in South Providence since 1981 to provide people access to land, education and other resources to enable them to grow their own food. We are actively expanding our work in Central Falls, Pawtucket and Cranston. As a youth staff member, you will help create community food systems where food is affordable, healthy, environmentally sustainable and culturally appealing.

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Artists use SCLT-grown plants to connect people with food and farms

During the growing season gorgeous produce in every hue and shape is artfully displayed in farmers market booths. This fall, vegetables grown by SCLT farmers (and others) became the subject of an artist’s work on view at a Providence gallery.

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