Work Day 1/15/12 from 10am-1pm…

So! Want to help beautify the garden and the surrounding neighborhood?

Join us!

You need only clothes to work in and hands to lend.

We are located at 326 N. Sloan St.

Plot construction

Need to know more? Email Sloanstcommunitygarden@gmail.com

By the way, it’s official, on Jan 4th, 2012  the Zoning Board voted “yes” for the developer to dig up 1/2 the garden and build a house. This is sad but expected news. So expected that we have an agreement with Penn Presbyterian Medical Center to move as much as we can over to their side of the property and explore productive landscaping in lieu of finding additional land. At the end of our 2012 season, we will have a celebration in thanks to our supporters, community and partners.

Happy Holidays

Painted by Mica (SSCG member)

Hello Gardeners…

Well, things are looking up and forward…

Looking up… 

Several members, old and new are growing greens throughout the winter, using cloth and reused windows as insulation.

We have one more spring/summer growing season in our current location and are always accepting new members dedicated to organic urban growing… To these prospective members… don’t be dissuaded by our current appearance, Penn Presbyterian Medical Center has been doing construction on their building adjacent to the garden as well as cleaning out the mud filled drain on the property… all in all, a good thing, however unsightly. When their crew cleans up, so will we…

Looking forward…

Sloan St Community Garden with the help of Preston’s Paradise and the PEC have made a plan to use our remaining SCI West grant funds to create self-containing beds to put atop the concrete on the Penn Presbyterian’s side of the property in preparation for our eviction of 326 N. Sloan on Nov. 15th, 2012 (zoning hearing regarding the development of the land Jan 4th, 2012 @ 5pm). If you or anyone you know is interested in helping design or build these beds, please contact us via: sloanstcommunitygarden@gmail.com

We met with Amy Laura Cahn (acahn@pilcop.org) from Garden Justice Legal Initiative to seek advice as we move forward. In our discussion, she gathered much of our history and our needs as she is doing with threatened community gardens across Philadelphia in hopes to affect policy to sustain community created green spaces that produce food, comfort and security to low-income neighborhoods. She suggested we contact churches and other neighborhood organizations to see if we can branch out into “productive landscaping” as an alternative to searching for the seemingly unattainable (another space w/in the neighborhood that is not slated for development.) If you know of any space or organization that would be willing to partner with us, allowing us to beautify as well as grow food for the neighborhood through productive landscaping, again, contact us via sloanstcommunitygarden@gmail.com

Looking around…

It is important to note that SSCG has grown and donated over 700lbs of food to those in need in the neighborhood. We are not a tiny self-serving club but a community created and sustaining organization striving to beautify and strengthen our Saunders Park neighborhood through urban organic growing. As we look around at the fast-disappearing green spaces in our community, we must remember that development (especially in the form of bulldozers, concrete and tar) is not progress… and we must fight to keep our neighborhood green & healthy. Organizations to support in these efforts: FORC and Garden Justice Legal Initiative. “THE LANDSCAPE OF GARDENING AND SECURING LAND  IN PHILADELPHIA IS CHANGING. A STRONG GRASSROOTS GARDENER NETWORK CAN INFLUENCE HOW THAT HAPPENS.”

Grown on Sloan – Postponed!

Stay tuned for our next Farmer’s Market scheduled to happen in the fall.

The good news is, with the help of Pennsylvania Presbyterian Medical Center and Councilwoman Blackwell’s office, we have been able to negotiate another year at our current location to give us more time to move.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

What’s up? I thought you were moving?!

For those curious about our quest for land permanency, we have negotiated a building halt until next summer with the support of Councilwoman Blackwell’s office & Penn Presbyterian Medical Center. In the meantime we are preparing to move  to the Pennsylvania Presbyterian Medical Center’s property which constitutes 2/3 of the current garden land.  While leasing this land, we intend to become a 501c3, fund raise, and scout and purchase our own land with the help of PHS. Big thanks to Gary Ginsberg and Penn Presby’s legal team, Martin Cabry, Director of Zoning in Councilwoman Blackwell’s office, and garden members Stuart and Haley.

We Are Fortunate

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

We are fortunate to have stayed on this property for so long while a land swap was trying to be negotiated. In the meantime we have donated over 600 pounds of produce to shelters and food cupboards, raised gardeners from knee high, cleaned and greened the block, and enjoyed sharing it all with the Saunders Park community. Here are some gardeners, partners, supporters and community members enjoying our END of the VINE CELEBRATION. Several dishes were prepared using garden vegetables, berries and herbs.

End of the Vine Celebration!

Join us on Friday, May 13th, 2011.

6pm – 8pm

Cookout, BYOB & Dish

Sloan St Community Garden

326. N. Sloan St, Philadelphia, PA 19104

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Join us at our End of the Vine Celebration to commemorate the founders and supporters of Sloan St. Community Garden in its 13+ years of existence. Bring a pot-luck dish and a friend and wish us luck as we forge ahead in our quest for land permanency…  it looks as though we have reached the end of our time at our current location 326. N. Sloan St but we are resolute in taking all we and our supporters have invested in us and continue to grow…

Drop us a line, tell us you’re coming, or ask us a question! Sloanstcommunitygarden@gmail.com

Tree Transplant…

Hello everyone!

Yesterday, Mica, Caitlyn and I successfully dug out the elm tree that was in my plot. It is wrapped, leaning against the mural and waiting for Mica’s dad to pick it up. We dug out most of the roots, had to cut about 3 largish ones that were growing out past the plot and we replanted the iris both in the plot and around places in the garden. (It was time to thin the iris!) We are fortunate that the weekend is a bit rainy and not hot and sunny.

We managed to take the tree out with minimal disturbance to Milady’s side of the plot Thanks for your patience in planting, Milady!

We will see if the transplant makes it successfully in its next life

-Carolyn

Rejuvenation

It started with the workday on April 2nd… Members gathered at 9am and proceded to work till 1pm clearing out debris from the garden. The next morning UCD kindly picked up two truck loads from our curb and we had a clean slate to start from.

Next was plot reconstruction.

This slideshow requires JavaScript.

Most plots had rails that were decomposing from their 10 years of service and needed desperately to be relieved of their duty.

The membership team had ordered wood and Preston’s Paradise had dropped it off with the hardware. While some members were able to reconstruct their own beds, 6 more plots along with the addition of a brand new 11′X11′ bed created to grow food for Preston’s Paradise’s market stand were done by one couple. Old rails were then stacked Lincoln-log style to create three catchment bins in the back of the garden for our revamped compost system (thank you Compost Team for the idea!). A big thank you to all who contributed, especially members, UCD & Preston’s Paradise.

Next up:

Filling in and planting the new bed.

Finishing the compost system by shoring it up, and moving our compost piles into the bins.

Creating a water catchment system.

Organizing market stand hours with Preston’s Paradise.

Want to know how to get involved? 
e-mail the membership committee at sloanstcommunitygarden@gmail.com

Work Day April 2nd, 9am-12pm

Yep! That’s right! With our ranks reinvigorated after our opening season membership meeting, we are in step and armed with rakes and loppers, hammers and nails, hoses and pails to work toward sprucing up the garden for its date with Spring. Our first workday of the year will focus on clean up, and set up, including coordinating with UCD for curb pick-up of debris and with Preston’s Paradise in repair and construction of plot beds. If you are interested in us and wish to get involved or just find out what we look like in action… stop by 326 Sloan St and we’d be happy to show you around or if you like, put you to work! Need more info? e-mail us at sloanstcommunitygarden@gmail.com

Opening Season Mandatory Membership Meeting

Hi! Would you like to join Sloan St. Community Garden?

Learn about and participate in organic gardening, composting, bee keeping, farm stands, food donations, workshops, and more!

Attend our opening season mandatory membership meeting:

When: Friday, March 18th @ 7pm (approx. 2 hours long)

Where: 330 N. Sloan St, Philadelphia, PA 19104, house adjacent to the garden

What you need: $15 (plot fee & key deposit) & 2011SloanStComGardenApplication

Contact: sloanstcommunitygarden@gmail.com for more information or see our previous posts.

 

Call for Gardeners – Membership Meeting

Join us! We are a small vegetable and flower community garden, started almost 15 years ago with the gracious permission and support of Penn Presbyterian Medical Center and the tentative leniency of a developer who bought 1/2 the land we till. We boast an ever rejuvenating 20 member organization that this year will donate to local food cupboards through the City Harvest Program and work with Preston’s Paradise in manning a farm stand, creating a water catchment system, making repairs to garden grounds and holding community workshops on growing and preparing food. Our members are our greatest resource… so if you want to learn about bees, organically grow anything from potatoes to sunflowers, and care for the earth and community… then all you need to join us is roughly two hours a week and 15 bucks… Interested? Review and fill out our 2011 Season Application , mail it to sloanstcommunitygarden@gmail, and be prepared to attend our mandatory opening season membership meeting.

Here’s how to contact us: sloanstcommunitygarden@gmail.com – Membership Committee (Emma, Cara, & Anne) Until we see you – enjoy watching spring blow in and sweep the leaves off the unfurling tendrils…