Meridian Co-Op Gardeners-KLEINER PARK

04/23/2025

Soil temperatures are moving in the right direction. Be sure to checkout the website for up to date information.

https://www.greencastonline.com/tools/soil-temperature

04/23/2025

A handful of fruit trees are still blooming. The later bloom times of some varieties help ensure that they might not be damaged by freezing temperatures. Most fruit tree flowers need to be fertilized, or pollinated, receiving pollen from another tree that is of the same species but a different variety (that blooms at the same time). Be sure to check bloom times when purchasing your fruit trees.

Some trees are self-fertile, and can produce fruit without pollination from another variety. However, cross pollination can lead to higher yields for these varieties.

04/22/2025

Yes, you can winter sow tomatoes! These are Gold Medal and Red Brandywine! I potted them up in six packs. I think they will be the perfect size in 3-4 weeks.

04/22/2025

Planting trees, volunteering for cleanups, recycling, conserving water and energy, and reducing waste are all ways you can help celebrate Earth Day. Reduce, reuse and recycle. Appreciate the beauty of our planet by taking a hike, visiting a park, and finding the beauty of our planet around you. My favorite is to plant a seed and grow a garden. Grow beautiful food to feed your family and flowers to help the native pollinators. Make every day an earth day!

04/21/2025

The temperatures are slowly warming up. We are still about three weeks away from Mothers Day weekend and average last frost date. Between now and then the warmer season crops will need to be hardened off. The daytime temperatures are perfect, but the overnight temperatures are still too cold. We are looking for consistent temperatures above 50° to leave the tomatoes and peppers out overnight.

In the meantime we do the inside outside inside dance with the plants. We want to gradually expose them to outdoor conditions before transplanting them into the garden. This gradual transition helps the plants adjust to the changes in temperature, sunlight, wind, and humidity that they will experience outdoors

04/21/2025

This was an interesting find while searching the internet. Please note commebts for additional information/details. You eill want to check with the ISDA for your induvidual situation. Link in comments.

In Idaho, selling seedlings from home requires an Idaho Nursery and Floral License. This license allows you to engage in the business of propagating, growing, selling, or importing nursery or florist stock. The license fee is $100 per calendar year. Additionally, if you are selling seeds, you may also need a Seed Dealer License.

04/19/2025

The sky was so pretty today.

04/19/2025

These tomatoes were started on 3/14 and potted up on 4/6. Two weeks later they have really taken off and will probably require potting up to 4” pots with our tomato planting still weeks away. We will be planting them out toward the end of May.

The ideal soil temperature for planting tomatoes is 60°F. Cooler soil temperatures can stunt plant growth. We have had more problems when planting earlier when the spring weather is wetter and colder. If you do plant early, be prepared to cover.

04/18/2025

Seeded up another tray of our favorite Chalupa Romaine. We will intercrop this or succession plant when it’s ready. When succession planting you need to be ready with the next crop.

Our first tray of chalupa was planted out on April 12th and should be ready before the end of May. We want to be sure we are ready with another tray. This lettuce is not beautiful and withstands our hot temperatures. It’s crispy and stores incredibly well.

04/18/2025

Loving the forecast from Treasure Valley Weather HQ. Should be perfect for your cooler weather crops and for hardening off plants. Now’s a great time to plant those bare root trees, berries, asparagus and perennials.

04/17/2025

This is an amazing program to help support.

Join us on May 2nd for a benefit concert, supporting the Food Bank's backpack program!

That's happening at Kleiner Park from 5-8p

04/17/2025

How about the wind today? We spent the day cleaning up the pollinator garden at Heroes Park and nearly blew away more than once. We planted a number of new perennials and shrubs and cut back growth from last year.
You can find us on FB at The Kleiner Park Pollinator Project. Check link in the comments.

04/17/2025

The snow is still on Shafer Butte, some overnight temperatures are below 40°F (with a few flirting with freezing) but soil temps are above 50°F. We are still at least three weeks away before planting out warm crops. Our cold crops are happy with the current forecast.

04/17/2025

Tonight we hand watered a few dry spots in the garden and newly seeded areas. These areas need to be consistently watered but lightly, ensuring the top inch of soil remains moist but not soggy. This usually means watering multiple times a day, 2-3 times for the first couple of weeks, until the seeds germinate.

Our challenge is the no till zones are under sprinklers and not everything needs to be watered that much, so we opt for hand watering. The wind is also challenging, drying things out quickly.

04/16/2025

The bok choi was growing out of the milk jugs. It has always done extremely well wintered sowed. I planted these into larger cells to bulk up the root system a bit before planting them in the garden. This was one of three jugs.

04/16/2025

There is a unique opportunity in South Meridian. The community garden in Discovery Park has openings for a few more gardeners. You should check them out. It’s a great time to learn how to garden, share gardening education, grow food, and give back to your community. Check out their page.

https://www.facebook.com/share/1ATDJ4M5eG/?mibextid=wwXIfr

Community Garden @ Discovery Park, Meridian, Idaho

Building community though gardening together and growing food for families.