January 13, 2016, 6:30 PM
Eagle Heights Community Center
6:30 – Delicious Food and great conversation by Sandra, Malcolm, Adam, Tom, Tianxing, Karen, Ann, Melita, Barb L., Cathie, Barb A., Ric, Jan, Dave, Mark and Julie.
Tom welcomed everyone.
Minutes Moved by Barb A. and seconded by Sandra to approve the minutes of the December 2015 meeting with the following corrections. Change the order of the sentence after the heading Opening Day to read, “At the last meeting, Gretel said that.. “ “Also Sandra said we are going live with the Garden Applications and we are going to get a lot of garden applications next week.” Passed unanimously.
Treasurer’s Report
Adam reported for Angus that we are on budget.
Discussion of the Position Description for the Registrar
The Garden Committee discussed the draft position description produced by the drafting sub-committee. (The final copy of the Position Description for the Garden Registrar is at the end of these minutes.)
Ann suggested dropping the "Sign up gardeners during workdays": I don't think this needs to be explicitly stated and also doesn't necessarily belong to the registrar. We are already asking much of the new registrar. Adding the task of showing up for each workday to check off gardeners names seems a bit much. Perhaps this work can be delegated to other gardeners or staff? Certainly the registrar would be welcome to do it if they choose to. The Garden Committee agreed. Change the frequency of "Weekly update a list of gardeners’ names and plot numbers and post it on the garden’s web site" to monthly (or every other week). Again, I think we should let the registrar get going before adding to the clerical duties. Please note that this certainly doesn't prevent the registrar from doing it more frequently.
Sandra provided the following comments in writing to the committee.
In Section II. Definition.
I’m uncomfortable with the wording, “The Garden Registrar manages gardeners.” Management of gardeners really isn’t applicable to our community garden. We are a garden with individual plots rather than a community garden where gardeners work in one large garden for a share of the harvest. Is the intent to summarize the Registrar’s position or to expand the duties to include management of gardeners? If it is the latter, we should discuss what that means.
Suggested rewrite: The Garden Registrar works with key stakeholders to manage the gardens…
The Garden Committee agreed with this change.
A few other thoughts:
Section II. Definition.
“…establishment and maintenance of…social media communications.” seems too expansive. Currently we ask for an email on garden registrations as the main form of communication and direct gardeners to the website for more gardening information. There are organizations that have a dedicated position just for their social media communications. Let’s not inadvertently add additional responsibilities to our Registrar’s position. The maintenance of the database and discussion list is mentioned in the 3rd paragraph in Section II.
After discussion, the Garden Committee agreed to change the wording to “publicizing garden events.”
“The Registrar coordinates garden events.” It would be a good idea to provide an example of this responsibility in Section III.
The wording agreed to was “like the seed fair and plant sales.”
Section III. Examples.
“Ensure that gardener’s…. Suggested rewrite: Bring gardeners’ concerns and requests to the attention of Garden Co-chairs and Garden Committee. This suggestion was also accepted by the Garden Committee.
Another place where Sandra thought we should have an example was, “Represent the gardens to Groups and visitors instead of “various stakeholders.” We agreed to the change too.
Moved by Adam and seconded by Barb A. to accept all the edit and produce the final draft. Passed unanimously.
Discussion of Garden Application Procedure
Jan reported on the questions we asked at the last meeting about the options for processing the garden application in the absence of the Registrar. Jan reports the the person logging the checks must be a University Apartments employee. The employee logging the checks cannot be involved assigning the plots, according to University rules. Jan said the check procedure is as follows: All work must be done at the Community Center office. The checks are logged and given to the Apartments financial employee, who further processes them. Ann suggested that a copy of the checks be made.
Adam said that Dave can log the checks, as he is a UW Apartment employee. Discussion ensued. It was agreed that Dave will log the checks, make a copy, record the time and date stamp record, mark on the application the amount of the check and give the checks to the UW Apartments Financial employee.
Adam said we could use volunteers to start assigning returning gardeners to their plots. Adam, Barb L., Ann and Mark will help with this task. Adam will put out a call if they need more help.
This work will not start until Dave has logged the first batch of checks, thus keeping the check logging job separate from the plot assigning task.
Interim Jobs
Emails-
Adam said he has taken on the job of responding to emails, of which there are about 4-6 per week. Sandra asked if we should send an email reminder about the February 15th deadline. Adam said the we don’t because the email list is very out of date by the end of the gardening season and Gretel never used it after December.
Seed Fair-
Karen said she would coordinate the seed fair. Cathie, Barb A, Barb L, Ann, , Sandra and Melita will assist in seed repackaging and organizing. Karen asked Tom if he would help give away the older seeds to the larger Community Gardens group at their yearly event., Gardens Network for the 2016 Gardens Summit, a celebration of Dane County Community Gardens, on February 20, 2016.
Opening Day-
Adam reported that Gretel had concerns that Opening Day was too close to the Seed Fair. Some thought we should try to move the Seed Fair on April 2nd, but it was decided that that would be very difficult due to reserving the gym. It was agreed that Opening Day will be by March 26, meaning that it could be some days before, but not after.
Plant Sales-
Melita and Ulrike will coordinate with Gardens to Be concerning the plant sales. The dates will be talked about at the next meeting.
Interview Committee-
Tom and Adam will do the initial phone interviews if there are a lot of applicants. The committee will consist of five. Tom and Adam will take the lead and the rest will be from the list of Barb.A., Barb L., Cathie and Karen. Jan has concerns weather we will get any applicants.
Other Tasks-
Ann asked what else does Gretel do? Barb A. said the plots markers need to be checked. It was agreed that we could discuss these tasks at the next meeting.
Garden Juries
Ann suggested that garden juries can be proactive in helping people to keep their plots in order. She said pictorial messages could be helpful in bridging language barriers, like a picture of a vole with a bib munching away or a target in the middle of the weedpile to get people to put their weeds in the correct place. Announcing juries in advance would also be helpful.
Path Monitor/Row Coordinator
The path monitor idea was discussed and Julie thought that a better name could be Row Captain or Row Coordinator because it sounds more positive. The Row Coordinator could have the ability to email only the row in question to give advance notice of mowing or talk about row improvements that could be made. Cathie said the Row Coordinators could check for faucet leaks. Barb L. said maybe the Row Coordinator could also address the problem of wasted food. Dave liked the idea of advanced notice for mowing the row.
Plot Boundaries
Adam said we should not have the Garden Workers enforce plot boundary rules. The garden workers should not touch things in the path. Discussion ensued. Barb L. asked what the rule is for the front boundary, is it on the line or six inches in? Karen said that the new 2016 application states that the front boundary is on the line, so that is the rule. Dave asked what to do if the path was not ready to mow? Adam said to skip the problem and go to the next plot. Adam said the practice has been different than what is stated. Malcolm asked about plants in the path too. Adam said the garden workers should not touch them. Malcolm said there had to be some enforcement. The Row Coordinators will talk to the gardener with the item crossing into path.
Survey
Tom said there were 122 responses to the end of the season survey, 112 from Eagle Heights and 10 from University Houses. Many people felt connected to the community and enjoy the beauty of the gardens. Tomatoes were the favorite vegetable. Respondents said it would be helpful if there could be time for introductions so gardeners could learn each other’s names. Adam said there were lots of good ideas that would be easy to implement from the survey. Adam made a suggestion about how to divide a workday into two slots. There half time workdays would only be held on the weekdays and the full workdays on the weekends. This would make it easier to track the amount of time worked.
Ann said the garden juries don’t have to happen on weekends and could occur at other times during the week. Tom asked how many workdays there have been. No one could answer with accuracy, but Karen said the information was available.
Further tasks
Barb A. asked what the plans were for the Arbor? She said the downy mildew problem could be treated on the grape. Adam asked if there was an organic treatment? Discussion ensued. Barb A. will be the Chair for the Arbor subcommittee.
Some of the upcoming tasks will be discussed at the next meeting. These include water turn on, porta potty, Seed Fair and tool purchases. Karen asked about the tool inventory done at the shed cleanout in November.
A list of the sub-committees created needs to be made. Ann said there was so much going on, is it possible to send out information to a broader list? Ann will scan the to do list provided in hard copy by Gretel.
Adjourned after 8:23pm by Tom
Submitted by Karen
Subject to correction by the Garden Committee
Eagle Heights Garden Committee Minutes
February 10, 2016, 6:30 PM
Eagle Heights Community Center
6:30
– Delicious Food and great conversation by Adam, Tom, Tianxing, Karen,
Ann, Melita, Ulrike, Sandra, Malcolm, Cathie, Barb A., Will, Jan, Dave
and Mark.
Tom welcomed everyone.
Minutes Moved by Barb A. and seconded by Cathie to approve the minutes of the January 2015 meeting. Passed unanimously.
Application Process
Adam
reported that Dave has processed 400 checks from the applications and
there are 15 left to do. Mark and Dave are looking into automating our
application process for next year. Adam said no plot assignments have
been done yet. There was some discussion because the check processing
has been delayed due to staff illness in Housing. It was agreed that an
announcement explaining the delay will be put on the webpage.
Jan
explained that all paperwork for the applications will remain in the
building. Adam said there will be a short meeting about the application
procedure of the plot assignment subcommittee will be held right after
the meeting.
Registrar’s Position
The
Registrar’s position description has not been posted yet. Jan said
there questions at Human Resources as to why the position was not
permanent, part-time. Jan hopes it will be posted soon.
Subcommittee reports
Seed Fair- April 2
Karen said the seed repackaging will be February 23 from 1-5 and the seed sort will be March 15 from 1-4, both in Room 139. Karen said we will have 15 seed packets per plot this year because we have a lot of seeds.
We
seem to have an overabundance of winter squash seeds that are quite
old. These will be given away free at the end of the flower table.
There will also be free 2015 lettuce seed at the flower table. We need a
few supplies for the seed fair like tickets, tape and seed envelopes
which can be purchased through Housing. The committee agreed to these
purchases.
Orientation
Adam will have a volunteer list for Orientations next month.
Plant Sales-
Melita, Ulrike and Barb L. will coordinate with Gardens to Be concerning the plant sales. The dates will be April 17, 11-1pm for the Spring, cool weather sale with Barb L. and Melita coordinating. The Warm Weather sale will be May 22 from 11-1pm with Melita and Ulrike helping.
Compost
Will
said he is helping with compost. He says maybe we can get some. Will
also said maybe we can get 15 yards of manure at University Houses.
Row coordinator
Ann
reports that Julie is concerned that the regular garden meeting
interferes with Concerts on the Square and suggests we have a meeting in
the garden on a weekday afternoon.
University Houses
Adam
said an elm tree fell across the road and into plot A25 and has now
been removed. The weed pile berm has now been made to housing
specifications. Housing objected to the 2 brick high berm so it is now 1
high.
Arbor and arbor grapes
Barb
A. said so far all the downy mildew treatments she has investigated are
not organic. It was suggested that Gardens Alive might have something
organic. Discussion ensued. A further discussion will be held on the
downy mildew problem.
Barb
A. said she would clean up the arbor in spring when it is warmer. She
thinks it will be easier to care for this year and suggests we cage the
asters. Will said he could get some cages and asked how many Barb A.
needed. Barb A. said that cages and better markers so people know where
to mow would help.
Next Meeting
Adam
said the agenda for next month will include the Registrar position,
Application process, Tool purchase, preparing the gardens top open and
replacing corner posts.
Corner posts
There
are 250 corner posts on hand from physical plant. Adam suggest we
replace what is missing at the beginning of the season. Adam said he
would like to replace all the fiberglass. Cathie asked how much it would
cost. Will thought we could get it for free from Physical Plant. Dave
said that University Houses has not been done. When we buy conduit, it
costs 65 cents a post.
Row cover
Sandra
asked if we would buy row cover. Will said we would need 2 rolls and
he would buy it from Johnny’s. . Will said we would need 2 or 3 people
to cut it. Karen said she had the little gym reserved for the evening
of April 1 and the room could be used for cutting.
Adjourned after 7:42pm by Adam
Submitted by Karen
Subject to correction by the Garden Committee
6:30 – Delicious Food and great conversation by Adam, Elenor, Tom, Karen, Ann, Melita, Sandra, Malcolm, Cathie, Barb A., Jan, Barb L., Dave and Mark.
Tom welcomed everyone.
Minutes Moved by Ann and seconded by Barb A. to approve the minutes of the February 2015 meeting. Passed unanimously.
Registrar Position
Adam reported that we have received three applications for the registrar position. The sub-committee needs to prepare the interview questions in advance for Jan to approve. The sub-committee was chosen at an earlier meeting to consist of five people from the following group: Tom, Adam, Barb A., Cathie, Karen and Barb L. It was agreed that Barb L would not serve because she has spent so much time working with Ann on plot assignment. (Thanks Barb L. and Ann!) The questions need to be sent by the subcommittee to Jan for approval by Friday.
Jan said that the Garden Oversight Committee (GOC) wants to see an increase of administrative hours for the garden. Jan said that Gretel donated a lot of time to the garden. Discussion ensued. Human Resources said the registrar position should be permanent part-time, which would include benefits. Jan said she would like to see the registrar position a permanent part-time also. Fringe benefits are calculated at approximately 40% of the salary. Adam said this would be an important discussion topic at the next meetings as we see how we would pay for such a position.
Part of the discussion also needs to include the separation of duties required by university policy. One person must deals with the checks and another person must assign the plots. Barb L. asked who has supervision of the registrar and the garden workers. Jan said officially she has. Jan said she has asked Housing who will be coming to the meetings after she retires in April.
Application Process
Ann reported that she and Barb L have finished assigning plots of all those gardeners whose applications have come in by the February 15th deadline. Ann sent the maps to the garden workers and Gretel for any corrections. Gretel replied and made a few corrections that were needed. Ann said that the half plot corrections also need to be made along with finish checking the corner posts.
Ann reported that University Houses is almost full, as is Eagle Heights. They (Ann and Barb L.) are keeping a few plots free to deal with any unforeseen problems. Also a full and half plot have been reserved in Eagle Heights for the new Registrar, so the new registrar can have a choice of plot size. There are about 15 empty plots, which will be assigned after next week.
Adam said when he is answering emails from returning gardeners that have applied after the February 15th deadline, that he is very strict about the deadline. There are no promises made to late applying gardeners that they will get their plot back. It is not too late to apply, but there is a waiting list.
Field checking the corner posts and plot markings
Adam said we need to field check the corner posts and plot markings. Sandra said she rechecked the markers at University Houses and 21 posts are missing Dave said he will replace the markers with metal posts. Plots B8 and D19 have been using markers in their plots, which is against the rules. Sandra will send the University Houses map to Adam. For Eagle Heights, Adam and Cathie will check the plots (Saturday at 1pm). Dave will paint the posts. Ann has a list of the plot changes.
Seed Fair
Karen said we are almost ready for the seed fair on April 2nd. We have over 30 volunteers and she will try to get a few more. The supplies and seeds are ready.
Opening Day
Opening day is March 26th. There will be orientations.
Garden Worker Report
Adam said that Will is sick. We do need to replace the broken garden forks. Adam recommended that we buy 15 garden forks now and discuss buying more tools later. Adam says it would be good to buy 4 trash pickers later.
Moved by Ann and seconded by Karen to buy 15 garden forks. Passed unanimously.
Adjourned before 8pm by Adam
Submitted by Karen
Eagle Heights Garden Committee Minutes
March 9, 2016, 6:30 PM
Eagle Heights Community Center
March 9, 2016, 6:30 PM
Eagle Heights Community Center
6:30 – Delicious Food and great conversation by Adam, Elenor, Tom, Karen, Ann, Melita, Sandra, Malcolm, Cathie, Barb A., Jan, Barb L., Dave and Mark.
Tom welcomed everyone.
Minutes Moved by Ann and seconded by Barb A. to approve the minutes of the February 2015 meeting. Passed unanimously.
Registrar Position
Adam reported that we have received three applications for the registrar position. The sub-committee needs to prepare the interview questions in advance for Jan to approve. The sub-committee was chosen at an earlier meeting to consist of five people from the following group: Tom, Adam, Barb A., Cathie, Karen and Barb L. It was agreed that Barb L would not serve because she has spent so much time working with Ann on plot assignment. (Thanks Barb L. and Ann!) The questions need to be sent by the subcommittee to Jan for approval by Friday.
Jan said that the Garden Oversight Committee (GOC) wants to see an increase of administrative hours for the garden. Jan said that Gretel donated a lot of time to the garden. Discussion ensued. Human Resources said the registrar position should be permanent part-time, which would include benefits. Jan said she would like to see the registrar position a permanent part-time also. Fringe benefits are calculated at approximately 40% of the salary. Adam said this would be an important discussion topic at the next meetings as we see how we would pay for such a position.
Part of the discussion also needs to include the separation of duties required by university policy. One person must deals with the checks and another person must assign the plots. Barb L. asked who has supervision of the registrar and the garden workers. Jan said officially she has. Jan said she has asked Housing who will be coming to the meetings after she retires in April.
Application Process
Ann reported that she and Barb L have finished assigning plots of all those gardeners whose applications have come in by the February 15th deadline. Ann sent the maps to the garden workers and Gretel for any corrections. Gretel replied and made a few corrections that were needed. Ann said that the half plot corrections also need to be made along with finish checking the corner posts.
Ann reported that University Houses is almost full, as is Eagle Heights. They (Ann and Barb L.) are keeping a few plots free to deal with any unforeseen problems. Also a full and half plot have been reserved in Eagle Heights for the new Registrar, so the new registrar can have a choice of plot size. There are about 15 empty plots, which will be assigned after next week.
Adam said when he is answering emails from returning gardeners that have applied after the February 15th deadline, that he is very strict about the deadline. There are no promises made to late applying gardeners that they will get their plot back. It is not too late to apply, but there is a waiting list.
Field checking the corner posts and plot markings
Adam said we need to field check the corner posts and plot markings. Sandra said she rechecked the markers at University Houses and 21 posts are missing Dave said he will replace the markers with metal posts. Plots B8 and D19 have been using markers in their plots, which is against the rules. Sandra will send the University Houses map to Adam. For Eagle Heights, Adam and Cathie will check the plots (Saturday at 1pm). Dave will paint the posts. Ann has a list of the plot changes.
Seed Fair
Karen said we are almost ready for the seed fair on April 2nd. We have over 30 volunteers and she will try to get a few more. The supplies and seeds are ready.
Opening Day
Opening day is March 26th. There will be orientations.
Garden Worker Report
Adam said that Will is sick. We do need to replace the broken garden forks. Adam recommended that we buy 15 garden forks now and discuss buying more tools later. Adam says it would be good to buy 4 trash pickers later.
Moved by Ann and seconded by Karen to buy 15 garden forks. Passed unanimously.
Adjourned before 8pm by Adam
Submitted by Karen
Subject to correction by the Garden Committee
Eagle Heights Garden Committee Minutes
April 13, 2016, 6:30 PM
Eagle Heights Community Center
6:30
– Delicious Food and great conversation by Adam,Tom, Karen, Janardham,
Ric, Linda, Jan, Tianxing, Kathryn, Katie M., Will, Niels, Jaya, Priya,
Angus, Ann, Melita, Sandra, Malcolm, Cathie, Barb A., Barb L., Dave and
Mark.
Tom welcomed everyone.
Minutes Moved
by Adam and seconded by Barb A. to approve the minutes of the March
2015 meeting after removing references to specific plots. Passed
unanimously.
Co-Chair Report
Jan
introduced Linda Abegglen, who will take over direct supervision of the
garden employees on an interim basis until Jan’s position is filled.
Adam introduced Kathryn Padorr, our new Registrar who will start work on March 22nd.
Adam
thanked the volunteers for all the work with the plot assignments (Barb
L. and Ann), opening day and seed fair (Karen). Melita thanked the
co-chairs for their work and Adam thanked Angus for all his help.
Treasurer’s Report
Angus
said we are on budget, but we have more carryover cash because garden
workers used fewer hours last year. Angus said that all of the checks
that Dave recorded have been correctly deposited by Housing.
Interim Registrar Report
Ann
reported that we have 555 garden plots assigned. University Houses is
half students and Eagle Heights is one third students. Ann said the
waiting list can be cleared by splitting full plots at Eagle Heights to
half plots. Adam said that the remaining plots will be assigned after
Kathryn is officially in the registrar position.
Row Guide
Adam
suggested we talk about the row guide or has it has been previously
called row monitor idea. Barb L. said we have a huge number of
gardeners and we don’t know them. The idea is to have people in each
row talk to their garden neighbors and ask them to keep the paths
clear. Dave asked if the person would be involved in the garden juries.
Ann
asked if we can have the emails of the gardeners in each row. Jan said
that blind emails need to be sent to all participants in group emails.
Karen said we need a job description for the Row Guide, so we know
their expected tasks. Adam said the Row Guide would help the Registrar
and the Row Guides email would be given to all the row. Niels said there
had never been row guides before and it sounds like another layer of
policing. Niels would like to have row parties. Barb A. said that last
summer we had some difficult email exchanges and the idea this year was
to get away from policing and have better communication.
She
said she thought it was a great idea, but we need a sub-committee to
bring back a proposal to the committee. Tom thought a sub-committee
would be a good idea. Barb A. said there should be a place in the plot
to leave a note and we would have to address the language issue. Tom
thought keeping it simple and positive would be best. It was agreed that
the sub-committee will consist of Barb L., Barb A., Niels, and Cathie
and they will work via email. Ann asked how frequently the garden was
mowed. Will said around 4 or maybe 5 times a season.
Seed Fair
Karen
said that despite the snow, more than 250 plots checked in for the Seed
Fair. The definite closing time was good for the seed clean up, but
made the time too short for the workshop. We gave bags of 15 seed
packets to latecomers so they did not leave empty handed. We sold 105
pieces of row cover and about a bag and a half is left. Perhaps we can
sell it at the plant sales. Alice had people write thank you notes to
the seed vendors that donated seeds. We donated corn and excess seeds to
the Gardens Network. Niels asked who was taking photos. Ann said
Hakim, a new gardener took photos. Sandra suggested that we change the
workshop into a resource room where people could ask questions. Karen
said they we might also think about having a seed swap.
Orientations
Ric
said he had 40 people on opening day at Eagle Heights and Adam had 15
at University Houses. Tom and Dave had nobody after the seed fair
during the snow. Adam said we should do another round of orientations.
Ric said people had a lot of questions.
Website
Tom
said we should get a wordpress template and build a new website. Dave
suggested we pick a template we do not have to change. Dave said we are
currently using text editor and HTML. Discussion ensued. Cathie said
that we like the idea of a new website and it would be great to have a
proposal and an estimate about how much it would cost for next meeting.
University Houses
Sandra
said that leaf mulch is needed at University Houses. Will said it is
difficult to deliver when it is wet. Adam said that the new jumping
worms are in Shorewood. Barb A. said we need some educational materials
about the jumping worms for the gardeners. Adam said that the adults
do not overwinter. Adam said the Preserve is concerned that the jumping
worms will deplete the forest floor of organic material and change the
forest flora. The worms do not taste good to birds. Sandra has been
killing the worms by putting them in a plastic bag and putting the bag
in the sun. Adam said the band in the middle of the worm is not raised
on a jumping worm. Melita said we need to inform the gardeners. Adam
said we would inform them again. Sandra said the powdered mustard in
water drives them to the surface.
Angus asked when the water would get turned on. Adam said not yet, it is too cold.
Plant Sales
Melita
said she had not yet heard from Gardens to Be. Will said if we are
going to sell row cover at the plant sale, could we sell straw bales
too? Discussion ensued. Adam said we should save the bale for Ulrike’s
straw bale workshop. Will said maybe we could sell compost at the May 22nd sale.
Workday signup
Discussion
ensued about workday signups and using a doodle poll instead of the old
method. Barb L. said she liked the doodle poll idea.
Adjourned before 8pm by Tom
Submitted by Karen
Subject to correction by the Garden Committee
Eagle Heights Garden Committee Minutes
May 11, 2016, 6:30 PM
May 11, 2016, 6:30 PM
Eagle Heights Community Center
6:30 – Delicious Food and great conversation by Adam,Tom, Karen, Linda, Tianxing, Kathryn, Will, Niels, Angus, Melita, Ulrike, Eleanor, Julie, Laura, Barb L., Dave and Mark.
Adam welcomed everyone.
Minutes Moved by Barb L. and seconded by Kathryn to approve the minutes of the April 2015 meeting. Passed unanimously.
Co-Chair Report
Adam introduced Laura Wyatt, the Program Manager of the Nature Preserve, to talk about the invasive Asian Jumping worm (Amynthas spp.) issue. Adam said that Shorewood has suspended their leaf deliveries to the garden because of the jumping worms. After explaining her background in Horticulture, Laura said that the jumping worms are regulated by the DNR under NR40. The jumping worms are a restricted invasive species and it is illegal to move them. Mark asked how cities will do leaf pickup in the fall.
Laura said there needs to be an education program. These worms consume an incredible amount of organic matter and affect the texture of the soil. Olbrich Gardens has stopped selling leaf mulch due to the jumping worms. There are a lot of questions and Laura said she did not have the answers. In talking to the DNR, they said we should use up the mulch and develop best management practices to control the jumping worm. We need to study the issue and involve all the stakeholders. She is looking for a representative from the Gardens.
Niels asked Adam what the University did with their leaves. Adam said the University composts their leaves with manure and uses it a soil the next year. Adam said we probably have a one year supply of leaves in the pile. Adam said that last year there were reports of jumping worms in the gardens. Laura said the DNR found worms in the leaves, gardens and wood chips around the fruit trees. Barb L. asked how deep they go? Adam said they were surface dwellers. Barb L. asked if black plastic controls them? Laura said she did not know.
Karen asked what Shorewood was going to do with their leaves? Will said he would feel more comfortable if the jumping worms had been positively identified in our leaf pile. He said our leaf pile gets hot when it composts. Ulrike said there must be a lot of science about the Jumping Worm already because it has been on the east coast for a number of years.
Laura asked for a representative for the best management practices group from the gardens and Adam said we would find a representative to attend the meetings.
Extra Meeting Needed
Adam said that due to a very full agenda, he requests that we have an extra meeting this month on a Saturday in the Eagle Heights Arbor at the garden. May 21st at 2pm was chosen.
Row Representatives
Barb L. reported for the sub-committee and suggested a pilot program of the row representative idea. Ulrike asked what a row was. Barb L. said the plots along the path. There was some discussion. Barb L. said we would have to define it if we adopted the program. Barb L. asked if we could have the emails of the row? Karen reported the at her last meeting Jan said we could have the emails, but they would have to be sent blind so others emails could not be viewed.
Julie said the whole idea of the program is to increase community in the gardens. People will have more community and more respect for the gardens and for each other. She said the program should not be seen as more policing. Ulrike asked what the goal of the program was. Barb L. said better community. Tom P. said he thought we should do a trial. Adam asked the working group to draft a call for volunteers.
Strawbale Workshop
Ulrike said she would do the Strawbale workshop after the plant exchange on May 22.
The Eagle Heights workshop will be at 1:30 and the University Houses at 3. Will will get a truck to move bales to University Houses. Dave will sell bale for the workshop. Bale will be $3 with a limit of 2 bales per gardener. Ulrike will send an announcement for Kathryn to send out to the list. Ulrike will put up a poster at University Houses and Kathryn will post one at Eagle Heights.
Registrar Update, Garden worker update and weedpile issues will be discussed at the special meeting on a Saturday, May 21st at 2pm in the Eagle Heights Arbor May 21st at 2pm
Adjourned before 8:15pm by Adam
Submitted by Karen Subject to correction by the Garden Committee
Eagle Heights Garden Committee Minutes
May 20, 2016, 2 PM
Eagle Heights Garden Arbor
May 20, 2016, 2 PM
Eagle Heights Garden Arbor
Adam started the meeting. Adam, Karen, Kathryn, Mark, Will, Ann, Barb L., Dave and Alice attended the meeting.
Registrar’s Report
Kathryn said that both gardens are full and there is a waiting list. Several people have refused a particularly weedy plot in the 700’s, so it is still vacant. Adam said maybe we should put it under common control, but first we should try again to assign the plot. Adam asked Dave to cut down the weeds. Will said we could grow raspberries on it. Alice said there is already a common raspberry patch that is not under control and extra fencing is on top of the raspberries. Will said the fence is for the weedpile.
Kathryn said the waiting list has 15 people. Kathryn said she walked through the gardens and took note of plots that had not been worked yet. She then sent an email asking if they were still interested in gardening. Kathryn reported that all the seeds are in the seed storage area now. She still does not have a phone. The excel roster of gardeners is up to date. There is a way to do quick updates to the webpage and Kathryn will ask Gretel how to do it.
Garden Worker Report
Will reported that he and Dave were 2/3rds of the way through the mowing. Will said the fencing in the raspberries is for the weedpile. After the grate path is rebuilt, fencing will be put along the path so gardeners will be directed into the weedpile to dump their weeds. Ann asked if we could put the weeds in the diving pool? Will said that Shorewood has been requested to remove the weeds to the county site now that the jumping worm issue has been resolved by the DNR.
Paths
Barb L. made a motion that the garden workers use the power lawn mower to cut the paths. She said the path is still hard to walk on. Will said he can’t mow by the rock wall. Barb L. wants a walkable path. Adam said we agreed that the mowing plan was not working. The paths were not in good condition. It was agreed to look at the 600/700 path. There are nettles in the path and the boards in the wood chip section need to be replaced. Discussion ensued. Will said the quackgrass spreads when you mow frequently and he believes that the desire for having a flat mown lawn is aesthetic. Barb L. expressed concern about the ticks in the tall grass.
Will said that using machines for mowing is wasteful of BTU’s and he likes wood chips as the forward going plan. Will also said that power lawn mowers kill toads. Alice said she was not in favor of buying a lot of stuff, but we should do a little touchup. She said this is an amazing garden and we could pay a local person to mow. Adam said he liked Karen’s idea that we mow the entire garden in the fall after the toads are underground.
Discussion ensued about whether there are more toads since the scything of grass. Barb L. said she did not agree with the wasteful BTU argument against mowing.
Discussion continued.
Ann made a motion and seconded by Kathryn that the 600/700 path and the 700/800 path be used as a test for path maintenance. The paths shall be no more than 6 inches high and a cart’s width wide and be done by May 30th and be maintained. Passed 7/1 Will voting no.
Moved by Karen and seconded by Ann that all of the garden paths be mowed in the fall after the toads are in hibernation. Motion passed.
Meeting length
Discussion ensued about the amount of time for the meetings being too short. Moved by Barb L. and seconded by Kathryn to have an one and a half hour meeting from 6:30- 8pm. Motion passed with Adam voting no and Alice abstaining.
Adjourned by 3:15pm by Adam
Submitted by Karen Subject to correction by the Garden Committee
Eagle Heights Garden Committee Minutes
June 8, 2016
Eagle Heights Community Center
6:30 – Delicious food and great conversation by Kathryn, Alice, Cathie, Mary Anne, Glenn, Linda, Barb L., Melita, Sandra, Malcolm, Mark, Ulrike, Dave, Will, Tianxing, and Barb A.
Kathryn welcomed everyone.
Minutes There was a discussion about the confusion over new meeting dates and times. Moved by Alice and seconded by Sandra to approve the minutes of the May 11, 2016 and May 20, 2016 meetings. Passed unanimously.
Registrar Report
Kathryn reported that garden assignments seem to be in good shape. She reported that 2 people have agreed to be row reps. There was a discussion about whether we have a good job description of row rep duties and whether it had been decided earlier to leave the job description less detailed as we run the pilot program.
Kathryn reported that there have been lots of complaints about the tall grass in the pathways. She would like to have a jury to evaluate neglected plots. Sandra volunteered to work on a jury. Dave said he would like the registrar to make such evaluations and thus deal with neglected plots faster. Some members mentioned that they like the jury process. Mary Anne also volunteered to work on a jury.
Garden Worker Report
Will gave a report on scything the paths. He said garden workers have been scything the grass when the grass seed is forming, but before the seeds are ripe and dispersed. He said this process is designed to slow the growth of the grass. He said he is planning to have garden workers do scything on work days and feels that this will be a solution to maintaining grass on the paths. Barb A asked if workers could just mow a path down the middle of the path, giving gardeners at good walkway. Dave said that might work well. Barb L. mentioned that the unmowed grass on the sides would throw seed and this might be a problem. Will said the quack grass spreads by rhizome, but dandelion and thistle seed is drifting in from the grounds area. There was discussion about people managing the grass in front of their own gardens and Will estimated that 5% of the gardeners are already doing this. Will said that by the July meeting the problem will be solved because the grass grows more slowly in hotter weather. Linda asked for clarification that the hand scythes would only be available to volunteers during workdays and Will assured her this would be true.
Will talked about the engineering students' capstone plan to deal with the problem of water stagnating in the weed piles. He mentioned that he had sent out files describing the capstone project 3 weeks ago. Will said the project had the approval of a number of experts including those from Madison Water Utility and the Department of Natural Resources, as well as the professors who approved the capstone plan. Will asked the group to approve allocating $2000 - $3000 to the project so that it can move onto the next step at the Garden Oversight Committee. There was discussion about how spending these funds would impact Eagle Heights Garden's budget and how building the swales would impact the work we already need to do. Members wanted more time to read the documents. Will said that the project will advance slowly through various steps, but approval of these funds will allow it to get started. He said that every year we have workdays for designated capital projects, so the proposed work will not cut into the time to get routine work done. Moved by Barb L. and seconded by Mark to support the project in principle, providing budget and time constraints can be adequately addressed. Motion passed unanimously.
Plant Exchange
Melita described the success of the Plant Exchange held in May. She described the potential for this event to build community and encouraged us to make it even bigger next year. There was discussion about whether we want to draw up a contract with a professional plant grower for the plant sales. Kathryn mentioned that she had been advised by the UW to do it without a contract. Linda mentioned that we could use a contract, but it would be our own – not a UW contract. Members said they were generally happy with Gardens to Be. Kathryn said we need a contract with Gardens to Be with clear expectations. Will said the e-mail thread with Gardens to Be works as a contract. The group thanked Melita and Ulrike for all their work on this. Ulrike said she had purchased 2 eggplants that turned out to be severely diseased and that this problem needs to be addressed.
Website Design
Mark said there is better technology for website design than that we are currently using and offered to help with this. Barb L. mentioned that we need a strong website design and we could use it to go to online registration. This would allow for more efficient and accurate registrations.
Garden Fees
The group decided to postpone this discussion until Adam can be there.
Meeting Dates and Times
There was more discussion about this. The group said that it works much better to have a fixed date and time to meet. Mark said he cannot make the Wednesday night meetings during the summer because of Concerts on the Square and other events. Will moved and Kathryn seconded to have the meetings on Thursdays at 6:30 to 7 PM for informal discussion and 7 to 8 PM for the meeting. The motion passed unanimously.
Kathryn adjourned the meeting at 8 P.M.
Submitted by Barb A.
Subject to correction by the Garden Committee
Eagle Heights Garden Committee Minutes
July 14, 2016, 6:30 PM
Eagle Heights Garden Arbor
July 14, 2016, 6:30 PM
Eagle Heights Garden Arbor
6:30 – Delicious Food and great conversation by Malcolm, Sandra, Ann, Bill, Jill, Steward, Adam, Tom, Karen, Tianxing, Kathryn, Barb A., Niels, Angus, Melita and Mark.
Adam welcomed everyone.
Minutes Moved by Kathryn. and seconded by Ann to approve the minutes of the June 2015 meeting. Passed unanimously.
Registrar Update
Kathryn reported that we have 4 people on the waiting list and there is a flurry of new gardeners moving in. In the 700’s a weedy plot was able to be rented because the neighbors cleared out the weeds. This plot had previously been rejected by numerous gardeners.
Co-Chair Report
Webpage- Adam said we have a webpage update. Tom suggested the we use Wordpress templates to create our new website. Tom asked if we had to consider online registration when we look at a new website? Mark said we could just have a link to a separate registration page. Tom said we could have a news page with pictures and up to date information. Discussion continued and Tom asked if people had any requests. Karen asked that the section with the Garden Committee Minutes be easy to access. Barb A. said it was hard to visualize. Mark said Wordpress was free, but we would still need a Host for the website. Kathryn asked when we could see the new website. Tom said 3-4 weeks. Discussion ensued.
Predatory wasps- There was discussion about whether we should release the predatory wasps that eat Mexican Bean Beetles. Sandra said it is a lot of work and she thought it was too late in the season. On the predator wasps for Bean Beetles and larvae. The last release was in 2012. The time commitment was about 20 hours for the 2 releases Malcolm and I did at both Eagle Heights and University houses. The first release of was mid June and the second release was 2nd week in July. Each release involved 2 packages of wasp infected beetle larvae mummies. Our financial records would give the cost but I seem to remember it was a little over 300.00 for each release. Eagle Heights garden is large enough to warrant 2 packages for each release (depending on the infestation). Sandra said that she didn’t think there were enough bean beetles for the wasps to eat. Sandra also said there needs to be an education piece. After discussion , Adam said we would not release wasps this year.
Food Pantry- Adam said we have been unable find a volunteer to coordinate the food pantry donations this year. The committee discussed the issues of theft from the bins, no volunteers and related issues. It was decided that we should have a Food Drive in September, Pick for the Pantry. It is also possible to deliver the food directly to the St Vincent de Paul pantry on Fish Hatchery.
Raising Plot Fees- Adam said the Garden Oversight Committee (GOC), which is in charge of the Gardens, has asked us to explore funding a permanent part-time employee. The difference between a permanent part-time and a limited-time (LTE) is the benefits. We would need $13,000 more for a regular position. Mark said it would be $30 a plot more and Angus said maybe $25 to 30. Adam said we could raise the fees halfway the first year and the rest in the second year.
Barb A. asked that would be 20 hours a week the whole year? Mark asked if we had work the whole year? Adam said the bulk of the hours actually occur in the winter. Melita asked how much is the no workday fee and could we raise it. Karen said we don’t collect all the money now because people move away. Adam said he thought that the half plot fee should be raised because the cost to administer is not half the large plot. The half plot fee could be less, but not half.
Adam said that the reason the Human Resources Department (HR) simplified our position description is they thought it was describing a permanent position. Barb A. said she thought if we raised the fee to $70 a plot, we would lose some people. Adam said that other gardens do a self reporting income based fee. Kathryn said we could raise the student fee less. Ann said we need a rough draft of the financial analysis.
Niels asked how much was in the UW Foundation account. Kathryn said she would find out. Discussion continued. Adam said the fees have not gone up for 5 years. Niels said if things are too cheap or free they are not valued. Karen asked if there would be a reclassification of the position. Adam said not unless the person became a supervisor. The fees are now $42 for community members and $32 for students for a large plot. Adam said we would have to step up the fee over two years. Stewart said we would get an idea of how many people would drop out.
Adam said if we were to charge more, we would have to be renting cleared plots. Sandra said she thought it was in the long term interest of the garden not to have abandoned plots. Sandra said the complaints were high with the workday crews when clearing abandoned plots. Niels asked how many bad plots we have? What about an offer to get out of a work day if you clear an abandoned plot. Jill asked if it would be possible to clear a neighboring plot?
Barb A. said that now that we have jumping worms, it should be illegal to dig in someone else's garden. Adam said it is already illegal. Melita said the Arbor Garden is beautiful this year, thanks to Barb A.
Adjourned by 8pm by Adam
Submitted by Karen
Adam welcomed everyone.
Minutes Moved by Kathryn. and seconded by Ann to approve the minutes of the June 2015 meeting. Passed unanimously.
Registrar Update
Kathryn reported that we have 4 people on the waiting list and there is a flurry of new gardeners moving in. In the 700’s a weedy plot was able to be rented because the neighbors cleared out the weeds. This plot had previously been rejected by numerous gardeners.
Co-Chair Report
Webpage- Adam said we have a webpage update. Tom suggested the we use Wordpress templates to create our new website. Tom asked if we had to consider online registration when we look at a new website? Mark said we could just have a link to a separate registration page. Tom said we could have a news page with pictures and up to date information. Discussion continued and Tom asked if people had any requests. Karen asked that the section with the Garden Committee Minutes be easy to access. Barb A. said it was hard to visualize. Mark said Wordpress was free, but we would still need a Host for the website. Kathryn asked when we could see the new website. Tom said 3-4 weeks. Discussion ensued.
Predatory wasps- There was discussion about whether we should release the predatory wasps that eat Mexican Bean Beetles. Sandra said it is a lot of work and she thought it was too late in the season. On the predator wasps for Bean Beetles and larvae. The last release was in 2012. The time commitment was about 20 hours for the 2 releases Malcolm and I did at both Eagle Heights and University houses. The first release of was mid June and the second release was 2nd week in July. Each release involved 2 packages of wasp infected beetle larvae mummies. Our financial records would give the cost but I seem to remember it was a little over 300.00 for each release. Eagle Heights garden is large enough to warrant 2 packages for each release (depending on the infestation). Sandra said that she didn’t think there were enough bean beetles for the wasps to eat. Sandra also said there needs to be an education piece. After discussion , Adam said we would not release wasps this year.
Food Pantry- Adam said we have been unable find a volunteer to coordinate the food pantry donations this year. The committee discussed the issues of theft from the bins, no volunteers and related issues. It was decided that we should have a Food Drive in September, Pick for the Pantry. It is also possible to deliver the food directly to the St Vincent de Paul pantry on Fish Hatchery.
Raising Plot Fees- Adam said the Garden Oversight Committee (GOC), which is in charge of the Gardens, has asked us to explore funding a permanent part-time employee. The difference between a permanent part-time and a limited-time (LTE) is the benefits. We would need $13,000 more for a regular position. Mark said it would be $30 a plot more and Angus said maybe $25 to 30. Adam said we could raise the fees halfway the first year and the rest in the second year.
Barb A. asked that would be 20 hours a week the whole year? Mark asked if we had work the whole year? Adam said the bulk of the hours actually occur in the winter. Melita asked how much is the no workday fee and could we raise it. Karen said we don’t collect all the money now because people move away. Adam said he thought that the half plot fee should be raised because the cost to administer is not half the large plot. The half plot fee could be less, but not half.
Adam said that the reason the Human Resources Department (HR) simplified our position description is they thought it was describing a permanent position. Barb A. said she thought if we raised the fee to $70 a plot, we would lose some people. Adam said that other gardens do a self reporting income based fee. Kathryn said we could raise the student fee less. Ann said we need a rough draft of the financial analysis.
Niels asked how much was in the UW Foundation account. Kathryn said she would find out. Discussion continued. Adam said the fees have not gone up for 5 years. Niels said if things are too cheap or free they are not valued. Karen asked if there would be a reclassification of the position. Adam said not unless the person became a supervisor. The fees are now $42 for community members and $32 for students for a large plot. Adam said we would have to step up the fee over two years. Stewart said we would get an idea of how many people would drop out.
Adam said if we were to charge more, we would have to be renting cleared plots. Sandra said she thought it was in the long term interest of the garden not to have abandoned plots. Sandra said the complaints were high with the workday crews when clearing abandoned plots. Niels asked how many bad plots we have? What about an offer to get out of a work day if you clear an abandoned plot. Jill asked if it would be possible to clear a neighboring plot?
Barb A. said that now that we have jumping worms, it should be illegal to dig in someone else's garden. Adam said it is already illegal. Melita said the Arbor Garden is beautiful this year, thanks to Barb A.
Adjourned by 8pm by Adam
Submitted by Karen
Subject to correction by the Garden Committee
6:30 – Delicious Food and great conversation by Malcolm, Sandra, Ann, Bill, Jill, Steward, Adam, Tom, Karen, Tianxing, Kathryn, Barb A., Niels, Angus, Melita and Mark.
7:00 Adam welcomed everyone.
Minutes Moved by Kathryn. and seconded by Ann to approve the minutes of the July 2015 meeting. Passed unanimously.
Registrar Update
Kathryn reported that we have no people on the waiting list and she is concerned about what will happen to the abandoned plots. Kathryn is working hard to identify plots that are not being worked.
Kathryn reported that we have a UW Foundation account that was set up to fund infrastructure improvements. The Garden Oversight Committee (GOC) has has approval authority to spend money in the account.
Garden Worker Report
Dave said that the main work that was accomplished this month was that the weed pile at Eagle Heights was removed by Shorewood. There was too much trash, dirt and sticks in the pile, so the gardens had to pay a $90 fee to have the load dumped in the landfill. Dave said one of the problems with the pile was that Shorewood has not been turning it. Adam said if Shorewood had been turning the pile, the dirt would have not been as big a problem. All gardeners need to do their part to keep the weedpile free of dirt, trash and sticks.
After the old pile was cleared, a workday crew built a path with metal grates into the middle of the area so people can dump weeds in the middle without getting muddy feet. Fencing was placed along the main metal grate path so the weeds must be dumped in the proper place. More fencing was also placed on the lower edge so the weeds do not get dumped in the path.
Barb L. said she did not realize that we should not put dirt in the weedpile. Education is important on this issue. Karen said she has been putting weeds in a black bag to kill them and they break down fairly quickly in the summer. Sandra says she using a bag too, which she calls the “Bag of Death”.
Barb A. suggested we have a person at the weedpile on a busy day educating people about how to use the weedpile. Adam said that a workday spent on the weedpile also educates workday gardeners.
Co-Chair Report
Webpage-
Adam said we have a webpage update. Adam reported that Tom sent a link to the discussion list of the new, draft webpage and would like our comments and suggestions via the discussion list. Tom did the webpage using Wordpress. Our old web page is on Lunar pages. Dave said that Wordpress has a free site and we would have to redirect from the old site to the new one. Discussion ensued. Some people had not seen the message from Tom. Adam said the link to the new webpage will be re-sent to the Discussion list.
Raising Plot Fees-
Adam said the Garden Oversight Committee (GOC), which is in charge of the Gardens, has asked us to explore funding a permanent half time employee. Adam recently talked to Gretel and she said that she reported all the hours she worked in 2015 and it is much lower than the half time position that we all had been thinking of. With this new information, Adam said this changes the conversation entirely. There would be many hours with no work. Adam said his report to the GOC at the August 26th meeting would be about these lower hours.
Linda said that the GOC will still want to look into making the position permanent. Barb L said a problem with a permanent position was that the person can work more hours, but they are not allowed to work less than their appointment. This rule makes the position much less flexible. Linda said that some of the LTE staff in Housing have not wanted to make this transition to a more rigid schedule. Karen asked how many hours was the minimum appointment. Linda thought it was 25 % time. Discussion ensued.
No Workday Fee-
Karen said she thought we should discuss a difference in the no workday fee between full and half plots. The no workday fee is $32 for the full and $16 for the half plot, but all gardeners do same 4 hour workday. Adam said he thought that the fee should be the same for both size plots.
Sandra thought that workdays are really important and can be an educational opportunity. Ulrike said they had had only one workday this year at University Houses and would like to see more at University Houses. Barb L. wanted to discuss the problem of people leaving the garden without doing their workday or paying the fee. Discussion ensued. Ulrike said the key to the problem was vigilance. We should not be waiting until the weeds are 6 feet high in the plot before thinking it is abandoned. Melita and Sandra brought up the idea of putting a University hold on the gardeners record so they would be forced to pay the fee before they left. More discussion ensued. Karen asked how big a problem is the non-payment of the fee? Linda said she was concerned that not all of our gardeners are students and the hold would only affect some of the gardeners. She said that Housing would have to support the idea. Linda asked if the no workday fee was per person or per plot. The fee is for each plot.
Kathryn said she has sent out emails to gardeners with really messy plots that were tending toward weedy and she sometimes gets nasty replies in return. Karen said that is one reason why the jury system was developed to support the Registrar. Discussion ensued. Sandra said she liked the pink weedy plot notices that were used in previous years. The signs reminds all the gardeners there are rules, this gardener has been notified of breaking those rules and action is being taken.
Ulrike said the juries were sometimes done without the Registrar and the results sent in. Dave said they were marking too many plots. Discussion ensued about whether there were written criteria for the juries to use. Adam said he didn’t think the gardens were in any worse shape than they usually are in August. Karen said she thought the pink, weedy plot notices have an educational value. Dave said that after the signs were put up, progress was slow to get the plot cleaned up. Sandra asked what was the outcome of the really weedy plots in the end. Adam said that some gardeners lost their plots.
Melita suggested that we try to help our neighbors. New neighbors sometimes need help to succeed. Ulrike asked what happened to the Row Monitor idea? Adam said we got very few volunteers, so it wasn’t done. Bill said we should turn in an agreement about following the rules. Adam said we already do when we turn in our applications. Sandra asked if we ever take plots away from a gardener? Adam said not this year. Kathryn said we will probably take away 2 plots this year. Kathryn is concerned that if the weedy plots get cleared there will be no one waiting to garden. Sandra said we should go back to clearing plots. She realizes it is really hard work, but the problem of a very weedy plot makes it really hard for a new gardener to be successful. Adam said a cleared plot is a new seed bed ready to sprout. Sandra said maybe we could use cover crops like sunflowers and annual rye. Karen said she thought there would be people on the waiting list again when new people move in in the fall. Adam said the plots are free after September 1st and the gardener can apply for the plot in December as a returning gardener.
Adam said we should have a jury at both gardens. Discussion ensued. Sandra, Ulrike and Adam will do a jury at University Houses on Saturday. More discussion ensued. It was agreed that a group of people will do the jury. Adam and Tom will do a jury at Eagle Heights.
Path Maintenance
Barb L. said the path maintenance was better for a while, but it has gotten bad again. The weeds are tall and going to seed in the 600/700 path. Barb L. asked how we could expect the gardeners to clean their plots if the paths are not cleaned? Discussion ensued. Karen said the main path has high weeds. More discussion of the weedy path issue involved the problems of items left in the paths. Karen said that a motion that passed at the May meeting said that all the paths were to be mowed with a lawn mower after the first frost. Barb L. said nothing ever happens. Someone asked if the workday gardeners were using the scythes. Linda said that only garden workers were allowed to use the scythes. Discussion ensued. Karen said that the gardens owns lawn mowers. Adam said we can’t expect the gardens to be perfectly clean. Barb L. asked if we could pull weeds in the paths. Adam said yes.
Adjourned by 8:15pm by Adam
Submitted by Karen
Subject to correction by the Garden Committee
6:30 – Delicious Food and great conversation by Jolene, Rollie, Ann, Rosemary, Linda, Adam, Tom, Karen, Will, Kathryn, Barb A., Melita and Barb L.
7:00 Adam welcomed everyone.
Minutes Moved by Kathryn and seconded by Barb L. to approve the minutes of the August 2016 meeting.
Registrar Update
Kathryn said that she is moving new gardeners into plots and giving ½ plots to ½ plot gardeners that want to expand to a full plot. She has sent seed donation request letters to seed companies including Baker, Seed Savers and Kitazawa. Seed Savers and Baker will be donating for the Seed Fair.
Kathryn said that the Garden Jury is complete at University Houses and has not yet been done for Eagle Heights. Adam said that he and Tom still need to do the jury at Eagle Heights.
Garden Worker Report
Will said that the propagation box at the Eagle Heights shed is working well. All of the starts are growing well. They include currants, honeyberries, blueberries and gooseberries. The starts will be transplanted to the fenced area behind the shed which will become a fruit nursery.
The GOC (Garden Oversight Committee) will meet at the University Houses shed Friday, September 23rd at 8:30 am for their annual tour. The University Houses berm has been covered with chips. Previously, we spent about $600 to create a weedpile area at University Houses and now we are finishing the landscaping. A blackberry hedge has already been planted. An irrigation system is being installed and the berm will be planted next spring, probably with strawberries.
Treasurer’s Report
Adam reported for Angus. We have more money available than last year at this time. Adam said we will have more money for projects. Worker hours are up from last year, but we are still under budget.
Co-Chair Report
Adam said we should have a general fall cleanup of the gardens that will not be a workday. We need to prepare the paths to be mowed in October. Rosemary asked if tools could be made available for people to do more volunteer maintenance of the paths. Discussion ensued. Barb A. said that the rules were different about use of private power tools on the website and the application. Adam said the reason there was a rule about no use of power tools was that a gardener was seen at the garden with a dangerous tiller and flipflop sandals. Rosemary asked how we keep the paths mowed. Adam said there was some talk about people keeping a foot cleared in front of their plots. Linda said she would ask about liability for a gardener using their own tool versus a tool provided by the gardens.
Rosemary said she was concerned about the erosion on the main road. The road now has a deep 12 inch ditch down the center and it is hard to get a cart down it. Adam said the road does not belong to us. Will said that we have done some repairs to the road after getting permission. The large pieces of concrete were put in to protect our water pipes underneath. Barb L. said the concrete channels the water down the center of the road. Karen suggested that we place a log at the top of the hill to deflect the water away from the road. Will said that CALS brings heavy equipment down the road. Discussion continued. Ann asked if this issue belongs at the GOC. Rosemary said she thought the condition of the road could be a liability issue.
Barb L. asked why the garden workers are not able to maintain the paths? She asked if we should hire another garden worker. Will said he thought that was a good idea. The issue of items left in the paths was discussed. Barb L. said she would move the stuff in the paths. Will said the garden workers were told to mow around things. Barb A. said she thought there was an issue of garden workers going into plots. More discussion ensued. Karen said that this was a difficult situation and had been very contentious and we were trying to make peace now.
Adam said we were chipping more paths now. Barb A. said the path moniter idea did not work. Rosemary said that a plot next to her has recently been given to a new gardener and they have dug a 12 inch deep trench on all the borders, which makes it impossible to get along the border side path to access the water faucet. Adam said that was a rule violation and should be reported to Kathryn. Adam said we will ask they to fill the trench with chips. More discussion continued about what to do about a problem. Barb L. said if there is a problem, you need to contact the Registrar. Kathryn said that Ulrike could not be here, but she wanted to make orientation mandatory.
Adam wanted to set a date for the fall cleanup. After some discussion, Saturday, October 22 from 1-3pm was chosen. Kathryn will send out a notice. The tool cleanup and shed closing will be Sunday, November 27 at noon.
Webpage
Tom said that Ulrike suggested that we have an introductory video on our website. We could have Mandarin, Korean and possibly Spanish translation. We would need a script and actors. Someone said it was a beautiful website. Ann said the up to date map is on the current website. Tom is interested in new pictures of the garden. New pictures are easy to put on the website using Wordpress. Discussion continued. Barb A. said there was a beautiful picture of Melita in the gardens from the newspaper recently.
2017 Budget
Adam said the budget did not need to be finalized until the next meeting, but that we should make suggestions about what projects we would like to have in the budget. Our budget must be finalized by us at the October meeting so it can be taken to the October GOC meeting for their approval. Ann suggested that we buy the parasitic wasps that eat Mexican bean beetles next year. There have been a large number of bean beetles this year. Adam said he would like to budget $3 to 4000 for mitigation of the water problems at the Eagle Heights weedpile. Barb A. asked if we had a spending priority list for the gardens? Adam said we did not have a list. Will said he would like to vote about the $3 to 4000 water mitigation plan because he would like to present it to the GOC at the meeting next week. Discussion ensued involving bringing this issue to the larger group for discussion.
Motion by Karen and seconded by Barb A. to put $3 to 4000 in the 2017 budget for water mitigation at Eagle Heights weedpile, contingent on approval by all stakeholders and final approval by the Garden Committee. Passed unanimously.
Will said he would like to buy 4 to 5 more hose reels at University Houses. Karen said she thought that maybe one or two more would be cost effective where there are long hose runs to the fruit plantings. Discussion ensued.
2017 Application Draft
Melita asked why we could not accept money orders. She said that US Postal money orders cannot bounce. Discussion ensued. Adam said that this is not our rule and we cannot change it. Linda said this is a housing policy. Kathryn asked if it would be possible to take credit cards. Jolene said she would ask. Linda said there is a fee for using credit cards and we would also have to pay a fee to the credit card company.
Barb L asked if the ½ plot fee was going to go up? Adam said that the LTE classification is going to change to a new system and he will be asking about it at the GOC. Ann asked if we had a tool inventory? Adam said we have to have the budget finalized by October for the GOC
Adjourned by 8:15pm by Adam
Submitted by Karen
Subject to correction by the Garden Committee
6:30 – Delicious Food and great conversation by Rollie, Ann, Rosemary, Adam, Tom, Karen, Will, Kathryn, Barbara, Tianxing, Mark, Barb A., Melita and Barb L.
7:00 Adam went home because he wasn’t feeling well and Tom welcomed everyone.
Minutes Moved by Kathryn and seconded by Barb A. to approve the minutes of the September 2016 meeting. Passed unanimously.
Registrar Update
Kathryn reported that she is preparing to requests to 14 seed companies for Seed Fair donations. So far she has received donations from Renee’s, Seed Savers, Baker Creek and multiple boxes from Seedway. The Seed Fair will be on April 1, 2017 and the room is reserved. She also sent letters to potential plant sale vendors for the sale and Ulrike and Melita have offered to help again. The portapotty will be cancelled on November 8th.
2017 Application
Based on previous discussion, the proposed 2017 application has the price of a small plot going from $16 to $20 for a student and $21 to $25 for a non-student. The price of 2 small plots will be the same as one large plot. The no workday fee will be $32 no matter the size of the plot. The late fee for the no workday will be $20. Plots will be ½ price after July 1st.
Motion by Ann and seconded by Barb L. to accept these changes with the idea that the application might change slightly in appearance. Motion passed.
Tom asked what the difference in revenue and Kathryn said not much difference. The price rise of the ½ plot just accounts for the greater cost of administration.
2017 Budget
Will said the water project is most important to him. He wants the weed pile usable again. The surface water needs to be moved away from the weed pile. Will has a meeting with the preserve about the issue. The change in the proposal has been the removal of any detention ponds at the request of the water utility because of the nearby well. Will also reported that the road is in very bad condition and needs to be regraded. Discussion ensued. At the last meeting we approved $3000 to $4000 for the water mitigation project, contingent on the approval of all stakeholders. Barb A. asked how soon the road would be fixed. Will said he would like to see it done by April 1.
The 2017 Budget was discussed. Using 2016 as a template, the committee noted the $3000 to $4000 in water mitigation and $1000 in fruit plantation expenses. The Garden Oversight Committee (GOC) needs to approve the budget at the next meeting. Will said he thought there were enough labor hours in the 2016 budget so labor hours would remain the same.
Will announced that Angus is stepping down as Treasurer. Rosemary asked why all the Garden Worker labor hours were not used. Will said the garden workers did not know what big projects they were going to do. It depends on what free materials we receive. Discussion ensued. Mark said he thought part of the reason was that Will had been sick in the spring.
Mark suggested that we add the revenue of the price increase of the ½ plots to the budget and increase the worker hours in the spending line.
Motion by Karen and seconded by Will to remove the word plumbing from the special projects line of the 2016 budget, change the income to reflect the changes of the ½ plot increase and to increase the garden worker hours to spend the increase. Passed unanimously.
Will said he wanted to discuss adding a third garden worker, but it was agreed that we could discuss it at the next meeting.
Mowing
Ann said that Gene had a good idea for an electric mower that was talked about on the discussion list. The battery pack weighs 3 to 4 pounds. Will wanted to know what it would take to solar power the shed. Barb A. asked why an electric mower would be better than a gas mower? Will said that several years ago there was discussion about getting away from using fossil fuels and electric is an intermediate phase. Will said there have been a lot of complaints about the height of the grass. An electric mower could help.
Discussion ensued. Will said are we looking to use a supplemental energy source to charge the mower? Mark said we could discuss the charging later. Kathryn said she could recharge the batteries in her office. Further discussion ensued regarding electrifying the shed. Will said sharpening tools would be easier with electricity. Barb A. said we should talk to Niels about solar power for the shed.
Tom asked if we were feeling a level of satisfaction with the discussion. Rosemary asked if the goal was that we are more satisfied with the condition of the paths? Will said that hand mowing means more toads. Barb A said she thought we needed to talk about it. Discussion continued. Barb L. asked if the height of the grass was deliberate? Will said yes because the grass needs to be cut when it is higher and flowering. There is more thistle and creeping weeds in the paths. Rosemary said she liked the idea of having a big picture discussion. Will said he thought the weeds had declined in the gardens because we are not rototilling. Rosemary said she thought the weeds had not declined. Barb L. asked what is the purpose of the paths?
Barb L. said she thought that we should release parasitic wasps to prey on the Mexican bean beetles next year. The beans were terrible this year. Will said we need beans.
Tom announced that Dave was resigning as a Garden Worker in December.
Rosemary asked how we set priorities in the garden?
Adjourned by 8:00pm by Tom
Submitted by Karen Subject to correction by the Garden Committee
6:30 – Delicious Food and great conversation by Rollie, Ann, Rosemary, Ric, Adam, Karen, Will, Kathryn, Barbara, Tianxing, Mark, Barb A., Melita and Barb L.
7:00 Adam welcomed everyone.
Adam said Mark had a sample of his on line registration process for the gardens to present. Mark used Qualtrics software available through UW. Mark said the program uses the plot information from last year and authenticates the users through their email address. Mark said the no workday information from last year is loaded into the program. The Qualtrics program uses a survey format, with a separate question on each page. After the gardener has registered, the system sends a hard copy back to the gardener’s email. Mark said one problem is that every plot needs a separate email account. If your email has changed, then the returning gardener needs to contact the Registrar.
Barb L. asked if the gardener could change their email? Mark said that Kathryn would have to be involved with email changes. Ric said that for security purposes, we don’t want to provide an application that allows users to change email addresses without the approval and manual intervention of a garden staffer. If we were to provide an application that allowed users to autonomously change "their" email address, then we would be enabling impersonators of gardeners to change the gardener's email addresses to values that are unknown to the victims of such impersonations.
Discussion ensued. Last year there were people who applied as students, but they weren’t when checked. Mark said these cases would still have to be checked. Ann asked if a gardener could check their order? Mark said the back button on their computer would allow them to see their previous answers. Rosemary asked how easy it will be for Kathryn to make changes. Rosemary said she had extensive experience using this program and there are ways to set up the program at the beginning that make it easier to edit. Kathryn said she was reasonably computer literate, but she did not know what to ask. Kathryn was concerned that there is no way to have a paper copy too. Melita said we should be able to submit a paper copy. Barb A. said she thought most would be electronic. Kathryn said she thought it would be good for returning gardeners, but new gardeners would have trouble. More discussion ensued.
Will suggested a small test of the people in the room. Ann said she had some trouble with getting the data back out of the Qualtrics program when we used it for the survey last year. Barb A. said the application was not final until an email has been received from the Registrar and the check received in the office. Rosemary said we could potentially have three data sets, 1. Checks, 2. New applications 3. Old information in the database. More discussion ensued. Ric said that this conversation is good because we are identifying the potential problems. Rollouts usually have surprises. Ric said we shouldn’t shoot for December without a fallback. Adam said we already had the fallback in the paper application. Adam said since Kathryn has to do the work, she should decide if she is comfortable using it. Adam thanked Mark for his hard work on the program.
Minutes Moved by Barb A and seconded by Kathryn. to approve the minutes of the October 2016 meeting. Passed unanimously.
Registrar Update
Kathryn said there is not much work to do at this time of year aside from some no work day fees coming in. The fee for the old website is due. ($166/ 2 years) Discussion ensued about getting the information off the old website and onto the new. Adam said he would contact Dave about getting the information off or pay for the old website if that was not possible in the time we have.
Kathryn reported that she is preparing letters with Melita to potential plant vendors for the spring plant sales. The Seed Fair is April 1st and the room is reserved.
Garden Worker Report
Will said the road at Eagle Heights has been repaired with about 80 tons of breaker rocks with asphalt grounds as a cover. The road is 8 inches higher than it used to be. UW Grounds cleared all the tree limbs that were overhanging the road. Rhonda James the UW Landscape Architect is committed to fixing the water situation in the spring. Will said that water is flowing into the weedpile from the hill. Barb A. asked what is the remaining work to be done? Will said a protocol about how to handle the leaf process. Will said in 2006, UW Grounds put in a berm south of our weedpile and changed the waterflow.
Will reported significant water issues at University Houses. Shorewood will wait for the ground to freeze and then bring leaves to both Eagle Heights and University Houses, creating a significant inventory. Will said there is one pending project at University Houses, a retaining wall at the end of the main path.
Karen asked the status of the mowing. Will said University Houses and the entire perimeter of Eagle Heights is done, along with some of the smaller paths. It is a work in progress.
It was announced that Angus would be stepping down as treasurer. Barb L. said she was willing to be the new treasurer, and the committee approved her by consensus.
It was agreed that we should discuss 2017 plans and priorities, the garden worker position and the treasurer at the next meeting.
Adjourned by 8:00pm by Adam
Submitted by Karen
Subject to correction by the Garden Committee
6:30 – Delicious Food and great conversation by Rollie, Ann, Rosemary, Ric, Karen, Linda, Ulrike, Kathryn and Tianxing.
7:00 Kathryn welcomed everyone.
Minutes Moved by Ric and seconded by Ann to approve the minutes of the November 2016 meeting. Passed unanimously.
Registrar Update
Kathryn reported that around $2600 has come in as no workday fees. She has sent 8 letters to potential plant sale vendors and has received one response. The 2017 garden application information will become live on the 15th of December. Applications will be done as in the past in written form. We have a new webmaster. So far we have received a ten pound box of Heirloom Seeds as a donation.
Treasurer’s Report
Kathryn reports that Angus says we are on budget. He is hoping to finish being treasurer, but will continue working until a replacement is found.
Garden Worker Report
Will sent a note stating that the weeds at the Eagle Heights Weedpile will be removed when the ground is frozen and the equipment will not get stuck. Will is trying to arrange a compost delivery for May. He also expressed a preference for having Gardens to Be as a plant sale vendor. Discussion ensued. Because of the difficulties of not having a plant sale last year, it was decided that that a backup plan of having more than one vendor would be good.
Goals and Direction for 2017
After some productive discussion the group come up with the following draft list of goals for 2017.
1. Improve the meeting- Have the agenda a week in advance with the discussion time allotted to the item. Someone needs to keep the discussion to the topic and the time allotted. Have sub-committees do some of the work and bring a proposal to the committee meeting for approval. Transparency is a good idea, we need to make sure all people are informed. After an online discussion, we need to decide if there is consensus on a topic at the next meeting. Maintain a positive tone.
2. More events- Increase social events like the plant exchange.
3. Recognize good garden examples- Juries can also find good gardens.
4. Put a berm above the Eagle Heights weedpile to solve water problems.
5. Unfinished Business- improve path maintenance.
6. Online application- for a later year.
7. Recruiting-
Kathryn reported we need new co-chairs as Adam is leaving in July and Tom is stepping down. The treasurer position is open. There was discussion about what a volunteer would be able to do if they were not an employee of Housing. Linda said she would find out what a what a volunteer could do in the system.
Ric volunteered to do some of the new gardener orientations in the spring.
There is also an open garden worker position. Jolene is working with HR to reclassify the position. Jolene wrote a description for HR. The committee asked to see the draft. There was discussion about the UW wanting no temporary positions, but that seasonal positions are allowed.
Form working groups
1. Seed Fair- April 1
2. Plant Sales- Kathryn, Melita and Ulrike
3. New Gardener Orientation- Ric volunteered to help.
4. Parasitic wasps
Adjourned by 8:00pm by Kathryn
Submitted by Karen Subject to correction by the Garden Committee
Eagle Heights Garden Committee Minutes
August 11, 2016, 6:30 PM
Eagle Heights Garden Arbor
August 11, 2016, 6:30 PM
Eagle Heights Garden Arbor
6:30 – Delicious Food and great conversation by Malcolm, Sandra, Ann, Bill, Jill, Steward, Adam, Tom, Karen, Tianxing, Kathryn, Barb A., Niels, Angus, Melita and Mark.
7:00 Adam welcomed everyone.
Minutes Moved by Kathryn. and seconded by Ann to approve the minutes of the July 2015 meeting. Passed unanimously.
Registrar Update
Kathryn reported that we have no people on the waiting list and she is concerned about what will happen to the abandoned plots. Kathryn is working hard to identify plots that are not being worked.
Kathryn reported that we have a UW Foundation account that was set up to fund infrastructure improvements. The Garden Oversight Committee (GOC) has has approval authority to spend money in the account.
Garden Worker Report
Dave said that the main work that was accomplished this month was that the weed pile at Eagle Heights was removed by Shorewood. There was too much trash, dirt and sticks in the pile, so the gardens had to pay a $90 fee to have the load dumped in the landfill. Dave said one of the problems with the pile was that Shorewood has not been turning it. Adam said if Shorewood had been turning the pile, the dirt would have not been as big a problem. All gardeners need to do their part to keep the weedpile free of dirt, trash and sticks.
After the old pile was cleared, a workday crew built a path with metal grates into the middle of the area so people can dump weeds in the middle without getting muddy feet. Fencing was placed along the main metal grate path so the weeds must be dumped in the proper place. More fencing was also placed on the lower edge so the weeds do not get dumped in the path.
Barb L. said she did not realize that we should not put dirt in the weedpile. Education is important on this issue. Karen said she has been putting weeds in a black bag to kill them and they break down fairly quickly in the summer. Sandra says she using a bag too, which she calls the “Bag of Death”.
Barb A. suggested we have a person at the weedpile on a busy day educating people about how to use the weedpile. Adam said that a workday spent on the weedpile also educates workday gardeners.
Co-Chair Report
Webpage-
Adam said we have a webpage update. Adam reported that Tom sent a link to the discussion list of the new, draft webpage and would like our comments and suggestions via the discussion list. Tom did the webpage using Wordpress. Our old web page is on Lunar pages. Dave said that Wordpress has a free site and we would have to redirect from the old site to the new one. Discussion ensued. Some people had not seen the message from Tom. Adam said the link to the new webpage will be re-sent to the Discussion list.
Raising Plot Fees-
Adam said the Garden Oversight Committee (GOC), which is in charge of the Gardens, has asked us to explore funding a permanent half time employee. Adam recently talked to Gretel and she said that she reported all the hours she worked in 2015 and it is much lower than the half time position that we all had been thinking of. With this new information, Adam said this changes the conversation entirely. There would be many hours with no work. Adam said his report to the GOC at the August 26th meeting would be about these lower hours.
Linda said that the GOC will still want to look into making the position permanent. Barb L said a problem with a permanent position was that the person can work more hours, but they are not allowed to work less than their appointment. This rule makes the position much less flexible. Linda said that some of the LTE staff in Housing have not wanted to make this transition to a more rigid schedule. Karen asked how many hours was the minimum appointment. Linda thought it was 25 % time. Discussion ensued.
No Workday Fee-
Karen said she thought we should discuss a difference in the no workday fee between full and half plots. The no workday fee is $32 for the full and $16 for the half plot, but all gardeners do same 4 hour workday. Adam said he thought that the fee should be the same for both size plots.
Sandra thought that workdays are really important and can be an educational opportunity. Ulrike said they had had only one workday this year at University Houses and would like to see more at University Houses. Barb L. wanted to discuss the problem of people leaving the garden without doing their workday or paying the fee. Discussion ensued. Ulrike said the key to the problem was vigilance. We should not be waiting until the weeds are 6 feet high in the plot before thinking it is abandoned. Melita and Sandra brought up the idea of putting a University hold on the gardeners record so they would be forced to pay the fee before they left. More discussion ensued. Karen asked how big a problem is the non-payment of the fee? Linda said she was concerned that not all of our gardeners are students and the hold would only affect some of the gardeners. She said that Housing would have to support the idea. Linda asked if the no workday fee was per person or per plot. The fee is for each plot.
Kathryn said she has sent out emails to gardeners with really messy plots that were tending toward weedy and she sometimes gets nasty replies in return. Karen said that is one reason why the jury system was developed to support the Registrar. Discussion ensued. Sandra said she liked the pink weedy plot notices that were used in previous years. The signs reminds all the gardeners there are rules, this gardener has been notified of breaking those rules and action is being taken.
Ulrike said the juries were sometimes done without the Registrar and the results sent in. Dave said they were marking too many plots. Discussion ensued about whether there were written criteria for the juries to use. Adam said he didn’t think the gardens were in any worse shape than they usually are in August. Karen said she thought the pink, weedy plot notices have an educational value. Dave said that after the signs were put up, progress was slow to get the plot cleaned up. Sandra asked what was the outcome of the really weedy plots in the end. Adam said that some gardeners lost their plots.
Melita suggested that we try to help our neighbors. New neighbors sometimes need help to succeed. Ulrike asked what happened to the Row Monitor idea? Adam said we got very few volunteers, so it wasn’t done. Bill said we should turn in an agreement about following the rules. Adam said we already do when we turn in our applications. Sandra asked if we ever take plots away from a gardener? Adam said not this year. Kathryn said we will probably take away 2 plots this year. Kathryn is concerned that if the weedy plots get cleared there will be no one waiting to garden. Sandra said we should go back to clearing plots. She realizes it is really hard work, but the problem of a very weedy plot makes it really hard for a new gardener to be successful. Adam said a cleared plot is a new seed bed ready to sprout. Sandra said maybe we could use cover crops like sunflowers and annual rye. Karen said she thought there would be people on the waiting list again when new people move in in the fall. Adam said the plots are free after September 1st and the gardener can apply for the plot in December as a returning gardener.
Adam said we should have a jury at both gardens. Discussion ensued. Sandra, Ulrike and Adam will do a jury at University Houses on Saturday. More discussion ensued. It was agreed that a group of people will do the jury. Adam and Tom will do a jury at Eagle Heights.
Path Maintenance
Barb L. said the path maintenance was better for a while, but it has gotten bad again. The weeds are tall and going to seed in the 600/700 path. Barb L. asked how we could expect the gardeners to clean their plots if the paths are not cleaned? Discussion ensued. Karen said the main path has high weeds. More discussion of the weedy path issue involved the problems of items left in the paths. Karen said that a motion that passed at the May meeting said that all the paths were to be mowed with a lawn mower after the first frost. Barb L. said nothing ever happens. Someone asked if the workday gardeners were using the scythes. Linda said that only garden workers were allowed to use the scythes. Discussion ensued. Karen said that the gardens owns lawn mowers. Adam said we can’t expect the gardens to be perfectly clean. Barb L. asked if we could pull weeds in the paths. Adam said yes.
Adjourned by 8:15pm by Adam
Submitted by Karen
Subject to correction by the Garden Committee
Eagle Heights Garden Committee Minutes
September 14, 2016, 6:30 PM
Eagle Heights Community Center
September 14, 2016, 6:30 PM
Eagle Heights Community Center
6:30 – Delicious Food and great conversation by Jolene, Rollie, Ann, Rosemary, Linda, Adam, Tom, Karen, Will, Kathryn, Barb A., Melita and Barb L.
7:00 Adam welcomed everyone.
Minutes Moved by Kathryn and seconded by Barb L. to approve the minutes of the August 2016 meeting.
Registrar Update
Kathryn said that she is moving new gardeners into plots and giving ½ plots to ½ plot gardeners that want to expand to a full plot. She has sent seed donation request letters to seed companies including Baker, Seed Savers and Kitazawa. Seed Savers and Baker will be donating for the Seed Fair.
Kathryn said that the Garden Jury is complete at University Houses and has not yet been done for Eagle Heights. Adam said that he and Tom still need to do the jury at Eagle Heights.
Garden Worker Report
Will said that the propagation box at the Eagle Heights shed is working well. All of the starts are growing well. They include currants, honeyberries, blueberries and gooseberries. The starts will be transplanted to the fenced area behind the shed which will become a fruit nursery.
The GOC (Garden Oversight Committee) will meet at the University Houses shed Friday, September 23rd at 8:30 am for their annual tour. The University Houses berm has been covered with chips. Previously, we spent about $600 to create a weedpile area at University Houses and now we are finishing the landscaping. A blackberry hedge has already been planted. An irrigation system is being installed and the berm will be planted next spring, probably with strawberries.
Treasurer’s Report
Adam reported for Angus. We have more money available than last year at this time. Adam said we will have more money for projects. Worker hours are up from last year, but we are still under budget.
Co-Chair Report
Adam said we should have a general fall cleanup of the gardens that will not be a workday. We need to prepare the paths to be mowed in October. Rosemary asked if tools could be made available for people to do more volunteer maintenance of the paths. Discussion ensued. Barb A. said that the rules were different about use of private power tools on the website and the application. Adam said the reason there was a rule about no use of power tools was that a gardener was seen at the garden with a dangerous tiller and flipflop sandals. Rosemary asked how we keep the paths mowed. Adam said there was some talk about people keeping a foot cleared in front of their plots. Linda said she would ask about liability for a gardener using their own tool versus a tool provided by the gardens.
Rosemary said she was concerned about the erosion on the main road. The road now has a deep 12 inch ditch down the center and it is hard to get a cart down it. Adam said the road does not belong to us. Will said that we have done some repairs to the road after getting permission. The large pieces of concrete were put in to protect our water pipes underneath. Barb L. said the concrete channels the water down the center of the road. Karen suggested that we place a log at the top of the hill to deflect the water away from the road. Will said that CALS brings heavy equipment down the road. Discussion continued. Ann asked if this issue belongs at the GOC. Rosemary said she thought the condition of the road could be a liability issue.
Barb L. asked why the garden workers are not able to maintain the paths? She asked if we should hire another garden worker. Will said he thought that was a good idea. The issue of items left in the paths was discussed. Barb L. said she would move the stuff in the paths. Will said the garden workers were told to mow around things. Barb A. said she thought there was an issue of garden workers going into plots. More discussion ensued. Karen said that this was a difficult situation and had been very contentious and we were trying to make peace now.
Adam said we were chipping more paths now. Barb A. said the path moniter idea did not work. Rosemary said that a plot next to her has recently been given to a new gardener and they have dug a 12 inch deep trench on all the borders, which makes it impossible to get along the border side path to access the water faucet. Adam said that was a rule violation and should be reported to Kathryn. Adam said we will ask they to fill the trench with chips. More discussion continued about what to do about a problem. Barb L. said if there is a problem, you need to contact the Registrar. Kathryn said that Ulrike could not be here, but she wanted to make orientation mandatory.
Adam wanted to set a date for the fall cleanup. After some discussion, Saturday, October 22 from 1-3pm was chosen. Kathryn will send out a notice. The tool cleanup and shed closing will be Sunday, November 27 at noon.
Webpage
Tom said that Ulrike suggested that we have an introductory video on our website. We could have Mandarin, Korean and possibly Spanish translation. We would need a script and actors. Someone said it was a beautiful website. Ann said the up to date map is on the current website. Tom is interested in new pictures of the garden. New pictures are easy to put on the website using Wordpress. Discussion continued. Barb A. said there was a beautiful picture of Melita in the gardens from the newspaper recently.
2017 Budget
Adam said the budget did not need to be finalized until the next meeting, but that we should make suggestions about what projects we would like to have in the budget. Our budget must be finalized by us at the October meeting so it can be taken to the October GOC meeting for their approval. Ann suggested that we buy the parasitic wasps that eat Mexican bean beetles next year. There have been a large number of bean beetles this year. Adam said he would like to budget $3 to 4000 for mitigation of the water problems at the Eagle Heights weedpile. Barb A. asked if we had a spending priority list for the gardens? Adam said we did not have a list. Will said he would like to vote about the $3 to 4000 water mitigation plan because he would like to present it to the GOC at the meeting next week. Discussion ensued involving bringing this issue to the larger group for discussion.
Motion by Karen and seconded by Barb A. to put $3 to 4000 in the 2017 budget for water mitigation at Eagle Heights weedpile, contingent on approval by all stakeholders and final approval by the Garden Committee. Passed unanimously.
Will said he would like to buy 4 to 5 more hose reels at University Houses. Karen said she thought that maybe one or two more would be cost effective where there are long hose runs to the fruit plantings. Discussion ensued.
2017 Application Draft
Melita asked why we could not accept money orders. She said that US Postal money orders cannot bounce. Discussion ensued. Adam said that this is not our rule and we cannot change it. Linda said this is a housing policy. Kathryn asked if it would be possible to take credit cards. Jolene said she would ask. Linda said there is a fee for using credit cards and we would also have to pay a fee to the credit card company.
Barb L asked if the ½ plot fee was going to go up? Adam said that the LTE classification is going to change to a new system and he will be asking about it at the GOC. Ann asked if we had a tool inventory? Adam said we have to have the budget finalized by October for the GOC
Adjourned by 8:15pm by Adam
Submitted by Karen
Subject to correction by the Garden Committee
Eagle Heights Garden Committee Minutes
October 12, 2016, 6:30 PM
Eagle Heights Community Center
October 12, 2016, 6:30 PM
Eagle Heights Community Center
6:30 – Delicious Food and great conversation by Rollie, Ann, Rosemary, Adam, Tom, Karen, Will, Kathryn, Barbara, Tianxing, Mark, Barb A., Melita and Barb L.
7:00 Adam went home because he wasn’t feeling well and Tom welcomed everyone.
Minutes Moved by Kathryn and seconded by Barb A. to approve the minutes of the September 2016 meeting. Passed unanimously.
Registrar Update
Kathryn reported that she is preparing to requests to 14 seed companies for Seed Fair donations. So far she has received donations from Renee’s, Seed Savers, Baker Creek and multiple boxes from Seedway. The Seed Fair will be on April 1, 2017 and the room is reserved. She also sent letters to potential plant sale vendors for the sale and Ulrike and Melita have offered to help again. The portapotty will be cancelled on November 8th.
2017 Application
Based on previous discussion, the proposed 2017 application has the price of a small plot going from $16 to $20 for a student and $21 to $25 for a non-student. The price of 2 small plots will be the same as one large plot. The no workday fee will be $32 no matter the size of the plot. The late fee for the no workday will be $20. Plots will be ½ price after July 1st.
Motion by Ann and seconded by Barb L. to accept these changes with the idea that the application might change slightly in appearance. Motion passed.
Tom asked what the difference in revenue and Kathryn said not much difference. The price rise of the ½ plot just accounts for the greater cost of administration.
2017 Budget
Will said the water project is most important to him. He wants the weed pile usable again. The surface water needs to be moved away from the weed pile. Will has a meeting with the preserve about the issue. The change in the proposal has been the removal of any detention ponds at the request of the water utility because of the nearby well. Will also reported that the road is in very bad condition and needs to be regraded. Discussion ensued. At the last meeting we approved $3000 to $4000 for the water mitigation project, contingent on the approval of all stakeholders. Barb A. asked how soon the road would be fixed. Will said he would like to see it done by April 1.
The 2017 Budget was discussed. Using 2016 as a template, the committee noted the $3000 to $4000 in water mitigation and $1000 in fruit plantation expenses. The Garden Oversight Committee (GOC) needs to approve the budget at the next meeting. Will said he thought there were enough labor hours in the 2016 budget so labor hours would remain the same.
Will announced that Angus is stepping down as Treasurer. Rosemary asked why all the Garden Worker labor hours were not used. Will said the garden workers did not know what big projects they were going to do. It depends on what free materials we receive. Discussion ensued. Mark said he thought part of the reason was that Will had been sick in the spring.
Mark suggested that we add the revenue of the price increase of the ½ plots to the budget and increase the worker hours in the spending line.
Motion by Karen and seconded by Will to remove the word plumbing from the special projects line of the 2016 budget, change the income to reflect the changes of the ½ plot increase and to increase the garden worker hours to spend the increase. Passed unanimously.
Will said he wanted to discuss adding a third garden worker, but it was agreed that we could discuss it at the next meeting.
Mowing
Ann said that Gene had a good idea for an electric mower that was talked about on the discussion list. The battery pack weighs 3 to 4 pounds. Will wanted to know what it would take to solar power the shed. Barb A. asked why an electric mower would be better than a gas mower? Will said that several years ago there was discussion about getting away from using fossil fuels and electric is an intermediate phase. Will said there have been a lot of complaints about the height of the grass. An electric mower could help.
Discussion ensued. Will said are we looking to use a supplemental energy source to charge the mower? Mark said we could discuss the charging later. Kathryn said she could recharge the batteries in her office. Further discussion ensued regarding electrifying the shed. Will said sharpening tools would be easier with electricity. Barb A. said we should talk to Niels about solar power for the shed.
Tom asked if we were feeling a level of satisfaction with the discussion. Rosemary asked if the goal was that we are more satisfied with the condition of the paths? Will said that hand mowing means more toads. Barb A said she thought we needed to talk about it. Discussion continued. Barb L. asked if the height of the grass was deliberate? Will said yes because the grass needs to be cut when it is higher and flowering. There is more thistle and creeping weeds in the paths. Rosemary said she liked the idea of having a big picture discussion. Will said he thought the weeds had declined in the gardens because we are not rototilling. Rosemary said she thought the weeds had not declined. Barb L. asked what is the purpose of the paths?
Barb L. said she thought that we should release parasitic wasps to prey on the Mexican bean beetles next year. The beans were terrible this year. Will said we need beans.
Tom announced that Dave was resigning as a Garden Worker in December.
Rosemary asked how we set priorities in the garden?
Adjourned by 8:00pm by Tom
Submitted by Karen Subject to correction by the Garden Committee
Eagle Heights Garden Committee Minutes
November 9, 2016, 6:30 PM
Eagle Heights Community Center
November 9, 2016, 6:30 PM
Eagle Heights Community Center
6:30 – Delicious Food and great conversation by Rollie, Ann, Rosemary, Ric, Adam, Karen, Will, Kathryn, Barbara, Tianxing, Mark, Barb A., Melita and Barb L.
7:00 Adam welcomed everyone.
Adam said Mark had a sample of his on line registration process for the gardens to present. Mark used Qualtrics software available through UW. Mark said the program uses the plot information from last year and authenticates the users through their email address. Mark said the no workday information from last year is loaded into the program. The Qualtrics program uses a survey format, with a separate question on each page. After the gardener has registered, the system sends a hard copy back to the gardener’s email. Mark said one problem is that every plot needs a separate email account. If your email has changed, then the returning gardener needs to contact the Registrar.
Barb L. asked if the gardener could change their email? Mark said that Kathryn would have to be involved with email changes. Ric said that for security purposes, we don’t want to provide an application that allows users to change email addresses without the approval and manual intervention of a garden staffer. If we were to provide an application that allowed users to autonomously change "their" email address, then we would be enabling impersonators of gardeners to change the gardener's email addresses to values that are unknown to the victims of such impersonations.
Discussion ensued. Last year there were people who applied as students, but they weren’t when checked. Mark said these cases would still have to be checked. Ann asked if a gardener could check their order? Mark said the back button on their computer would allow them to see their previous answers. Rosemary asked how easy it will be for Kathryn to make changes. Rosemary said she had extensive experience using this program and there are ways to set up the program at the beginning that make it easier to edit. Kathryn said she was reasonably computer literate, but she did not know what to ask. Kathryn was concerned that there is no way to have a paper copy too. Melita said we should be able to submit a paper copy. Barb A. said she thought most would be electronic. Kathryn said she thought it would be good for returning gardeners, but new gardeners would have trouble. More discussion ensued.
Will suggested a small test of the people in the room. Ann said she had some trouble with getting the data back out of the Qualtrics program when we used it for the survey last year. Barb A. said the application was not final until an email has been received from the Registrar and the check received in the office. Rosemary said we could potentially have three data sets, 1. Checks, 2. New applications 3. Old information in the database. More discussion ensued. Ric said that this conversation is good because we are identifying the potential problems. Rollouts usually have surprises. Ric said we shouldn’t shoot for December without a fallback. Adam said we already had the fallback in the paper application. Adam said since Kathryn has to do the work, she should decide if she is comfortable using it. Adam thanked Mark for his hard work on the program.
Minutes Moved by Barb A and seconded by Kathryn. to approve the minutes of the October 2016 meeting. Passed unanimously.
Registrar Update
Kathryn said there is not much work to do at this time of year aside from some no work day fees coming in. The fee for the old website is due. ($166/ 2 years) Discussion ensued about getting the information off the old website and onto the new. Adam said he would contact Dave about getting the information off or pay for the old website if that was not possible in the time we have.
Kathryn reported that she is preparing letters with Melita to potential plant vendors for the spring plant sales. The Seed Fair is April 1st and the room is reserved.
Garden Worker Report
Will said the road at Eagle Heights has been repaired with about 80 tons of breaker rocks with asphalt grounds as a cover. The road is 8 inches higher than it used to be. UW Grounds cleared all the tree limbs that were overhanging the road. Rhonda James the UW Landscape Architect is committed to fixing the water situation in the spring. Will said that water is flowing into the weedpile from the hill. Barb A. asked what is the remaining work to be done? Will said a protocol about how to handle the leaf process. Will said in 2006, UW Grounds put in a berm south of our weedpile and changed the waterflow.
Will reported significant water issues at University Houses. Shorewood will wait for the ground to freeze and then bring leaves to both Eagle Heights and University Houses, creating a significant inventory. Will said there is one pending project at University Houses, a retaining wall at the end of the main path.
Karen asked the status of the mowing. Will said University Houses and the entire perimeter of Eagle Heights is done, along with some of the smaller paths. It is a work in progress.
It was announced that Angus would be stepping down as treasurer. Barb L. said she was willing to be the new treasurer, and the committee approved her by consensus.
It was agreed that we should discuss 2017 plans and priorities, the garden worker position and the treasurer at the next meeting.
Adjourned by 8:00pm by Adam
Submitted by Karen
Subject to correction by the Garden Committee
Eagle Heights Garden Committee Minutes
December 14, 2016, 6:30 PM
Eagle Heights Community Center
December 14, 2016, 6:30 PM
Eagle Heights Community Center
6:30 – Delicious Food and great conversation by Rollie, Ann, Rosemary, Ric, Karen, Linda, Ulrike, Kathryn and Tianxing.
7:00 Kathryn welcomed everyone.
Minutes Moved by Ric and seconded by Ann to approve the minutes of the November 2016 meeting. Passed unanimously.
Registrar Update
Kathryn reported that around $2600 has come in as no workday fees. She has sent 8 letters to potential plant sale vendors and has received one response. The 2017 garden application information will become live on the 15th of December. Applications will be done as in the past in written form. We have a new webmaster. So far we have received a ten pound box of Heirloom Seeds as a donation.
Treasurer’s Report
Kathryn reports that Angus says we are on budget. He is hoping to finish being treasurer, but will continue working until a replacement is found.
Garden Worker Report
Will sent a note stating that the weeds at the Eagle Heights Weedpile will be removed when the ground is frozen and the equipment will not get stuck. Will is trying to arrange a compost delivery for May. He also expressed a preference for having Gardens to Be as a plant sale vendor. Discussion ensued. Because of the difficulties of not having a plant sale last year, it was decided that that a backup plan of having more than one vendor would be good.
Goals and Direction for 2017
After some productive discussion the group come up with the following draft list of goals for 2017.
1. Improve the meeting- Have the agenda a week in advance with the discussion time allotted to the item. Someone needs to keep the discussion to the topic and the time allotted. Have sub-committees do some of the work and bring a proposal to the committee meeting for approval. Transparency is a good idea, we need to make sure all people are informed. After an online discussion, we need to decide if there is consensus on a topic at the next meeting. Maintain a positive tone.
2. More events- Increase social events like the plant exchange.
3. Recognize good garden examples- Juries can also find good gardens.
4. Put a berm above the Eagle Heights weedpile to solve water problems.
5. Unfinished Business- improve path maintenance.
6. Online application- for a later year.
7. Recruiting-
Kathryn reported we need new co-chairs as Adam is leaving in July and Tom is stepping down. The treasurer position is open. There was discussion about what a volunteer would be able to do if they were not an employee of Housing. Linda said she would find out what a what a volunteer could do in the system.
Ric volunteered to do some of the new gardener orientations in the spring.
There is also an open garden worker position. Jolene is working with HR to reclassify the position. Jolene wrote a description for HR. The committee asked to see the draft. There was discussion about the UW wanting no temporary positions, but that seasonal positions are allowed.
Form working groups
1. Seed Fair- April 1
2. Plant Sales- Kathryn, Melita and Ulrike
3. New Gardener Orientation- Ric volunteered to help.
4. Parasitic wasps
Adjourned by 8:00pm by Kathryn
Submitted by Karen Subject to correction by the Garden Committee
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