November 19, 2023

• Fence contractor coming back after Thanksgiving for more fence work 
• Move sensitive plants along the fence to pots 
• Pedestrian gate being installed on the Maspeth side 
• Need a chain and lock for the new gate – what is access like? Can we open it from both sides? This gate should be strictly used as the hydrant access gate.
• Need to think of a better way to waitlist private plots. 
  • Landed on becoming more involved is helpful, but the garden is so much more than private plot access. Can potentially provide little areas throughout the garden that people really desiring a private plot can maintain themselves. Also encourage, as always, to get heavily involve in community beds. 
  • have historically documented involvement, but this can get tricky and “micro manage-y”
• Question came up that what if they want to plant something in the community beds that’s personal to them? Need to run by Sam and Victoria – they are both open to planting community desired plants, but want to do so if it makes sense
  • talk with Sam and Victoria if you have a specific desired plant for the community bed for 2024

Dates

• Open garden day – first Saturday of June 
• Summer party – June 15

 Projects for 2024 

• Rat mitigation. Hire someone to help?
• New furniture 
• Finish compost bins 
• Raised beds (smaller) throughout the garden. We have some excess wood from the tree guards that may be able to be used 
• Fix rain collection barrel next to stage 

What equipment do we need that green thumb doesn’t provide? 

• New watering cans

October 8, 2023

• We noted that the community bed cleanup went well, and the remaining plants are still growing, with peppers ripening.
• We approved a $300 budget for the Oct. 29 Fall party.
• We discussed rats, especially that:
  • The best way to drive out rats is to find and collapse their burrows continually and to try to make the garden less hospitable to new burrows. During the work day, we placed red flags where that needs to happen. Some burrows go around plant roots and must be addressed in the winter. Corey explained why other strategies, such as traps and poison, won’t be effective in the long term.
  • The compost bin needs to be rat-proofed, especially having its lids completed.
  • We approved $200 in rat-proofing materials (meshes, copper and/or foam fill, etc) so we can evaluate how well various options work and how well they fit within the garden.