Iron sulphate and good soil

Phyllis Waisman and Paul Bodden made an attempt to rescue the tree in the
bike lane island on the south side of 21st Street at 9th Avenue. The
tree, a pin oak, has recently started turning yellow (chlorosis). It turned
out that the base of the tree trunk was buried by almost 5 inches of dirt
and debris including some large chunks of cement. Paul and Phyllis
excavated the soil to the tree base level for about 1 to 3 feet around the
base of the tree.


Phyllis filled the tree garter with water and the cement and dead juniper
were discarded. The soil, which is of fairly good quality, was loaded up
into 5 bags and taken for storage in Paul's yard. Any one suffering with
poor soil on 8th Avenue might want to take some of this better soil and work
it into your pit.

At the advice of Steven Boyce from TreesNY, iron sulphate has been ordered
and will be added to the soil next week. Pin oaks are particularly
sensitive to alkaline soils and cement and lime can affect them adversely.

Ideally, the soil level should be lowered 4-5" for a full 3 feet around so
that the tree roots can breathe, but we didn't want to disturb the plantings
in the pit. Again, ideally, some kind of barrier could be put in to keep
the soil from spilling back towards the base of the tree.

If anyone need some iron sulphate or good dirt, contact cgc.nyc@gmail.com

Thanks!

Need Volunteers April 30

Twenty first street could use our help. (And you might learn a thing or two). Bring whatever tools you have and dig in. Saturday from 10a-4p on 21st Street between 8th and 9th Avenues.

Flower Power!

Garden Workshop on the Highline April 30!

April 30: Divide & Grow Garden Workshop

Join us for a garden workshop, where you will learn how to divide clumps of grasses and perennials, and take home a special plant from the park to grow in your own garden.

As the High Line's perennials and grasses mature, some grow into ever-widening clumps that must be divided to keep the plants vigorous and blooming. Spring is an ideal time for dividing many plants since it marks the start of the growing cycle.

This High Line program is $15 for members of Friends of the High Line, $20 for non-members, and is designed for ages 13 and up. Please visit our Event Calendar to purchase tickets or to learn more.

http://www.thehighline.org/events/all/2011/4/divide-grow-garden-workshop
Danya Sherman
Director of Public Programs, Education, & Community Engagement
Friends of the High Line
(212) 206-9922
www.thehighline.org

Pit Guidelines

Phyllis has gotten approval for our final planting and tending guidelines. She spent an enormous amount of time not only putting them together, but getting everyone's input and approval. Be sure to take a look at them as we are relying on the kindness of the various city agencies and I want us all to be conscious of their wishes, especially as we are the test case for the rest of the city pits. A big responsibility for such small spaces.

CHELSEA GARDEN CLUB
BIKE LANE TREE PIT STEWARDSHIP GUIDELINES

PLANTING SEASON
The care of the tree pit begins in late April and ends at the first frost (usually mid-November).

STEWARDSHIP RECOMMENDATIONS FOR TREE PIT CARE
DO’S
1. Clean the tree pit at the beginning of spring.
2. Flush the tree pit with lots of water to remove salt deposits.
3. Mix in a thin layer of compost annually (maximum ½ inch in depth).
4. Use a hand cultivator (looks like a three-pronged claw) to loosen and aerate the top 1” to 2” of soil. The majority of the tree’s roots are in the top 18 inches of soil, so be gentle!
5. Plant annuals, perennials or bulbs until your heart’s content. (No vegetables, please.) For plant and flower suggestions, go to the Chelsea Garden Club blog at http://chelseagardenclub.blogspot.com.
6. Give newly planted trees about 10-15 gallons of water each week during the summer. That’s about 4-5 large buckets. Give trees older than one year about 8-10 gallons of water. That’s about 3-4 large buckets. The key is to water slowly.
7. Add a layer of mulch to the tree pit. Please don’t pile mulch against the tree trunk or shrubs because water may accumulate and rot them.
8. Please remove any weeds often.
9. At the end of the season, please remove annuals and cut back shrubs.

DONT’S
1. Do not plant flowers that will grow taller than 2 feet. The line of sight, sight distance and visibility of motorists approaching these locations are important.
2. Do not plant bamboo, ivy, vines, woody shrubs or evergreens since they compete for water and can stunt or kill a tree.
3. Avoid planting near the tree trunk up to 12 inches.
4. For now, please do not put fencing, stones, signs or blocks around or inside of the tree pit.
5. Never raise the soil level more than ½ inch.
6. If the tree dies or be destroyed, it will be replaced by NYC Dept. of Parks. The Dept. of Parks will replace a dead tree, but any flowers or plants in the pit will be removed when a new tree is planted.

FOR YOUR SAFETY
1. All gardeners must be 21 years of age or older.
2. Wear gloves.
3. Bag and dispose of any garbage properly.
4. Try to recycle what materials can be recycled.
5. MOST IMPORTANTLY, BE CAREFUL when working in a tree pit. You have traffic on one side and bikes on the other. We want you to enjoy your tree pit creations.

ADMINISTRATION
The Chelsea Garden Club reports into Community Board 4. Our direct contact is Jim Jasper.

FLOWER POWER!

So Much Creativity!

We have some landscape artists who will hopefully be joining in at the Eighth Avenue and 27th Street pit. I am posting their proposal as a picture on the right. Check it out!

Composting Ideas

Neil in Chelsea wrote:

"Last week we got a message from the Block Association advertising a compost service at Abingdon Square every Saturday. We haven't been able to bring stuff there on Saturdays, so our organics are starting to pile up!

Does CGC have a composting station in the neighborhood, that's a little closer to home?"


Do any of you have any ideas how we can set up a composting site?

Cheap plants

The Parks Dept - Greenbelt Native Plant Center over on Staten Island has a long list of drought tolerant, sun loving and butterfly friendly plants that they grow and we might be able to get cheaply. Look on their website lists starting here:

http://www.nycgovparks.org/sub_about/parks_divisions/gnpc/garden_species_lists/garden_drought.html

Then put your lists in the comments section (with your name) and I will try to see if we can order them.
Cheap is good!