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Penn Alexander Garden

Guidelines for Summer Care

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TABLE OF CONTENTS

Thank you for volunteering to adopt the PAS garden this summer! Here you will find essential information to guide your gardening experience.

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  1. Our garden!
  2. Essential Info.
  3. Bed-by-Bed
  4. Native Perennials
  5. Watering
  6. Weeding
  7. Common Weeds

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OUR GARDEN

The Penn Alexander garden is a beautiful green space used by PAS teachers, students, and families as well as our larger community.

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On site you will find fruiting trees and shrubs planted in partnership with the Philadelphia Orchard Project. Many of our seeds and starts were purchased from local businesses, including Mariposa Co-Op, Bartram’s Garden, and Redbud Nursery. Additions to the garden, including our picnic tables and watering system, were made possible through grants and from the generous support of our Home and School Association.

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Thank you for taking the time to support our garden and helping to ensure it is thriving when the students return this fall!

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ESSENTIAL INFO.

PREPARATION: Bring a bag with you for trash and weeds, and one for your harvest! Remember sunscreen, hat, and water, too!

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SHED CODE: The combination to the lock on the garden shed was shared during the garden training. If you forget the code, just text the number below.

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CONTACT INFO: If you have questions or concerns not outlined here, please text Stephanie Kearney at (215) 990-1881. You can also email non-urgent requests to learningrules@gmail.com.

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BED-BY-BED

Current Crops by Bed:

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  • *
  • Asparagus, Strawberries
  • Peas, lettuce, marigolds
  • see above
  • Peppers, eggplant, onions, herbs, marigolds, borage
  • see above
  • *Radish
  • Squash, nasturtium, radish
  • Sunflowers, carrots
  • see above
  • Tomatoes, herbs, squash, onions, marigolds
  • see above
  • Peas, cucumbers, peppers, nasturtiums, lettuce, herbs
  • see above

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**Cucumbers, nasturtiums, figs, grapes, elderberries, and more are also found in the garden!

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Native Pollinator Garden

Mint

Weather

station

Elder-berry

Plum

*These beds are ready to be cleared and planted again. If there are other things you would like to see in the garden, you can clear and plant in these areas.

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NATIVE PERENNIALS

In addition to our vegetable beds, there are a variety of native perennials and pollinators in the garden space. You will find flowering plants such as asters, brown-eyed susans, comfrey, yarrow, hyssop, bee balm, false indigo, phlox, milkweed, goldenrod, and more!

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Please take some time to learn about a plant you enjoy watching grow and bloom. iNATURALIST and Seek are great apps to help you identify plants and insects!

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WATERING

One of the most important jobs you will have this week is keeping the garden watered! A sprinkler system has been installed to make this an easy task:

  • Find the water key in the shed on the shelf to the right of the door.
  • Locate the water outlet near the library door and turn the key all the way to the left.
  • During the heat of the summer, the garden should be watered each day there is no rain.
  • It is recommended that you water for 1-2 hours in the morning. The sprinklers may not reach the entire garden due to water pressure and you may need to move them around to get everything. Simply pick up the sprinkler tower and adjust its location.

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WEEDING

You will spend a good amount of your garden time removing weeds. Here are some tips to guide you:

  • Identifying - If you are not sure if something is a weed, check the bed diagram to see what is planted there. You can also look in the garden path or grass to see if you see a similar plant (weed). Plant identification apps can help as well. When all else fails, text me a picture!
  • Removing - Be sure to pull the entire root of the weed to ensure it will not regrow. You can use a weeding tool to help.
  • Disposal - There is a compost area on the far side of the garden shed. Dispose of garden waste (only) in the left bin.

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COMMON WEEDS

Dogbane Burr Marigold Thistle Lambsquarters

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THANKS!

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