01/17/2026
What a great annual meeting for Harvest Farm Community Garden! We had nearly 100 people attend, which is a record for us. Everyone went home with honey as part of our Bee City celebration. We learned about composting from Eileen, about our Bee City designation from Kristen, and the notes below are from Bill’s garden walk and advice session.
Don’t overcrowd plants
If you buy a pot with a bunch of seedlings crammed together, don’t plant it as-is. Soak the root ball in water for ~15 minutes, gently separate the plants, and replant with space. If you don’t, they just compete and none of them thrive.
Harvest early and often
Big lettuce, peppers, tomatoes, squash, cucumbers, etc. should be picked regularly. Many lettuces are cut and come again. If you leave fruit on the plant, it thinks it’s done for the season and slows down. Keep picking and it keeps producing.
Plan for how big plants will get
Don’t plant based on today’s size. Some plants / vines take over entire plots and even spill into walkways. That means they were put in the wrong place or things were planted too close together.
Water stress is real
Curled, sad-looking leaves (especially on peppers in summer) usually mean the plant is thirsty. Water more consistently.
Trim herbs like basil
Basil goes to seed fast in summer. Pinch off the flowers / seeds and throw them away. That forces the plant to keep making leaves.
Don’t skip fall and winter gardening (especially in Georgia)
Lots of empty plots right now shouldn’t be empty. Fall and winter are great here: fewer pests, fewer diseases. Great time for kale, broccoli, cabbage, lettuce, arugula, and similar crops.
Pests: identify before you spray
Check your garden at least once a week.
If you see p**p (frass), it’s usually worms → use BT (Bacillus thuringiensis).
If not, it’s often beetles → use neem oil.
Know what you’re fighting before you spray.
Those white butterflies are not your friends
They lay eggs that become cabbage loopers, which love cabbage, broccoli, kale, etc. If you see them flying, start checking your plants.
Bottom line
Give plants space, harvest often, plan ahead, plant in fall, and actually look at your garden every week. Most problems are easy if you catch them early.
