Nine Square Feet

06/05/2026

Plant Giveaway TODAY, Friday 6/5/2026 from 4:30pm-6:30pm

We are honored that the good folks at Piney Ridge Greenhouse have again allowed us to pickup their remaining plant inventory and to distribute it to grateful gardeners in greater Des Moines!

If you've got an empty planter or space in your flower bed, we'll help you fill it with something beautiful. Check out an eye-popping variety of premium quality annual flowers, accent plants, plus a few herbs and hot peppers.

Stop by TODAY, Friday 6/5/2026 between 4:30pm-6:30pm.
Use the parking lot of the Walnut Creek Alternative High School,
1020 8th St, West Des Moines. (No early birds, please!)
You'll find us in the Learning Garden next to the greenhouse.

Every human being can select five FREE plants, so invite your neighbor and grab the whole family. Bring a box or tote for your treasures. And if you happen to have some extra healthy garden transplants that are ready for adoption, bring those too. We hope you'll share this post or tag a friend, to help us get the word out.

06/02/2026

Do you want a FREE rain barrel for your garden?
We're looking for 2 volunteers to help with setup and breakdown at the Rain Barrel workshop this Saturday, June 6th from 9:30-2.

Come learn about rainwater harvesting, meet your fellow Nine Square Feet gardeners, and take home a FREE barrel for your efforts! (You know we always take care of our amazing volunteers with some good perks! ;) )

Only 2 spots available

RSVP here-https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0C4AA5AB2DA1F9C25-64309355-rain #/

06/01/2026

The Summer heat is already upon us, and more watering bans may be in our future again. Join us for a rain barrel workshop this weekend and put the rainwater to work for you this season!

More information here- https://www.facebook.com/share/14iiy3q4aM5/
Register here- https://www.signupgenius.com/go/10C0C4AA5AB2DA1F9C25-64308410-rain #/

The central Iowa region – including Des Moines Water Works’ customers – is under a Stage II Water Alert – this affects outdoor water usage only. All drinking water continues to meet federal and state safety standards.

Beginning immediately, residents and businesses are asked to voluntarily reduce outdoor water use by 50 percent. Increased water demand and persistently high nitrate concentrations in raw source waters are creating operational strain on the regional water treatment system.

This includes residents and businesses in Alleman, Berwick, Bondurant, Cu***ng, Des Moines, Pleasant Hill, Runnells, Unincorporated Polk County and Windsor Heights.

You can help by:
💧 Limiting watering to 1–2 days per week
💧 Watering lawns only when needed – check soil moisture first
💧 Don’t set and forget your automatic irrigation system – adjust for actual conditions
💧 Watering early morning to reduce evaporation
💧 Cutting sprinkler run times in half (10 minutes vs. 20 minutes)
💧 Avoiding outdoor washing with hoses – don’t hose off driveways or walkways
💧 Checking your irrigation system for leaks
💧 Fixing broken sprinkler heads or ones that are overspraying and shooting water onto sidewalks or driveways

Please continue following the even/odd watering schedule in this graphic and avoid watering on Mondays due to high regional demand.

05/17/2026

Lovely burgundy paw paw flowers getting ready to grow native fruit!

05/09/2026

Our volunteer work day has been moved to next Sunday the 17th with tomorrow being Mother's Day! We will be planting the garden, cleaning up the weeds and various other small tasks. Feel free to join us anytime from 8am-12pm. Come and go as you wish.

Join us every 2nd Sunday of the month for our Monthly Garden Volunteer Day where we will be working, learning and connecting with gardeners. The goal of this day is to have one larger project completed while also working on general maintenance of the Learning Garden in the growing months. Of course,...

04/17/2026

Who doesn’t love showing off their plant babies?! Here’s a few of the tomato varieties we’ll be bringing to the Plant Swap on April 25th. Swapper registration form in the comments. Deadline to register is coming up soon!

04/12/2026

** What's this I hear about an epic Plant Swap on April 25th?! **

We're glad you asked! Each year on the last Saturday of April, plant swappers gather in West Des Moines to swap the starts they've lovingly-nurtured from seed, as well as dug perennials, bulbs, rooted slips, strawberry runners and more. And for added incentive and reward, we purchase in bulk other goodies like mushroom grow bags, bareroot berry shrubs and *new this year* asparagus crowns! and we pass the savings on to our lucky swappers.

The Plant Swap is an exclusive event - just for registered swappers, their kids and a lucky "plus one".

Can YOU be a plant swapper? Yes, of course! If you have at least 15 plants to swap, look for the Swapper Registration Form link in the comments. Still have questions? You'll find more details and some guidelines in the registration link too. Or reach out to us.

Now, we've heard it described as "Plant Christmas" but it's really hard to describe the feeling of being there...with hundreds of smiley plant people who "get" you...and literally thousands of plant babies hoping you'll pick them.

If you've been a swapper in past years, perhaps you can help us convince the undecided. What's the thing you love most about our annual plant swap?

04/11/2026

Volunteer signup for the Plant Swap is open! Get your spot secured to receive 10 FREE plants of your choice for your volunteer time! We are so excited to have you join our volunteer crew this year with refreshments available for everyone who joins our swap, participants and volunteers. Reach out if you have any questions. 🥦💚🍅

We are excited to have YOU be a VOLUNTEER at our 2026 Plant SWAP portion of our annual event, on Saturday, April 25th at the Walnut Street Campus located at 1020 8th St, West Des Moines. Please review the available slots below and click on the button to sign up. You do not need a Signup Genius accou...

04/10/2026

Rain or shine, we’ll be transplanting up a storm in the greenhouse tomorrow morning. Bring your starts or transplant ours. Foster a tray or two, then bring it to the Plant Swap on the 25th!