Even when you think you know a lot about gardening -- there's still so much to keep learning. The importance of proper watering cannot be overemphasized! It's so easy in spring to think, "Of course I'll water faithfully if it does become dry" but the underlying thought may actually be "...this year maybe there won't be a dry spell". Contrary to solid information that late summer is always dry and HOT! So plants urgently need watering even if by August, they're pretty big and look tough. And you just have to accept it takes time to water adequately, especially if there are trees nearby, which will suck up every drop they can get. We did manage it, running a hose about 250 feet from the spigot on a water fountain in the playground that looks close by, until you start rolling out the hose, and 100' goes out and you're not even at the garden's edge! More hose, with a hose cart that can hold 300' solves that problem. So do a couple of critically-timed thunderstorms and a hurricane or two. The groundcovers we are trying out are interesting. The Plumbago on the sunnier side is now flowering, such a fabulous true blue. The shadier side is slower, it's shadier than we had thought. The Chrysogonum is beginning to spread after getting trampled inadvertently, while the Adenophora took off from the beginning but is very small-leaved, fine in texture, and makes a small mat. We want a look that's larger leaved but holds soil well, and spreads pretty fast but not out of control so we don't want Lamium or barren strawberries. Tho' if they run out into the lawn and get mowed regularly, maybe we could risk them. It's really important to protect tree roots, and groundcovers do this better than lawn that competes for water, and has to be mowed which damages shallow tree roots and gnarled root buttresses. This is important in this garden, since we have two massive English elms, 3 magnolias, and a huge Himalayan pine in the immediate area. We've added some Heuchera and Sweet Woodruff and Echinaceas in the annual beds, so there'll be something growing after the annuals give out. And next year. Echinacea and Rudbeckia do better than we thought, we have more sun or they tolerate more shade than we expected, which is cool! I don't know what happened to the bushy, bright yellow marigolds that were doing so well until about mid August. They were massing together well, foliage dark and moist, big abundant yellow blooms. Then the 2 or 3 at the edge of them in front of the big elm got kind of dried out, the flowers stayed yellow longer but turned brown. Then it was the next 3 or 4 toward the middle of the bed, then like 6 or 8. The foliage turned dry, grayish-green, and looks stippled as if some insect was sucking out the sap. Thrips? I pulled out the dead plants and cut off as many browning flowerheads as I could among the still-green plants. I thought marigolds were foolproof. It may be a chemical from the old elm, which oozes sap from wounds and cankers which may affect plants underneath. I hope to leave the annuals in as long as they're flowering, but the light is already much different, more slanting and less intense. We are planning what bulbs to put in and may move some perennials. We added some cribbing to prevent erosion and may add more. Gardens are cool because one creative idea comes to an end, or the season ends - but we can keep on looking forward to the next, learning from what worked and didn't work and building on all of it. Growth follows a cycle but you never have to stop, you just find a way to incorporate what's growing and what's dying. And it's exciting to try new things, see what else will work in your conditions!
The garden has surprised us in some ways. There is less sun after the big trees leafed out than we expected, but most plants are doing okay with part shade. Certain plants came up taller than expected, and should have been placed in back instead of close to the front. The Verbena bonariensis is tall and airy, lavender tufts on long, branching stems. What we thought was Rudbeckia, Black-eyed Susan, turned out to be Echinacea, Purple Coneflower! The leaves look very similar but the flower is a different color and has the "cone" in its center.
I've been working with other borough gardeners and everyone admires my Fiskars tools. Jealousy has been expressed! The light aluminum shafts make a big difference when carrying tools and loading and unloading a truckload of tools. People (including me) admire the extra length of the shafts also, less bending is required which makes a difference on a big job. And I appreciate the orange color of the handles so I can easily distinguish my own tools from the rest. The hard rake has interestingly angled teeth and it's very effective at grabbing material and spreading material efficiently, especially wood chips and leaf mulch. The loppers are great for pruning the deadwood off young trees at Cadman Plaza Park which was relandscaped in the past couple of years. The lighter weight helps when holding a tool high for a long while, moving from tree to tree along a perimeter. And the shrub rake remains my favorite, such a good size for clearing weeds and leaves from between perennials and shrubs, under and behind benches, and out of narrow places where a wide rake is too clumsy. The gardens we planted in May and June are thriving since there's been enough rain. People are thrilled to see flowers blooming now, that were little green stubs when planted! We had some extra T shirts that came in handy too since one group of volunteers got soaked in a sudden rain, so we gave them crisp dry orange T shirts which perked up the rainy afternoon.
The Pre-K and Kindergarten classes from PS20 joined volunteer Julie Showers in the park for a day of planting and exploration on May 1st. For many of the children, this was the first time they had ever used a shovel or spade, or planted anything in the earth. Close encounters with earthworms were a highlight of the day!
The Fort Greene Park Conservancy’s (FGPC) mission is to improve and celebrate Brooklyn’s oldest park. Fort Greene Park is located in the heart of Fort Greene, a diverse Brooklyn neighborhood. The park is bordered by a public hospital, a senior citizens center, New York City Housing Authority buildings, two public schools, private residences and local merchants. Fort Greene Park is in Council District 35, which has a population of 151,030 with a median income of $33,395/year. The demographic breakdown highlights the diversity of this neighborhood: 62% Black, Non-Hispanic, 16% Caucasian, Non-Hispanic, 16% Hispanic.
The park was designed in 1867 by Fredrick Law Olmstead and Calvert Vaux, designers of Central Park and Prospect Park and is home to the Prison Ship Martyrs Monument commemorating the loss of an estimated 11,500 patriots who died on British prison ships in the New York Harbor during the American Revolution (1776-1789). This monument was built in 1907 and was designed by the architect Stamford White. Preparations for a Centennial celebration of the monument are underway. A grand celebration featuring original music, a large scale Revolutionary battle re-enactment and fireworks will take place this upcoming November.
David McCullough, noted American author has said, ”Fort Greene Park is one of the most sacred historical sites in America.” Despite its historical significance and majestic beauty, Fort Greene Park has suffered years of under-funding and neglect and thus is in need of attention and renovation. Volunteers, using the funds and tools provided by Fiskars are working together with the NYC Dept of Parks and Recreation to create entrance gardens for the park.
On Saturday April 12th, over 75 volunteers gathered in the park on a beautiful, sunny Saturday to clear planting beds, install erosion control measures and plant some flowers. This was a wonderful beginning to the season.
