dbwiki

This page is read only. You can view the source, but not change it. Ask your administrator if you think this is wrong.
===== A bit about our gardens =====

==== Beginning in Carnation, 2012 ====

In 2012 Maura and David gardened at the Nootka Rose Community Garden at the Carnation Tree Farm. We wanted to find a place to garden closer to our home near Snoqualmie. A friend who we knew through Transition Snoqualmie Valley, mentioned that she knew someone who had property in Fall City that we might cultivate. We met with Janet and talked about our intention and made a deal to contribute a part of what we grew to the Fall City Food Pantry. 

==== Fall City garden, 2013 ===

{{ :garden:philosophy:2278530_-_version_2.jpg?150|}}In January 2013 we transplanted our leeks from the Carnation garden to over-winter in Fall City, then in spring we tilled and built the soil, planting English peas first, then several types of beans. Their big project was to grow tomatoes to can so we transplanted almost 40 plants. That turned out to be a very poor year for tomatoes and late season blight took a huge toll and we lost about 85% of the potential yield. That first year in Fall City we also grew pumpkins, summer and winter squash, potatoes, tomatillos, spinach, lettuce, carrots, chard, 8 varieties of beans, corn, cucumbers, leeks, basil, beets, radishes, strawberries, turnips, rhubarb, and garlic. Along with this we had planted a patch of about 200 flint corn further down river on Janna’s farm; beautiful ruby, gold and orange corn grown for milling into cornmeal.

==== Fall City garden, 2014 ====

We got a slow start this year with a cover crop of rye that was so "successful" that it took weeks to terminate it and figure out what to do with all the straw. They're still working on this!

{{ :garden:philosophy:img_0196manddwiki.jpg?300|}}Two of our successful crops this year are Cherokee Trail of Tears beans and New England Pie Pumpkins. The Trail of Tears beans are named for the forced relocation of the Cherokee Indians from the Great Smoky Mountains to Oklahoma over the winter of 1838 - 1839, during which time many thousands of people died. This nutritious black bean helped sustain the Cherokees through the arduous journey.

A pie pumpkin provides about enough flesh for one pie and cooks down to a sweet, creamy, and thick filling. They look forward to sharing these pumpkins at the Food Pantry. 

They cultivate about two-thirds of the area each year, leaving the remainder fallow or in cover crops, intending to gradually increase the soil fertility. 

==== Sustainable gardening ====

They are learning organic farming and use hand tools almost exclusively. They build the soil with green manure, compost and techniques that improve the structure and fertility of the soil with a minimum of tilling. Every day is an experiment in imagining how to build a sustainable gardening operation.

They also garden at our home near Snoqualmie in five raised beds, but the altitude, climate and tree shading greatly limit the growing season and choice of varieties, so the Fall City garden is our primary growing area, though this summer has been particularly warm and sunny so even our home garden is thriving.

==== Background ====

David grew up with a family garden in Texas and with a half dozen aunts and uncles who dry-land farmed there, so there is some agriculture in his DNA. However, gardening in the Pacific Northwest is quite different from gardening in central Texas, so it was like starting off with a clean slate. Maura, who was raised in a small mid-western city, had a plot at the first Seattle Pea Patch back in the early 70’s where she grew vegetables just to see what we looked like!

==== Philosophy ====

We believe that local production of food, both individual and commercial, is becoming more and more important as is learning the ins and outs of growing healthy, organic vegetables. And we believe that sharing in general is a satisfying and mutually beneficial habit, so we routinely contribute some of our production to the Fall City Community Food Pantry, as well as to landowner Janet, co-workers, friends and family.