RCG August 2022 Newsletter

What’s New in the Garden

We have added additional wood chips to reduce evaporation from the soil, protect the roots of plants from the heat of the sun and keep weeds to a minimum. Our plan for the future is to acquire additional wood chips to share with the community. If you are interested in receiving wood chips in the future, please contact us on Facebook. We are keeping a list of names for future wood chip opportunities.

We appreciate the community members that have dropped off compost, donated plants and seeds and helped with weeding and spreading of woodchips. We couldn’t do this without you.

In a vegetable garden, the key to abundance is assuring pollination of your female flowers by the male flowers. If you are short on pollinators in your garden, such as bees, you have a few options. Short of importing a beehive, as we have done, you can manually pollinate with a toothbrush by moving the pollen from the male flowers to the female flowers, or you can add a water feature and flowers to your garden to attract pollinators. Whatever works best for you. There are no wrong ways to grow a garden, as long as you are trying. Gardening is a continual learning experience.

What’s New at the Garden?

Our Herbal Zen Garden project continues to move toward completion. We'd like to thank Bernie’s Landscaping for creating the site plan and doing an amazing job at designing and completing the concrete work. Thank you to Mountain Rose Herbs for believing in our project and choosing us as a grant recipient. Thank you to Ridgecrest Regional Hospital, Desert Valleys FCU, and City of Ridgecrest for believing in the work we do for the community, as well. We also want to give a BIG thank you to each individual or entity who has made a contribution to our project, whether it was a like, share, donation, or their time. We have received so much love and support from the community and we strive to return that love by bringing health and wellness to our community through teaching health and wellness practices in our new Herbal Zen Garden space. We will be scheduling a grand opening, hopefully in September, and will share the event with the exact date on Facebook and in our September Newsletter. We are raising money to add plants and trees with medicinal properties, so please consider donating at the link below.

https://www.holisticdivineinnovations.org/crowd-funding

Our goal is to continue to create a thriving ecosystem where people, birds, bees, and other insects can coexist in a way that helps save the earth.

Taking advantage of an overcast Saturday, we put together our two pergolas donated for the Herbal Zen Garden space to add shade for events and other activities. Our Ridgecrest Community Garden members were joined by volunteers from the community and made short work of building the pergolas. Next step will be assembling the seating we have been donated and collecting donations to complete the design.

We love when community members visit the garden. As we’ve always said, you are welcome anytime. However, we have a very strict watering regimen and members that follow a schedule for watering. Please do not help us with watering in the garden as plants can be killed through overwatering and we can accumulate elevated water bills that the garden is not budgeted to support. If you want to contribute your time watering, please contact us on Facebook and we will get you on the schedule or assure you of what the schedule is. Just as we appreciate the neighborhood watch apprising us of any misdeeds or vandalism at the garden, we also will be happy to hear from you if you have concerns about inadequate watering that may be putting plants at risk. We are here for you. Zen out, Ridgecrest :-)

RCG July 2022 Newsletter

Ridgecrest Community Garden has had its challenges this summer, such as pests and maintaining adequate soil moisture, which were exacerbated in June with high temperatures that dried soil, grew weeds, hatched pests, and introduced diseases.  To combat this, we plan to add additional wood chips to increase water retention in the soil, suppress weeds and reduce soil borne diseases.  If you are interested in spreading woodchips throughout the community garden with us, please join us on 9 July at 6AM at the Ridgecrest Community Garden (231 W. Haloid St.) for a work morning.

In our community garden, we are using flowers to attract pollinators, but we are also using them to provide structure and shade in the garden.  Our tallest sunflower is over twelve feet tall now and the vegetables are appreciating the shade it’s sunflower and morning glory buddies provide.  The morning glories are using the sunflower’s strong stocks to climb up and show off their beautiful flowers.

Container gardening becomes a challenge during the heat of the summer.  Just because a plant is said to like “full sun” does not mean that it can handle the desert’s “full sun”.  Full sun is normally defined as 6 to 8 hours of sunlight per day, so find an area that has at least six hours of sunlight in the summer, but no more than eight and you should have great results with your full sun plants.  Container soil dries at different rates depending on the material of the container, size of drainage holes, etc.  If you see problems with your container plants such as wilting or yellowing leaves, we recommend experimenting with how quickly the soil dries out in the container to assure that plants do not have prolonged periods of dryness or become sodden for extended periods if drainage holes are not present or insufficient to promote drainage. Prolonged periods of sodden roots introduce root rot, but insufficient water will kill the plant just as surely.  A soil moisture meter may be a huge help.

Unforeseen delays have postponed work from commencing on the Herbal Zen Garden.  In the meantime, we are continuing our crowdfunding campaign to complete the unfunded pieces.  You can donate using the link below. At this link, you can see the plans, donate for specific items or to give a general donation https://www.holisticdivineinnovations.org/crowd-funding. 

If you are interested in contributing or volunteer opportunities, you can email us at communitygarden.ridgecrest@gmail.com.  If you are a subscriber and would like to see your bed featured in a future newsletter, along with an interview on your “why” for gardening, please send a message via Facebook messenger to Ridgecrest Community Garden.

Zen out, Ridgecrest 😊

RCG June 2022 Newsletter

Ridgecrest Community Garden (RCG) June 2022 Newsletter

What’s new at the garden?

Welcome to the summer gardening season. We are looking forward to what summer will bring to the garden. Our garden layout is structured such that the herb beds along the front fence and the three vertical rows on the left when facing the garden from the road are community beds and the three vertical rows on the right are subscriber beds.  The community beds are available for community use, either through harvesting seeds, propagating plants, or practicing cut and come again harvesting.  However, the subscriber beds should only be harvested by the subscriber or with subscriber permission, as the subscriber has purchased their own space within the garden and are growing the food for their own consumption.  We plan to start putting some signs up so that visitors are aware of the distinction of the beds as we don’t want to have our subscribers put in the work and then be disappointed with their results when someone else inadvertently takes their food without knowing how the garden works. 

We will not be conducting any events for the month of June as we are expecting work to commence on our Herbal Zen Garden. We will schedule a grand opening event as more is known about the timeline, based on funding and our contractor’s schedule.

Each month we will be highlighting a few plants from the garden. We’ll be sharing the benefits with you and why we’ve chosen to grow them. Our plant highlights for the month of June are broccoli and morning glory vines.

Nutritionally, you can’t beat the benefits of Broccoli. Broccoli is a great source of potassium (provides 457 mg per cup) and has 2.5 grams of protein for every cup.  Broccoli is also a source of phytochemicals that are associated with anti-cancer benefits, cardiovascular benefits, and eye health benefits.  Keep your broccoli plants adequately watered and harvested to discourage the plant from going to seed prematurely.

The morning glory vine is featured widely throughout the RCG. We plant it for its beauty, ease of growth and diversity of use.  As we’ve experienced in some of our own home gardens, it also appears to be a favorite of lizards. Out of the variety of uses, there are three that stand out as widespread gardening benefits.  1) the vine can be used as a ground cover to extend water retention within the soil and discourage weed growth. That can also be a con if there are low growing plants that the vine would choke out, 2) it can be trained on a trellis to climb over a bed to provide dappled shade during our extremely hot summers, and 3) it can be planted as a sacrificial plant for pests to consume, although with an average ten-foot growth per season, the plant will far outpace the pest if protected during early growth.  Protect the plant as a seedling by covering it with a wire trashcan, removing the trashcan as it starts to vine. 

What’s the news from the garden?

Three events were held in May by RCG board members: creating teas and tinctures, Ridgecrest library event on gardening, and spring planting day and plant swap. 

The first event was held on May 7th. Tyrone Ledford presented Herbal Teas and Tinctures, showing the process from harvest to storing the tea flakes, and preparing the tinctures. He also provided the potential uses of each herb present in the garden.  We were so excited by the community engagement at the event.

May 10th was our presentation at Ridgecrest Library.  Merrie Giles and Kristen Lemon attended on behalf of RCG as presenters. The library has said that they plan to start a seed library where patrons will be able to get seeds for gardening or turn in seeds if they have an abundance.  Stay tuned for more information. As we hear more on this topic, we will share.

May 21st was our spring planting event and plant swap at the Ridgecrest Community Garden.  We welcomed in excess of two dozen community garden supporters cycling through the event.  During this event, three different community garden beds were harvested and replanted with various summer plant crops.  We were able to exchange plants and fill in some empty spots in the raised beds on the Community side of the garden.  All frost dates have now passed, and we are planting directly in the soil for summer plants.  All community members that expressed interest were walked through the concept of creating DIY self-watering Olla containers. 

We are continuing our crowdfunding campaign for the Herbal Zen Garden. We are going to need your help to build a complete garden that will be aesthetically pleasing and will serve as a space for peace and healing.  As mentioned, we expect our work to begin in June.  You can donate using the link below. At this link, you can see the plans, donate for specific items or to give a general donation https://www.holisticdivineinnovations.org/crowd-funding. 

Additional woodchips are available for subscribers in the blue trash can next to the port-a-potty in the garden. Take as much as you need for your subscriber bed. If you would like to see your bed featured in our newsletter, along with an interview on your “why” for gardening, please send a message via Facebook messenger to Ridgecrest Community Garden.

If you are interested in contributing or volunteer opportunities, you can email us at communitygarden.ridgecrest@gmail.com.  We are in definite need of assistance from the community for summer watering schedules in the garden.

Zen out, Ridgecrest 😊

RCG May 2022 Newsletter

Ridgecrest Community Garden (RCG) May 2022 Newsletter

What’s new at the garden?

On the morning of May 7th, from 10:00 to 12:00, Tyrone Ledford will be leading an event on Herbal Teas and Tinctures at the Ridgecrest Community Garden, located at 231 W. Haloid.  You will receive the full experience of learning how to work with herbs to create teas and tinctures.  Specifically, we will go through the process of harvesting herbs and preparing them for use, working with dried herbs, and creating herbal tea blends in the tincture making workshop.

On May 10th, the Ridgecrest Library, located at 131 E. Las Flores Ave, has invited us to speak to the community from 5:30 to 6:30 in the evening.  Merrie Giles and Kristen Lemon will attend representing the Ridgecrest Community Garden and Merrie will talk about spring gardening in the desert.  Please join us to hear the different tips and tricks that can be implemented with desert gardening beginning in spring to set us up for a successful summer.

Join us on May 21st from 10:00 to 12:00 for our next planting day, along with a plant swap.  Bring what plants you have to share, both house or garden plants are welcome, and/or take what we have available.  A DIY Olla demonstration will be occurring simultaneously.  Ollas are self-watering systems that were invented in ancient gardens to ensure water was available to desired levels.  The event will be held in the garden at 231 W. Haloid in Ridgecrest.  Ridgecrest Community Garden T-shirts will be available for sale ($25 each) at the event with proceeds going toward the Herbal Zen Garden funding efforts.

What’s the news from the garden?

Grocery Outlet graciously provided compost materials to the garden for us to use in the various composting methods in play throughout the garden.  We currently have three different methods in use: official composting bins, DIY compost piles using wire and landscape fabric, and passive composting pots.  This will allow us to provide nutrients to our soil in several different timeframes as the material breaks down enough to be incorporated with our raised bed soil, and in some cases providing nutrition to the soil while it is breaking down through passive composting.

The weather has been quite the factor this year as those of you that live here can attest to.  Tuesday, April 12th we experienced up to 60 mph wind gusts and our greenhouse was blown apart.  We were able to get it cleaned up and removed prior to our spring planting event. 

Our April spring planting event and plant swap was held on April 16th.  Even though winds were still at an all-time high, we welcomed a dozen community garden supporters to the event.  During this event, we had the opportunity to look at the bright side of the greenhouse being forcibly removed by the wind as a blessing in disguise… more room for plants to swap, container plants, and movement without worrying about the heat being magnified in the greenhouse or the building taking up space in the garden.  We were able to exchange plants and fill in some empty spots in the raised beds on the Community side of the garden. 

Subscribers who attended added wood chips, and new plants to their beds, along with receiving a demonstration on the “Passive composting” method of composting recently set up in various beds within the garden. 

On April 22nd, an Earth Day event was hosted at the Ridgecrest Regional Hospital for their staff to take a hand at gardening.  Tyrone Ledford and Tera Moorehead attended on behalf of the garden and Tyrone did a great job educating hospital staff on planting and gardening.

As of April 24th, the probability of additional freezes has dropped to 10%, allowing planting seeds directly in beds to be a safe endeavor for getting your garden’s started or moving out your seedlings from your favorite nursery or greenhouse into your garden beds.  (Frost dates provided by https://morningchores.com/frost-dates/). 

Please visit this link https://www.holisticdivineinnovations.org/subscriber-program for additional information, to sign up for a bed, or sponsor someone else that may not have the financial resources to pay, but would still like to garden.  If you are a subscriber and would like to see your bed featured in a future newsletter, along with an interview on your “why” for gardening, please send a message via Facebook messenger to Ridgecrest Community Garden.

We are continuing our crowdfunding campaign for the Herbal Zen Garden. We are going to need your help to build a complete garden that will be aesthetically pleasing and will serve as a space for peace and healing. In 2021, we raised enough funds to pay for the concrete foundational work and now in 2022 we have raised enough to pay for the pergolas.  We are still raising money to install solar water features, benches, a picnic table, plants and trees. You can donate using the link below. Thank you everyone for helping use bring agriculture, health and wellness to Ridgecrest. The work continues. At this link, you can see the plans, donate for specific items or to give a general donation https://www.holisticdivineinnovations.org/crowd-funding. 

We have recently added a volunteer coordinator to our team.  Please welcome Alvano Calvillo to the Ridgecrest Community Garden team.  He will be working with volunteers as needed for planting, watering, cleanup, etc.  Thanks so much for your support.  If you are interested in contributing or volunteer opportunities, you can email us at communitygarden.ridgecrest@gmail.com. 

Zen out, Ridgecrest 😊

RCG April 2022 Newsletter

Ridgecrest Community Garden (RCG) April 2022 Newsletter

What’s new at the garden?

Join us on April 16th from 10:00 to 12:00 for our next planting day, with a plant swap and a composting in place demonstration occurring simultaneously.  We intend to have seedlings available for you to take, plant, or trade (longevity spinach, squash, peppers, tomatoes, to name a few).  Bring what you have to share and/or take what we have available.  The event will be held in the garden at 231 W. Haloid in Ridgecrest.  Ridgecrest Community Garden T-shirts will be available for sale ($25 each) at the event with proceeds going toward the Herbal Zen Garden funding efforts.

When you stop by the garden, participate in our monthly RCG scavenger crossword as you tour through the garden for clues.  Take a picture or scan in your completed crossword and submit your filled in crossword with your name and phone number.  Submit in person at the garden at our plant swap event or send via Facebook messenger to Ridgecrest Community Garden. A drawing will occur during our plant swap on April 16th and the winner will receive a Ridgecrest Community Garden T-shirt.  Need not be present to win. 

Our planned “Mental Health Benefits of Gardening” session co-hosted with Ridgecrest regional hospital for April 23rd has been cancelled due to personnel availability.  Please keep an eye out for follow-on events once the details have been worked out for future sessions. 

One of the challenging aspects of gardening in the desert is assuring that plants have enough water.  In ground garden bed watering is a bit different than raised garden bed watering.  With raised beds, the contents of the raised bed soil that help with water retention can also end up repelling water if the soil gets too dry.  When you water your raised beds, make sure and scratch down about an inch in the soil to assure the water is penetrating.  One of the top killers of plants are people thinking they have adequately watered their plants, but the water has only been penetrating half an inch and running off the side.  If you find the water is not absorbing, water the top of the soil, give it a few minutes to absorb, and then come back and soak it again.  Keep checking until you no longer find dry soil underneath the surface.  Topping your raised bed with mulch, such as wood chips or straw, helps the soil retain water for the plants to use just a bit longer.

What’s the news from the garden?

A session of the Mental health garden event was cancelled in March.  We have high hopes that we will be able to resume these events in the near future.

The raised bed subscriber program continues with only three subscriber beds still available.  As of March 28th, the probability of additional freezes has dropped to 50% for Ridgecrest.  By April 24th, the probability of additional freezes will have dropped to 10%.  Determine the level of risk you are comfortable with, but have those seedlings ready to go, regardless of your decision of when to plant (frost dates provided by https://morningchores.com/frost-dates/).  Please visit this link https://www.holisticdivineinnovations.org/subscriber-program for additional information, to sign up for a bed, or sponsor someone else that may not have the financial resources to pay, but would still like to garden.  If you are a subscriber and would like to see your bed featured in a future newsletter, along with an interview on your “why” for gardening, please send a message via Facebook messenger to Ridgecrest Community Garden.

We are extremely excited to announce our final crowdfunding campaign for the Herbal Zen Garden. This project is finally underway, and we are going to need your help to build a complete garden that will be aesthetically beautiful and will serve as a space for peace and healing. In 2021, we raised enough funds to pay for the concrete foundational work.  Now that we are working with Bernie’s Landscaping to make that happen, we want to focus on making the Herbal Zen Garden comfortable and therapeutic by adding features such as pergolas for shade, solar water fountains for natural sounds, tables and benches for comfort, and plants for aromas. These components work perfectly together to give you a beautiful experience every time you step foot into our garden. The Herbal Zen Garden will be an extension to the Ridgecrest Community Garden to create a wonderful experience of health and wellness (plant nutrition and plant medicine).  At this link, you can see the plans, donate for specific items or to give a general donation https://www.holisticdivineinnovations.org/crowd-funding. 

Community support continues to promote the welfare of the garden.  Along with our many generous donations on our plant swap day in March, a community member recently donated wood chips to further deter weeds in the pathways and retain moisture in our raised beds and others funded a few of the plants and trees from the zen garden crowdfunding request.  Thanks so much for your support.  If you are interested in contributing or volunteer opportunities, you can email us at communitygarden.ridgecrest@gmail.com. 

Zen out, Ridgecrest 😊

RCG March 2022 Newsletter

What’s new at the garden?

Join us on March 12th at 9:30am for Subscriber orientation, with a plant swap and the spring planting day starting that same day from 10:00am until 12:00pm.  We intend to have seedlings available for you to take, plant or trade (longevity spinach, cilantro, kale, cauliflower, Swiss chard, broccoli, and radishes, to name a few).  Bring what you have to share and/or take what we have available.

We will be co-hosting two follow-on events with the Ridgecrest Regional Hospital entitled “Mental Health Benefits of Gardening”.  The remaining events will be held at the Ridgecrest Community Garden on Mar 19th and April 23rd at 1PM.  Join Maria Holm, LSCW, and learn how nature, gardening and mindfulness can help you tackle the stresses of life.  Watch for details on Facebook and sign up to assure your spot and preferred date.  Sign up by calling 760-499-3825 so we know how many attendees to expect and can provide enough seating. The events will be held outside in the garden at 231 W. Haloid in Ridgecrest.

Stop by the garden and participate in our monthly RCG scavenger crossword as you tour through the garden for clues.  Take a picture or scan in your completed crossword and submit your filled in crossword with your name and phone number.  Email to communitygarden.ridgecrest@gmail.com or send via facebook messenger to Ridgecrest Community Garden with subject of CROSSWORD to be entered into our drawing. Drawing will occur during our plant swap on March 12th and the winner will receive a sponsored subscriber bed.  Winner need not be present to win. 

What’s the news from the garden?

A session of the Mental health garden event was held February 26th.  We had a great turnout. There were lots of positive reactions and comments from the event.  Maria Holm, presenter from Ridgecrest Regional Hospital, assured attendees with regards to gardening, “Try your best.  You take the chance, and you just pay attention to everything and if it doesn’t live, it’s still okay because you tried your best to do it.” The event ended with practicing a moment of mindfulness.  If you didn’t have an opportunity to attend our February event, we hope you’ll be able to attend one of the remaining sessions mentioned above.

The raised bed subscriber program continues.  Please visit this link https://www.holisticdivineinnovations.org/subscriber-program for additional information, sign up for a bed, or to sponsor someone else that may not have the financial resources to pay, but would still like to garden.  Time to start your seeds indoors for planting after our latest frost date, usually between March 1st (90% probability of additional freezes) and March 28th (50% probability of additional freezes) for Ridgecrest.  To lessen the risk to 10% probability of additional freezes, wait to plant outdoors until April 24th.  Determine the level of risk you are comfortable with, but have those seedlings ready to go, regardless of your decision (frost dates provided by https://morningchores.com/frost-dates/).

A Day in the Life Youtube Series now has 11 episodes available as of March 1st.  In episode 11, Tyrone Ledford shares glimpses of how the community came together preparing space for new raised beds and planting new fruit trees at the community garden. https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9PVI1TuwS6Y  

Stand by for the Holistic Divine Innovations Team to release additional news soon of the approved Herbal Zen Garden site plan and way forward.  If you are interested in contributing or volunteer opportunities, you can email us at communitygarden.ridgecrest@gmail.com. 

Zen out, Ridgecrest 😊

RCG February 2022 Newsletter

Countdown to spring…What’s New?

1)    We now have added 21 new beds to the Ridgecrest Community Garden configuration to allow more of the Community to grow and sustain a part of their food supply through this wonderful resource.  Please visit this link https://www.holisticdivineinnovations.org/subscriber-program to get more information, sign up for a bed or to support someone else that may not have the financial resources to pay, but would still like to garden. 

2)    We will be co-hosting an event with the Ridgecrest Regional Hospital entitled “Mental Health Benefits of Gardening”.  The event will be held at the Ridgecrest Community Garden on Feb 26, Mar 19 and April 23rd at 1PM.  RCG is located at 231 W. Haloid Rd in Ridgecrest.  Join Maria Holm, LSCW, and learn how nature, gardening and mindfulness can help you tackle the stresses of life.  Watch for details on Facebook and sign up to assure your spot and preferred date.

3)    A Day in the Life Youtube Series is off to a great start, with 10 episodes available as of February 1st.  Tyrone Ledford shares different aspects of gardening and life in the garden that gardeners of all skill levels will find insightful and extremely helpful.  https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCJqg_IIfP9pTBGMuJKBwoIw

4)    We will be planting many herbs and vegetables that love our winter and early spring weather. Mid to late February is a great time to plant cilantro, carrots, purslane, radish, beet and lettuce from seed in our zone 9B climate.  

New Boards Members

At our January 11th board meeting, new board members were elected to fill vacant positions on the board.   Board members, along with fulfilling duties assigned to existing positions, also assist with watering and cleanup in the garden.  If you are interested in more information about watering and volunteer opportunities, you can email us at communitygarden.ridgecrest@gmail.com.  We would love to have the Community be more involved.  Board positions are now filled as follows:

            Secretary/Treasurer (Kristen Lemon)
            Plot Coordinator (Tyrone Ledford)
            Volunteer Coordinator (Vacant, other members will split the duties)
            Event Coordinator/Newsletter (Merrie Giles)

Stay tuned for more information on future Tinker Garden opportunities and volunteer opportunities.  Please come out and keep us company anytime.

RCG October 2021 Newsletter

What’s Happinin’?

We’re Officially Official! How so? The city has issued a proclamation observing the Ridgecrest Community Garden’s Anniversary of September 19th! That’s right Ridgecrest, we’ve been at it for a WHOLE YEAR! Sadly our BBQ and celebration of our anniversary were postponed due to the extreme air hazard from wildfires. Please be sure to join us this month as we continue to celebrate the growth of our garden. We will be hosting an anniversary celebration and fall planting this month. Please keep an eye out on Facebook for events. We cleared a total of nine garden beds in preparation for fall planting. In the process we were able to give away 55 pounds of produce including swiss chard, kale, collards, cucumbers, watermelon, sweet potatoes, and fresh herbs. We will be planting many vegetables that love our fall and winter weather. Now is a great time to be planting onions, garlic, shallots, broccoli, cauliflower, swiss chard, beets, radishes, bok choy, lettuce, kale, spinach, carrots, celery, mustards, collards, Brussel sprouts and cabbage.

New Boards Members

As we are approaching a new season, we are in search of community members who would like to be a part of our team. We are looking to bring on new board members to add to our very vibrant team. We are looking for gardeners, herbalist, herbal enthusiast and individuals who are interested in learning how to garden to help us build our wonder community garden and herbal zen garden. If you are interested in more information, you can email us at communitygarden.ridgecrest@gmail.com.

Get Crackin’

Do you love to bake? Do you love eggs sunny side up? Our volunteer coordinator, Lindsey Trulock, has been raising ducks for eggs and she has a surplus that she wants to share with the community. Duck eggs are rich and creamy, perfect for baking, and are high in Omega fatty acids. Please reach out to her @ (719) 352-1944 if interested in FREE EGGS! 

RCG August 2021 Newsletter

Buggin’ Out

Man, Oh MAN have these bugs been NASTY this year! Anyone else get devastated by the squash bug? We know we sure have! Did you know they also like watermelon, cantaloupe, and pumpkins? We’ve had a busy time protecting crops this summer. So, what can we do, other than NOT planting a garden. It’s best to go after them with soapy water and wash off eggs and pick off the bugs and toss them in the soapy water to kill them. This have been very effective for us, and we’ve managed to keep them from destroying our plants.

What’s happenin’

The month of August treated us well. Even in the hot climate, we’ve been able to grow tons of fruits and vegetables. We’ve been producing a lot of Armenian cucumbers, watermelons, Guatemalan squash, and some cross-pollinated watermelons and cucumbers. We even came up with a name for them, “water cumbers”. They looked like a watermelon, but had a cucumber-dominant taste. Awesome! Right?

This month has been a volunteer heavy month. We’ve had 3 different groups to volunteer at the community garden. We’ve given out tours, and of course, tons of organic produce to the community, and volunteers.

What’s Next

We have some BIG announcements that the community will be excited about. First, we are approaching our 1-year anniversary on September 19, 2021. This has been ONE glorious year. we can’t believe we are sitting on one year of establishment. We can remember sowing our first seeds. Those seeds have blossomed in to a beautiful sustainable garden. We are planning to have an event on September 25th. The time and details of the event will be posted on our social media soon.

Another BIG announcement is… we will be building the herbal zen garden on the lot next to the community garden. There are no permits required to start building which means we can start building as soon as NOW. We were able to raise 10k to build the herbal zen garden, thanks to you. The money was originally being raised to pay for a water meter on the lot we were going to build the garden on. Due to more money that would have to be raised to contract someone to actually dig in to the street to hook up the water, we have decided to build the herbal zen garden on the lot next to the community garden. The lot already has all utilities installed, which means that the 10k raised to install water will be used to actually build the herbal zen garden. That is GREAT NEWS. We are extremely excited to get started.

We have an exciting, downer message. Starting fall, community members will not be able to grab produce whenever they want. This change is happening because we want to start tracking how much and how many pounds of food we are giving away at the garden. Tracking how much food we are giving away will help our garden align with grants that are designated to community gardens. Produce will still be given away daily when our team members are at the garden, and we will have larger food give away days. We will keep everyone posted on the new changes as we approach fall.

Than you everyone for your support

RCG July 2021 Newsletter

Hot! Hot! Hot!!!

Boy howdy is it HOT outside!!! How are your plants coping with these extreme temperatures? Do you have any tips that you use to help your plants get through these hot months? Share them with us! Extra water is needed, make sure not to water the leaves as this can scorch the plant. Temperatures will remain extreme for a couple of months still. But don’t be discouraged gardeners! Another growing season is JUST around the corner. In fact you should be starting to plan your fall gardens now in the summer heat. You can even start planting as early as August! What can you plant? Lots of delicious greens, beans, winter squash, cabbage, onions, garlic, and the list goes on really as fall is the best growing period here in the desert. 

What’s happening?!

We reached our goal of raising 10k to start building our herbal zen garden. We have already paid to get water installed on the residential property that was donated to Holistic Divine Innovation for the work we do with building the Ridgecrest Community Garden. We will have our work cut out for us because as it stands it’s just a dirt lot, but as you’ve seen we can do A LOT with a little. We are currently applying for a 5k grant from Mountain Rose Herbs. This grant will fund building the herbal garden. We were extremely close to getting the grant last year so we are hoping to be one of the recipients of the grant this year.

Here is our video applying for the grant:

Our garden has added a couple of new beds filled with berries, fruit, and vegetables. These beds were inspired by permaculture, a form of sustainable gardening. We’ve also added an elevated bed so that the elderly and handicap can participate in the garden. It’s just a small box at the moment and we do have plans to expand the handicap accessible raised beds. 

This month, we hosted a craft your own tea event that went extremely well. We made a variety of different teas with the community as we shared education on the herbs we had available. We plan on doing these event more frequently at the Ridgecrest Community Garden.

RCG June 2021 Newsletter

 What’s Happenin’?

This month we hosted our very first joint event with the Ridgecrest Plant Society! This event was another very successful plant exchange. We also created more seed bombs with native perennial wildflower seeds. This event brought a lot of new faces to our garden and introduced the community garden to a whole new group of plant lovers.

It’s Getting Hot in Here!

Severe heat is upon us here in Ridgecrest! We were graced by a few gorgeous weeks of mild temperatures and now the heat is back with a vengeance. Make sure that throughout the summer your plants get a little extra TLC. You can add shade cloth, you can plant shade giving plants like sunflowers and corn. You can also plant vining plants like sweet potatoes, pumpkins, squash, watermelon, and cantaloupe to help cover the soil. Mulching will also help keep moister in and suppress weeds.  Also make sure that you water long and deep in the AM before the afternoon sun scorches the plants. The moist soil will help keep those roots cool. It’s also a good idea to fertilize as the excessive heat really stresses out your plants depleting them of the nutrients they need to produce fruit.

Campaign for Herbal Garden

Thank you to every who donated to our campaign to build an herbal zen garden here in Ridgecrest. There has been so much positive energy flowing this way and we are extremely excited to build more garden spaces here in Ridgecrest. We launched a campaign in May to raise money for the herbal garden, and with the help of members of the community, and local businesses such as Desert Valley FDC and the Ridgecrest Regional Hospital, we raised a total of $8905. Yes, we are $1095 away from reaching our goal of $10k. The $10k is the cost of installing a water meter on the lot which will help us create a sustainable garden.

Click on the donation tab on the homepage to make a donation towards our herbal garden.

Thank you everyone for your support.

RCG May 2021 Newsletter

May Day!!! May Day!!!

We had all hands on deck to help make seed bombs with native perennial wild flowers this May Day. This activity was a great hit with kids and adults alike. Making seed bombs is a great project that you can do at home to encourage your kids to learn about plants and our ecosystem. You can make a wide variety of seed bombs, from asylums to zinnias. In the future we hope to make even more seed bombs that we can spread in our desert to reintroduce native plants and increase biodiversity.  We also hosted our very first plant exchange. Gardeners were so generous with their donations we’re still looking for homes for all of the plant babies! In the future we hope to host many more events like this to encourage others to expand their collections and try growing new things. 

We had such an amazing day at our herbal zen garden informational event. We are able to introduce herbal medicine and holistic practices to the community by having a live sound bath and tincture making workshop. We also gave away some amazing tea blends to our donors and for those who participated. The tea blends were all home made and filled with medicinal properties.

What’s Happenin’?

The weather isn’t the only thing heating up, so is our community garden! Our garden has been making some waves and getting recognized by local residents as well as local businesses. We recently received a generous donation of a plot of land within Ridgecrest. We’re in the process of raising money to install water on the plot so that we can turn it into a large herbal garden, a sanctuary for the soul and the senses.  These herbs will be used to make a variety of healing potions! Tinctures, herbal teas, hydrosols, essential oils, salves, and ointments. So many things that can be made with these fragrant herbs. They’re not just tasty in our kitchen or pretty to look at, they can heal you. We’ll be sure to share the knowledge and bounty with our community so that you too can learn and grow with us. If you’re interested in learning more about this new addition to our community garden or are interested in contributing please reach out to us on our website or on our social media accounts.

What is our target goal for building the herbal zen garden? $10,000

How much money have we raised so far? $3893

How much more do we need to raise? $6107

What is the cost for? Installing water

RCG News!

We have so many plants right now we’re running out of room! We’ll be building more raised beds as time and finances allow, weather permitting. We look forward to sharing a large bounty with our friends and neighbors this summer! We’ve added several berry bushes and even a couple of fruit trees in our greenhouse.  

Here are a few gardening tips:

1. Pollinators are key to growing food! Attract more pollinators to your garden by planting flowers nearby!

2. Check for bugs! Aphids, grasshoppers, and squash bugs can ruin your plants. Bugs like lady bugs and praying mantis will help keep your unwanted bugs in check.

3. Start thinking about shade, some plants are okay with full sun, some prefer partial shade.

4. Don't forget to fertilize! Everyone has a different recommended routine for fertilizing, but adding more nutrients to your soil will help increase production

RCG April 2021 Newsletter

We aint foolin’ around

Spring planting is in full swing! We had an amazing turn out for our spring planting event and Easter egg hunt this past weekend. The news about our little garden is really starting to spread and there is a lot of interest blossoming. We look forward to watching the gardening community grow right alongside us. There’s been a lot of support from our community and most of our beds have been sponsored. We love helping new gardeners learn about raising their own produce in our unique environment.

It’s time to get those veggies in the ground if you have not done so already. At our garden we removed the last of our winter crops to make way for the spring and summer crops like beans, zucchini, tomatoes, and peppers. We now have several new herbal beds as well as new apple and pomegranate trees!

We’ve had tremendous help from volunteers with ACE (American Conservation Experience) helping us build new beds and continuing to clear old cement and debris from the lot to make way for new growth.

Looking Forward

As the weather gets warmer we’ll be having more events on our calendar. Celebrate Earth Day this month by joining us on April 22 nd for a live virtual workshop on how to make your own tinctures. Learning these ancient healing techniques is essential to keep the knowledge of these healing arts alive. Plant medicine is the original medicine and at times our modern culture seems to forget its roots. Facebook Link: https://fb.me/e/dhWjBnDn3

We’ll be continuing to celebrate spring this upcoming May Day at our garden. While we won’t be dancing around a maypole, we will be celebrating by hosting a plant exchange and making seed bombs with native wildflower seeds. When completed the seed bombs can be dispersed throughout our region and your garden to encourage the regrowth of these native plants and pollinators. This will be a fun hands on activity so please come play in the dirt with us on May 1st! Check Facebook soon for more information!

Spring Tips: Hydrate, hydrate, hydrate!

Here in the desert water is a hot topic! Ensure that you’re taking extra care when giving your plants this valuable resource. How can you do that?

You can do this by watering in a manner that gets to the roots of your plants, not the top portion. When you water from above the plants, water can get stuck in the leaves or vegetable, causing rot or burning from water droplets on the leaves! Also, plants may not get adequate hydration.

There are many tools out there that can make this easier on you and your plants.

You can install drippers or a drip line if you are using an irrigation system. You could also use something called a soaker hose that runs along the base of your plants and provides moisture directly to the soil. You could use a watering wand that helps get a gentle wide stream of water that can be aimed at the base of the plants if you’re hand watering with a hose like we do at the community garden. Watering properly will help your garden flourish as well as help with saving this valuable resource.

Another thing to keep in mind, now that things are warming up, is to water your plants when it is cool out, like early morning or in the evenings.

RCG March 2021 Newsletter

You did WHAT??!!!

Hello Ridgecrest gardeners and plant lovers! It’s warming up in our desert and it’s time to get PLANTING! Just this month we had our very first meet up with local growers who have adopted a garden bed, aka subscribers. We had many volunteers join us as well to help map out our square foot garden sections and plant new trees, vegetables, and herbs. It’s still a little too chilly for your summer crops like corn and zucchini but it won’t be long until it’s time to get those warm loving crops planted.  Now is a great time to get your tomatoes and peppers, spinach, and cilantro started. You can also plant carrots, beets, radishes, garlic and onions right into the ground. These are just a few examples of what’s growing in our garden, why not start yours? 

What does the future hold?

We are looking forward to having another planting event for some warmer weather plants on Saturday April 3rd. The spring planting event will be from 10 to 12 at our garden located at 231 Haloid Ave. Please stop by and see what we’ve done! We will be hosting a virtual educational event in collaboration with the RRH. We will give you a date once it’s locked in. Also we do still have some beds available for subscription so reach out to us if you’re interested. If you or a friend are interested in gardening but cannot afford the fee please reach out to us, we have a limited amount of beds that have been sponsored for families in need. We will help supply you with seeds, soil, and a little bit of gardening know-how to help you grow that green thumb and some veggies too.

Top 5 Plants to start NOW!

Basil (thai basil, sweet basil, mammoth basil, holy basil)

Zucchini: (if you start zucchini now you can get a june harvest, and august harvest)

Tomatoes: (tomatoes will thrive in this temperature and you will get a spring, summer and early fall harvest)

Peppers: A variety of peppers will thrive in this temperature and you will get a spring, summer and early fall harvest)

Perennial Herbs: (mint, sage, rosemary, salvias, thyme, lemon balm, lavender

Hours of Operation and Watering Schedule.

If you would like to volunteer at the RCG, you can come in during these hours to volunteer, or get insight on gardening. You can also volunteer to water on the days no one is present. Our gates are always open to the community.

RCG February 2021 Newsletter

What’s HAPPENIN’

• The Ridgecrest Community Garden is open for volunteers. We would love for you to come and visit the garden. You can help water plants, help start seedlings, build raised beds, work with compost, or just come say hi. Somebody is usually at the garden from 9am-11am on Mondays through Saturdays.

• Thanks to a very generous donor, we were able to raise an additional $1000 to help support our growth and development.

• January was a very productive month! New beds have been constructed with more to be completed soon.

• The Ridgecrest community garden gave away fresh produce to local families on several occasions. This was made possible by generous gardeners sharing their bounty with our community as well as some produce grown in our very own community garden! If you have extra produce you’d like to donate please contact us on our Facebook page.

 What’s new for February

• February has been a very busy month preparing for the spring season. We are almost complete with building new raised beds, starting new seedlings, and filling in-between the raised beds with mulch. We have had a tremendous amount of help from volunteers and great support from the community with resources.

• Punxsutawney Phil might have predicted 6 more weeks of winter but here in the high desert it’s time to prepare for spring planting. This could mean preparing your beds, planting cool weather crops, or starting seeds in a green house or tray. Please look for spring gardening tips on our Facebook page!

• We will not be hosting any planned events for the month of February but we are getting ready for our first spring planting event on March 6th from 10 AM until Noon. Please stop by and help us continue to grow!

Subscription Program

Price: $80 Per Year

o    Payment or partial payments must be paid by March 1

o    Orientation will be on March 6 at 9:30am

o    RCG will be sponsoring 3 beds for those who need financial help

Your Subscription Will Include

o    One 3x6 raised bed

o    Organic soil and compost

o    Access to hundreds of seeds

o    Access to starter plants

o    Access to greenhouse (for winterizing and starting seeds)

o    Introduction to Organic Gardening E-book

o    A great team of gardeners and support from RCG team

·         Please reach out to the RCG team if you are interested in renting a raised bed.

·         Please reach out to the RCG team if you want to nominate someone who would benefit from a raised bed. We would love to hear their story and why we should sponsor their raised bed.

·         If you would like to pay it forward (pay for someone’s rental bed), please reach out to the RCG team.

Email us at communitygarden.ridgecrest@gmail.com

 Make a contribution

• If you are looking to donate other items, here are a few items we are looking for:

 Winter Gardening tips

• Top 10 Vegetables and Herbs that do well in the winter months:

• Since we already had our 1st frost, perennial herbs are great to sow right now.

Top 10 Vegetables

• Arugula

• Peas

• Beets

• Broccoli

• Brussel Sprouts

• Carrots

• Cauliflower

• Garlic

• Kale & Swiss Chard

• Spinach

• Cabbage

• Onions

Top 10 Herbs

• Cilantro

• Hyssop

• Parsley

• Mint

• Lemon Balm

• Rosemary

• Sage

• Thyme

• Oregano

• Marjorie

Here are some winter gardening tips from our team!

• Skip regular watering, DO add mulch, DO container garden, DO start your spring seedlings, and DO add compost

• DO test your soil.

• DO sheltering or covering your plants, especially at night when the temperature drops.

 Stay in contact

• Check out our Facebook group to learn more about gardening at home and to see what others are doing: Ridgecrest Community Garden Facebook Group

• Any questions or comments: email us at communitygarden.ridgecrest@gmail.com

RCG January 2021 Newsletter

What’s HAPPENIN’

• Winter has been a very slow month, but we are excited to start preparing for Spring season by building more raised beds to give out free produce

• Yay! We raised $2000 from our $eedMoney Campaign thanks to the Ridgecrest community. We also received a $300 grant from $eedMoney for being in the top 50 in raising funds.

• The month of December was really slow, but we stayed on top of nurturing our plants through the cold temperatures. We made sure to cover plants when the temperature dropped below 30 degrees.

• As December events were cancelled due to circumstances changed by the rise in COVID-19 cases, we are still planning to have a prosperous 2021 year, and will continue to find ways to engage with the community.

 What’s new for January

• January will continue to be a quiet month as we are working out a subscription program that will allow community members to rent out raised beds at the Ridgecrest Community Garden and have access to an abundance of resources to help them become successful gardeners.

• We are still updating our website where you will have access to our monthly newsletter, event calendar, and presentations. Check it out at https://www.holisticdivineinnovations.org/ridgecrest-community-garden

 Make a contribution

• If you are looking to donate other items, here are a few items we are looking for:

 Winter Gardening tips

• Top 10 Vegetables and Herbs that do well in the winter months:

• Since we already had our 1st frost, perennial herbs are great to sow right now.

Top 10 Vegetables

• Arugula

• Asparagus

• Beets

• Broccoli

• Brussel Sprouts

• Carrots

• Cauliflower

• Garlic

• Kale & Swiss Chard

• Spinach

• Cabbage

Top 10 Herbs

• Celery

• Chives

• Cilantro

• Hyssop

• Parsley

• Rosemary

• Sage

• Thyme

• Oregano

• Winter Savory

Here are some winter gardening tips from our team!

• Skip regular watering, DO add mulch, DO container garden, DO NOT fertilize, and DO add compost

• DO test your soil.

• DO sheltering or covering your plants, especially at night when the temperature drops.

 Stay in contact

• Check out our Facebook group to learn more about gardening at home and to see what others are doing: Ridgecrest Community Garden Facebook Group

• Any questions or comments: email us at communitygarden.ridgecrest@gmail.com

RCG December 2020 Newsletter

What’s HAPPENIN’

• We really got into the swing of this this month. There was a flurry of activity at the garden as well as many presentations online.

• Guest Chris Hoskins had several presentations on composting and gardening in our unique climate. He also came by the garden in person and discussed the state of our soil and composting with our educational coordinator, Dulce Romero-Urbina. You can still view these videos in our Facebook group, a true treasure trove of information!

• In the month of November the season really started to slow down with our first hard freeze. However, just because we’ve tucked in our plants doesn’t mean we’re sleeping on the job. We still have plants growing in our green house and covered our outdoor plants with plastic to keep them warm at night.

• On November 15th we started a 30 day fundraising campaign with SeedMoney. All donations will be 100% matched! All of the proceeds will go towards us expanding our garden.

• On November 21st, we had a food drive and fed several local families and giving the surplus to Ridgecrest Shout Outs Aid in conjunction with the Disturbed Souls Biker Club. We gathered enough food to feed 9-10 local families for Thanksgiving! Thank you to everyone who contributed.

• Jessica David, a local health coach, gave four special presentations on Superfoods & Synergy. The presentations can be found on our Facebook page so please be sure to check them out!

 What’s new for December

• December will be a quiet month at the community garden as we all take a break and spend time with our families.

• We will be hosting a community event and food drive on December 19th so please stay tuned for further details on our Facebook page.

• We are in the process of updating our website where you will have access to our monthly newsletter, event calendar, and presentations. Check it out at  https://www.holisticdivineinnovations.org/ridgecrest-community-garden

 Make a contribution

• Please help support our local community garden and participate in our SeedMoney fundraiser that will be on going until December 15th. All donations are 100% matched and ALL the donations come back to our community garden.

• If you are looking to donate other items, here are a few items we are looking for:

· 2x6 lumber for raised beds

· Organic soil

· Mulch & wood chips

· Benches

· Picnic tables

· Portable shade/canopy

· Bird houses/baths/feeders

· Insect houses

· Pavers/Path Materials

 Winter Gardening tips

• Top 10 Vegetables and Herbs that do well in the winter months:

• Since we already had our 1st frost, perennial herbs are great to sow right now.

Top 10 Vegetables

• Arugula

• Asparagus

• Beets

• Broccoli

• Brussel Sprouts

• Carrots

• Cauliflower

• Garlic

• Kale & Swiss Chard

• Spinach

Top 10 Herbs

• Celery

• Chives

• Cilantro

• Hyssop

• Parsley

• Rosemary

• Sage

• Thyme

• Oregano

• Winter Savory

Here are some winter gardening tips from our plot coordinator, Sandra Noyb.

• Skip regular watering, DO add mulch, DO container garden, DO NOT fertilize, and DO add compost

• DO test your soil.

• DO sheltering or covering your plants, especially at night when the temperature drops.

 Stay in contact

• Check out our Facebook group to learn more about gardening at home and to see what others are doing: Ridgecrest Community Garden Facebook Group

• Any questions or comments: email us at communitygarden.ridgecrest@gmail.com