Garden update: Feb, 2024
This is the first update on the Mound’s Park Community Garden. I'm glad you're here.
My name is Nate Barber. I’ve been working to establish the Mounds Park Community Garden. Things have been picking up momentum, and I wanted to provide an update on the most recent steps.
Here are some of the latest developments:
Entering into a lease agreement with the City of Saint Paul Parks Department.
Working with Dayton’s Bluff Community Council to provide liability insurance and become our fiscal agent (money handler) for the garden.
Coordinating with contractors to install water access and trench a water line to the garden.
Working with the administrators of our STAR grant to make funds available.
Soil testing with the U of M.
Spreading word throughout the neighborhood (thanks to our team of flier-distributors!)
Keeping all the disparate parties unified and on the same page.
Interested in learning more? Keep reading.
Initial plans for the garden are in!
First, a big thank you to the Saint Paul Parks Department.
This garden would not be possible without the Parks Department. It is by their good graces and generosity that we can establish this garden. I look forward to cohabitating the Mounds Park Recreation Area in a friendly and symbiotic relationship with the Saint Paul Parks Department.
Secondly, we just got back their preliminary sketch of the garden and surrounding features. This is just a first draft and things have yet to be finalized and likely designs could change.
Take a look at the initial plans:
What this initial sketch means is that the garden will likely have:
Accessible, on-site parking
Water (a big deal for a garden)
A fence that separates the garden from the Park's Dept. and vegetable-loving critters
Plenty of land
The designs for the actual garden are forthcoming. But this initial design provides a good idea of the lay of the land.
Here is some context that will help further illustrate what this space entails: the garden boxes we're building will be 8'x4' with 3' between each box and between the surrounding fences. If we were only to fill this space with garden boxes and borders, there would be enough space for 117 boxes!
Clearly, we aren't only putting garden boxes in this space. We are planning on building a picnic area, gathering spaces, storage, and utility sheds, and a variety of other features. But it's exciting to imagine how this enclosure will provide a substantial space for a great garden.
Soil testing at U of M
Every garden should be safe and free of toxic chemicals. In the spirit of transparency, I want to include our garden members in the process of testing, the results, and if necessary, and steps we'll be taking to make our soil safe for growing food.
I gathered over 20 samples from various sites all over the west end of Mounds Park Recreation Area. I mixed them all together and submitted the sample to the U of M testing lab where the soil will be sampled for:
Phosphorus, potassium, pH (lime requirement if needed), percent organic matter and estimated texture category)
Micronutrient series (zinc, copper, iron, manganese)
Nitrate Nitrogen
Calcium and Magnesium
Sulfur
Boron
Soluble Salts
Lead
Nutrient Management Phosphorus
These tests are extensive and take time. The results are still being processed. Please stay tuned for updates.
Calling all volunteers!
Let's put the “community” in this community garden. Below is a list of volunteer roles needed to help run the garden. Help us make this garden a success! Click the link to the Google form below for volunteer roles we're looking for.
