February 2025

                                       

Eagle Heights Garden Committee Minutes

February 12, 2025 7 PM

Remote Meeting

Zach, Lily, Ann, Ric, Pam, Jolene, Alan, Alex and Karen.

Ann started the meeting.

Minutes With a motion by Lily and seconded by Pam the January 2025 minutes were approved.

Registrar Update

Seed Fair April 5, 2025

Lily said 388 Gardeners have renewed their plots and we now have 44 new gardener applications. She thinks there is less interest in gardening compared to previous years.

Lily will send an email to the discussion list for volunteers to do new gardener orientations.

The Committee agreed to make Opening Day and the Seed Fair on April 5th. Lily thinks this might save some of the tools from damage when gardeners try to dig into frozen ground.

Lily proposes to remove the deadline to pay the no workday fee. Previously there was also a financial penalty that we no longer have. The gardener would still have to pay the no workday fee before being assigned a new plot. The Committee agreed.

There has been a request for help with the plot fee. The gardener changed status. Discussion ensued. There is a real threshold for asking for help. Jolene said we need to say this is available if we provide it in the future.

The Committee decided to develop a program for next year for a limited number of spots and the procedure for applying to the Registrar. The number of sponsorship spots available will depend on the amount donated by other gardeners. For this first request we are offering the gardener in need the chance to do three workdays in exchange for the plot.

Lily said we have been offered a sand excavator toy for the garden. Should we accept it? The Committee thought it was a great idea.

Compost

At a previous meeting there was discussion about providing compost to the gardeners.

Lily found that the price has doubled since we previously bought it. Giving all plots 3.5 cubic feet (½ a cart load) would cost us $5000. Malachai will propose the windrow composting system to the GOC at the next meeting. This compost would be cheaper and would work.

If we could also get fresh horse manure in the fall again, that would also be a solution as it would be ready to use on plants by the spring. If we could find a source of horse manure, UW Physical Plant would transport it for us if the farm would load it in their truck.

We should pay someone to evaluate the mulberry tree. The branches are obstructing the path. It would be best to act while the ground is frozen. Lily will put in a work order with PP to ask for an assessment and quote for removal.

Garden Worker Report

Jolene said the process has been started to hire a third garden worker and the target start date is mid March. Pam said not much is happening in the garden in winter. Jolene asked that any needed supplies be ordered soon. Pam is checking the charger of the weed wackers before buying the new batteries already approved for purchase.

Motion by Ric and seconded by Lily to adjourn.

Adjourned about 7:30 pm

Submitted by Karen, subject to correction by the Garden Committee

January 2025

Eagle Heights Garden Committee Minutes

January, 2025 7 PM

Remote Meeting

Alex, Lily, Ann, Ric, Barb A, Pam, Jessica, Jolene and Karen.

Alex started the meeting.

Minutes With a motion by Barb A and seconded by Lily, the November 2024 minutes were approved.

Registrar Update

Seed Fair April 5, 2025 and Seed Sort January 20, 2025.

Garden plot renewals are at the same pace than previous years but new applications are lower. Lily will advertise in the UW Housing Apartment newsletter. Blue Moon Farms will again do our cool and warm weather plant sales. We are receiving nice seed donations. Gardeners asking for less strenuous work days will help with the more extensive seed repackaging.

Lily asked if the committee thought a postdoc was classified as student or staff. The committee agreed postdocs are students.

Workday Report so far

195 gardeners participated in garden worker lead workdays, 142 have paid the no workday fee and 73 have not done anything yet. This is following the same trend as previous years. We will have the final report after Feb 15th.

Food Pantry

Andrew with UW Housing connected Lily with Open Seat Pantry, which is a food pantry on campus for UW apartments residents and students. They will provide a collection barrel at Eagle Heights Garden. The pick up time will be 4pm Wednesday at Eagle Heights Garden.

Request for Blueberries north of E8 at University Houses

A gardener has asked about planting blueberries in this space. This is a difficult space due to shading and walnut trees. After discussion, the Committee decided to come up with a plan for the north tree line before acting.

Budget

We have reserves for next year and can pursue the new water line up the 300’s.

UW Plumbers have our request for a consultation but we do not have an answer yet.

Compost

There was a discussion about buying compost for both gardens. The idea would be 1 portion per plot at no cost. Lily will explore the idea.

Gardening on a Budget

Lily is working on some information for gardeners on gardening on a budget. She would like people to understand that gardening need not be expensive.

Garden Worker Update

Pam said that the carts and tools were put away by December 1st. Pam will be returning to the garden. A friend of hers is looking at the weed whackers and trying to fix them. Pam will get the chargers looked at too.

Recruitment and retention

Jolene said that since HR has put an end date on TE appointments and that Lily, Pam and Nick are returning. A resident gardener is interested in the 3rd position. Discussion ensued. Pam thinks three garden workers are good. Jolene will start the process with the person interested in the Garden Worker position.

Jolene said January is the month the Committee decided to take action on retention raises for staff. The employees left the meeting. Discussion ensued. The committee decided all returning gardens would receive a $.50 raise per hour. Jolene said she is not sure when the raise will take effect as this is HR’s decision. The new garden worker would be hired at $17 per hour.

Motion by Ann and seconded by Barb A to adjourn.

Adjourned just after 7:45 pm

Submitted by Karen, subject to correction by the Garden Committee

November 2024

                                       

Eagle Heights Garden Committee Minutes

November, 2024 7 PM

Remote Meeting

Alex, Lily, Ron, Ric, Nick, Jolene and Karen.

Alex started the meeting.

Minutes With a motion by Lily and seconded by Ric, the October 2024 minutes were approved.

Registrar Update

Important dates for next year are: Seed Fair April 5, 2025, Seed Sort January 20, 2025.

Seed donations are underway. So far we have received three boxes.

As we previously decided, we will buy direct sow seeds like spinach, bok choy, chard, and perhaps something else for distribution at the Seed Fair.

Fedco seems to have the best prices and the order. Will be placed in January when their new catalog (and price updates) are available. The committee previously discussed a potential budget of up to $500, but the purchase will probably be under $200.

So far 98 gardeners have not done a workday yet and 122 have paid the fee which is the same or a little better than other years at this point. We will know more in February, after the renewal deadline, when the statistics are for this season.

The tree removal is going well. Ron’s sapling puller works very well and there is one in the shed too. It is much easier to remove trees when they are young.

We would like to ask the UW Plumbers for a consultation about the new second line up the main path at Eagle Heights. We would like their professional input before we start the project. Lily placed a work order with Physical Plant to start this process but we have not had a response yet.
Lily has requested horse manure from Crest Haven Farm. Physical Plant is willing to haul this for us if Crest Haven will load it. However, Crest Haven had not replied.

Shorewood did take some of our weeds to Purple Cow, which Purple Cow accepted. They have fulfilled their part of the agreement this year. We will have to get someone else to take the rest of the weeds away. It would probably be in our best interest to have a start date for getting leaves from Shorewood at both gardens. Shorewood did take leaves to Purple Cow before giving them to us.

Theft

A lot of large scale theft has been reported in the garden with all the squash and cabbage being removed from a few plots. Discussion ensued. There was an extensive discussion of trail cameras. Jolene said the Preserve and the UW Police University would have to approve and that would be difficult. More discussion ensued. The Committee agreed that this is a difficult problem to solve.

More signage was recommended in several languages. "These gardens are owned by individual gardeners and removal of vegetables and supplies constitutes theft." Jolene suggested that there be a regular article about the gardens in the monthly newsletter. She said new residents arrive every day and know nothing about the gardens. This would also include an invitation to get a garden plot.

Mulberry Tree

Before she retired, Laura Wyatt said this was an invasive tree, but did not take any further action. Discussion ensued. The tree is leaking sap from the trunk. The symptoms point to slime flux or bacterial wet wood in the trunk and limbs, but the tree still needs to be evaluated by an expert. Jolene said maybe UW facilities or Grounds could do the assessment. The Committee agreed that if the tree was to come down, it would need to be done in the winter.

University Houses Pollinator Garden

Carol is starting a pollinator garden in the Northern half of F3, which is no longer a plot. She plans to start and maintain the garden with volunteer help. She asked about putting the following native plants in the garden. Ninebark is a shrub that can grow to 8 feet but hosts native butterfly caterpillars. Stinging nettles are another host plant. The Committee said no to the ninebark because it is probably too big and also no to the stinging nettles because they could spread to other plots. The Committee agreed to an allowance of $50 at Prairie Moon Nursery for seeds for the pollinator garden.

Garden Worker Report

Lily read a note from Pam, who could not attend. She has been cleaning up the blackberries at University Houses and also the blackberries and raspberries at Eagle Heights. It has been a great year but things are winding down.

Nick reports a lot less work to do this late in the fall. He has been leading the last couple of workdays clearing plots and covering them with leaf mulch. He is concerned about the leaning share shelf and would like to take it down before it falls down. The plan is to salvage the top and put it back next year. Lily and Nick will check the shelf next week. The bottom could be rebuilt using tee posts as anchors. We would call Diggers Hotline first.

Motion by Lily and seconded by Ric to adjourn.

Adjourned just after 7:45 pm

Submitted by Karen, subject to correction by the Garden Committee

October 2024

                                         

Eagle Heights Garden Committee Minutes

October 9, 2024 7 PM

Remote Meeting

Alex, Lily, Pam, Ric, Nick, Barb A, Ann and Karen.


Alex started the meeting.

Minutes With a motion by Barb A and seconded by Ann, the September 2024 minutes were approved.

Registrar Update

Lily said now we have 13 half plots and 11 full plots vacant.

Important dates for next year are: Seed Fair April 6, 2025, Seed Sort January 20, 2025.

As we previously decided, we will buy direct sow seeds like spinach, bok choi, and perhaps something else for distribution at the Seed Fair.

Fedco seems to have the best prices. Lily will send us a proposal.

Malachai from the Dining Gardens would like to revisit the discussion of sharing their ride-on-mower with the Community Gardens. He was not available this season to start the windrow composting, but a lot of our weeds have been moved to his area.

It has been suggested that the UW Plumbers help us to install a second main line up the path. This should be discussed at the next GOC meeting, which is the 3rd Friday from 10 to 11am.

Motion by Ann and seconded by Barb A to get the second line plumbing project started.

Motion passed.

The GOC has also requested that a garden representative attend the GOC meeting.

Revisions to the 2025 Garden Application

The main revision is the rule change that will not allow new gardeners to get a non-organic plot. Present gardeners can retain their non-organic status. At present there are 8 non-organic gardeners at University Houses. All of these gardeners are English speakers. Next year all gardeners using non-organic methods will have to keep records and use of non-organics will need to be reported to UW Environmental Health and Safety thru the Registrar.

Boundary Changes to the 500’s

Proposed changes to the 500’s row were well received by the present gardeners and will be implemented sometime this fall

Weed Wackers

New batteries are needed for the weed wackers and cost $175 each. One of the weed wackers does not work at all and needs a couple new parts which come to about $50. One of the problems with the batteries could be that they are plugged in all the time. It was suggested using a timer for the charger to avoid this problem. Also the batteries should probably be stored in the office over the winter out of the cold.

Motion by Karen and seconded by Ric to buy 4 new batteries and the new parts for up to $1000. Motion carried.

Garden Worker Report

Pam is trying to get the last workdays done. Mowing is finally slowing down. She has been making paths through the blackberry patch at University Houses. The hoses are put away at University Houses and the water is shut off at both gardens. Nick has been doing cleanup and workdays.

The committee asked the garden workers if they were returning next season. Pam will be back and Nick will probably be back. It was remarked that the gardens have looked especially good this year.

Barb A said the new spigot behind the Arbor Garden is especially slow. Nick said he could exchange it for a different one. Also one of the umbrellas is broken. Nick said we have a spare umbrella in the shed.

There is a tree on the removal list entwined with a grape in the Arbor Garden. Barb A said it is okay to remove the tree. Barb A requested some help in the Arbor Garden. Pam volunteered.

Motion by Ann and seconded by Karen that garden workers can work in the Arbor Garden. This will be a good opportunity for Barb A to share her knowledge of the garden.

Spigot risers and posts

Ric presented a list of all the water spigots in the garden and the condition of the supporting posts. Some are completely missing and some are too far away. A spigot without a post is more vulnerable to damage. Ric volunteered to make brackets to have the spigots better supported. The committee liked the idea. Nick said there are still a couple of underground leaks which will probably not get fixed until the water is on again in the spring.

Motion by Barb A and seconded by Ric to adjourn.

Adjourned just after 7:39pm

Submitted by Karen, subject to correction by the Garden Committee

September 2024

Eagle Heights Garden Committee Minutes

September 11, 2024 7 PM

Remote Meeting

Alex, Lily, Pam, Jolene, Sam, Nick, Ann and Karen.

Alex started the meeting.

Minutes With a motion by Ann and seconded Lily the August 2024 minutes were approved.

Registrar Update

Lily said now we have 12 half plots and 7 full plots vacant. The Tomato Tasting went well considering what a difficult tomato growing season we have had.

The budget for next year is available for review. So far we have spent about $7500, mostly on wages. We have a budget of $3000 a year for plumbing and we have not spent most of it yet. Actual revenue was close to the projected revenue in this year’s budget. We will know how many people are paying the no work day fee in January.

We still need about 100 workday shifts for this year, but there is still time to have them.

Redrawing the borders of the 500’s row

Lily shared the proposed redraw of the 500’s to make the borders less confusing. She also proposes to leave half of 514 fallow due to severe flooding this year.

Motion by Ann and seconded by Karen to approve the 500’s border redraw. Motion approved.

Closing Day

Garden closing day will be in November and a post Thanksgiving Day tool put away is planned.

Seed Fair 2025 will be Saturday April 5th.

Seed repackaging will be January 20, 2025.

Weed pile

The weed pile was moved to the Dining Garden by Malachai and Tary from Shorewood.

Garden Worker Report

Nick said he has been working on plumbing projects. He still has a couple of underground leaks to fix. He said he needs to schedule more workdays. Sam said getting workdays done is her priority. Pam and Lily fixed some plumbing also. It was noted that if we have a surprise freeze, turning on all the faucets a little bit will keep the pipes from freezing.

Additional topics   

There was general discussion about the plan for a second line up the main path at Eagle Heights. Perhaps we should ask Physical Plant for advice about how to proceed.

There was also a request for horse manure.

Motion by Karen and seconded by Lily to adjourn.

Adjourned just after 7:45pm

Submitted by Karen, subject to correction by the Garden Committee

August 2024

Eagle Heights Garden Committee Minutes

August 14, 2024 7 PM

Remote Meeting

Alex, Lily, Pam, Yohan, Barb A, Ann and Karen.


Alex started the meeting.

Minutes With a motion by Ann and seconded by Barb A the July 2024 minutes were approved.

Registrar Update

Lily said there has been considerable plot turnover lately, but there are only a few empty plots, mostly in low lying areas.

The tomato tasting will be August 25th and the temporary food service permit has been approved. We could use a few more volunteers for the event.

There has been a request to allow authorized personnel to remove weeds in plots without notice to the plot owner. After discussion, the committee denied this request. Lily proposes placing written notices on plots to inform gardeners to remove noxious weeds. The committee agreed.

The budget for the next year will need to be reviewed and approved at the next meeting.

The leaf pile at University Houses has a plastic pipe that is the overflow for the rain garden that drains all of the university Houses parking lots. During heavy rains or fire hydrant flushing the leaf pile floods. This means the leaves are sitting in water part of the time. Lily proposes a rain garden for this area in the future and move the leaves nearer the weed pile. Discussion ensued. It is a good idea, but the rain garden would need a caretaker like the other rain gardens to be successful. Since the volume of water can be large, a drainage ditch might be more effective.

Lily proposes to redraw the boundaries of the 500’s row to fix the borders so they are less confusing. Her proposal will be shared at the next meeting. Also one gardener had to give up their plot in the lowest part of the row due to flooding issues. A rain garden at the low spot was discussed.

There are many tree stumps in the garden which are difficult to remove. An organic method to kill tree stumps is to drill holes in it , fill them with Epsom salts, water and cover it and the stump will die. The committee thought we should try this method.

There is a concern in the non-organic section of University Houses. A neighboring gardener reports an issue of spray from a neighboring gardener coming into her plot. Lily proposes that no spraying be allowed within one foot of the plot being sprayed. The committee agreed.

Starting next year, The Preserve will want a report of all pesticide and herbicide spraying at University Houses, including dates of application and amounts. Discussion ensued. When University Houses was merged with Eagle Heights, there was an agreement that the non-organic gardeners could continue gardening as they had. (I think this is true but I am not certain?) At this time the non-organic section of University Houses is in the C, D, E and F rows of the garden. Starting next year all new gardeners will be required to garden organically. After discussion, it was agreed to have the non-organic gardeners sign a form that makes them aware of the new reporting requirements when they renew their plots.

The weedpile windrowing composting at Eagle Heights is still being discussed with Malachai.

The north south access road erosion at Eagle Heights was discussed at the GOC meeting. It is proposed to share costs of the repairs with all users. The gardens will also share costs because sometimes Shorewood uses the road to make deliveries to us.

The mulberry tree will be evaluated for safety.

We received a delivery of chips from Housing, but Heartwood Trees has not made a delivery yet.

Garden Worker Report

Pam said the 5 carts are now back in service and Nick has a list of parts we still need to fix more. The mowing never stops this year. Pam said the gardeners have been very helpful and supportive this year.

There will be plot clearing workshops this weekend. There is plenty of work to be done and the garden workers plan more workdays.

There was an email from Nick, who could not attend the meeting.

• With some benevolence and wisdom from Karen, Pam and I were able to get a handful of carts repaired and back out for gardeners. The three of us spent an afternoon making repairs and I know Pam had done a bit more too, so she could speak to any further progress.
• The other has been plumbing, as we've had a few leaks spring up. Pam and I worked on a busted riser in the 1300s, which put the row out of commission, but were able to get a new one installed and get the water back on. I was using the leak as an opportunity to go through all the old plumbing parts (risers & spigots mostly) to see which were usable but didn't make it through the full stockpile before leaving on my trip. The water had been back on but I didn't have a chance to fully clean up the area around the leak, so I apologize for leaving things in a bit of disarray.
• Within the shed, I was sorting out our old plumbing supplies and had tried to mark everything I made it through. If I remember correctly, anything with pink ribbon could potentially be repaired while anything with green tape could be recycled or tossed. If folks wanted to see supplies and brainstorm a way to repurpose, feel free, although most things marked 'to go' are in a rough state.
• Which leads me to the proposed supply request. I believe we have a budget left from what was allotted at the beginning of the season, so hopefully not a big issue, but I think it would be good to get some more spigots ordered. Most of what we currently have are shabby. We ordered two in the last supply request, which seemed to work quite effectively. You can see them at the first plot of the 300s. I think if we ordered another 15 (10/EH and 5/UH), that would cover us for quite some time and make repairs easier as we don't need to test which parts do and don't work.
• If folks agree on the order, this is the link for the spigots we previously purchased from Ace. Jolene, would this be enough, or would you like an official supply request sent in? I'd be happy to do that if need be, just let me know. https://www.acehardware.com/departments/plumbing/valves/rough-faucets-and-hose-bibbs/41972?qtyRequested=1&deliveryRequested=false

After discussion, there was a motion by Ann and seconded by Karen to buy 25 spigots. Motion carried.

Motion by Barb A and seconded by Lily to adjourn.

Adjourned just after 7:35pm

Submitted by Karen, subject to correction by the Garden Committee

July 2024

Eagle Heights Garden Committee Minutes

July 10, 2024 7 PM

Remote Meeting

Alex, Jolene, Pam, Sam, Barb A, Ann, Nick, and Karen.


Alex started the meeting.

Minutes With a motion by Barb A and seconded by Ann, the June 2024 minutes were approved.

Registrar Update

Since Lily was not here, Alex presented her report (in italics).

We still have some openings but there also continue to be new applicants.

At the last GOC meeting Laura Wyatt suggested we consider appointing an invasive plant person in the gardens. Ideally it would be someone with a lot of plant knowledge to walk through the gardens and look out for invasive species, especially new ones.

-Nick thought this would be a good idea.

We also discussed the possibility of collaborating with the Dining Farm and putting fruit trees in the buffer zone/former 400s (where we once had them before).

The proposal for the windrow composting at Eagle Heights should be ready for the next GOC meeting. If it’s approved there, I will share it with the committee for review by the garden committee. The University Houses weed pile is not looking great, and we do not have a confirmed plan for it. The constant rains have flooded the lower areas of the garden, and I don’t think that any trucks can drive in right now without getting stuck. A rearranging of the weed pile and mulch area at UH might make room for a water retention/rain garden area. The storm drains from University Houses all drain into that low area from an underground pipe.

-Pam reports that the weedpile at University Houses has now been stacked, so there is more room for weeds.

I’d like to go ahead with the plan to change University Houses Gardens to organic-only, except existing gardeners that can continue to use non-organic practices if they renew. We’d ask those gardeners to report their pesticide/herbicide usage so that we can pass that information on to the Preserve. They track other non-organic control methods and would appreciate being informed about it. If everyone is still in agreement, I could update the application for 2025.

After discussion the committee agreed with the plan to transition all of University Houses to organic and to update the 2025 application accordingly.

I’d like to propose that we hold the tomato tasting again this year in early September.

We should hold a tomato tasting.

Does anyone know who the birdhouses behind the Eagle Heights shed belong to? A gardener wants one, and I did not know if they were just abandoned there, are garden property, or are from the Preserve.

There was discussion about making sure they had sparrow excluders, but no one knew where the birdhouses came from.

A gardener reported that she fell on the washed out road leading south past the shed at Eagle Heights. She requests that this be repaired. I plan to bring this to the next GOC meeting, since various groups use this road

The committee agreed this is a topic for the GOC.

We are out of wood chips at Eagle Heights. We were able to get a new delivery to University Houses a few weeks ago, but University Apartments will not have more chips for some time. We have a small brush pile there that we could place a work order to have chipped, but gardeners would like more delivered also. I will try to see if Shorewood or UW Grounds have any when I get back. If anyone knows of a reliable source of wood chips, that would also be great. It would be good to avoid having contractors dumping without notice, since this was such a problem in the past.

Ann recommends Heartwood Tree Care for chips and thought they would be careful of walnut chips if asked.

Tire tracks have been seen going around the Eagle Heights gate. The committee thought this was also a topic for the GOC.

Mulberry Tree

After discussion, the committee would like a qualified person to check the tree for safety. If it is safe, it could be pruned back. We could also have mulberries in another part of the garden, perhaps near the 500’s. Could Lily ask someone on the Preserve staff about the safety of the tree.

Garden Worker Report

Pam said the Garden Workers have all been mowing and mowing and mowing.

She also said she has run multiple productive workdays.

Jolene said the last GOC meeting was a tour of Eagle Heights and Malachai offered the use of the Dining gardens ride-on mower. Malachai would offer training to the Garden Workers. The Garden Workers thought it was a good idea and would save time. The mower would be used on the main path, the perimeter and around the 500’s. We all agreed the bigger mower would not work on the smaller paths. The committee is comfortable with the use as described above.

Alex thanked the Garden Workers for their hard work.

Additional Topics

Barb A said the Arbor rain garden had standing water for three days after the last huge rain storm. Pam said she and Doug dug out the trench leading out of the 115 rain garden. Nick having rain gardens is great.

Karen volunteered to help with cart repair now that the cart parts have arrived.

Jolene requested that a gardener attend the GOC meeting.

Motion by Karen and seconded by Barb A to adjourn.

Adjourned just after 7:35pm

Submitted by Karen, subject to correction by the Garden Committee