Donations Needed

Our garden projects are beginning to take bloom (not literally) - but we are in need of a number of items before we can begin planting. Here is our current list of needs:

- Lumber (pressure treated and natural, 2x4's, pallets and plywood)

- Succulent clippings
-Chicken Wire
-Cardboard
-Nails
-Staple Gun
-Miscellaneous carpentry tools

- Battery powered power tools

- Manure

- String stakes

-Wood chips

- Seeds and seedlings: plants including trees and berries

- Garden tools: hand trowels, pitch fork, u-bar (digging fork), shovels, rakes, hoes.

-Gloves

- Wheel barrow and accompanying wheels.
-Wooden wine boxes

Of course, we are always looking for volunteers as well. Get in touch with Pete at petefeltman@gmail.com.

DIY: Build a Shed from Pallets (for free)

Pallets are a great way to build a shed because they are very strong. If you don't believe me, try to take pallet apart some time. Also the way they are built, means that you don't have to worry about studs. Below is a picture of the pallets as we nailed them together. We also used some wood from crates. We could only make a portion of the frame this way before it was too heavy to lift in the hole where we were placing it.

The shape where were put our shed is unusual because there is a fence on one side and a concrete wall on the other. This location is great, because it will be really hard for someone to break into our shed. However, it also made the building a little tricky because most of the shed had to built inside this shaft.

Framing the sides took one afternoon. We decided not to build any of the roof until we would have enough time to finish the shed. We didn't want to encourage any homeless folk to sleep in the space during the rainy season. Our concern was so much that homeless would be in the space, rather that it might encourage people to use the space as a bathroom - which would make it unsafe and too smelly to make a good storage space.

It took another three hours to build the roof and to attach the door. This part of the project required the use of a battery powered table saw - so we could cut the pallets to match the angle of the roof.
On the side of the shed that is next to a fence, we purposefully left some spaces that were not covered with plywood. We covered these areas with plastic so they would act like windows and let light into the shed during the day - enabling us to see what is inside. The fence keeps that side of the shed protected so that it is not possible for a person to enter the shed through the plastic windows.One benefit of using pallets to build a shed is that there is some creative storage space inside the shed. This makes the shed more functional.

The pallets provide a great way to store tools like shovels and rakes. (see photo below) Putting the tools inside the pallets, means that you don't have to worry about tripping on them.Next, we painted the shed. This helps to protect the exposed wood from water and rain. It also makes the space look prettier. We got donated paint from local painters who would rather donate the paint then spend the money on recycling it at the dump.

SF Friends (Quaker) Elementary School Helps us Plant

Today Pastors Jay, Dawn and myself went to the SF Friends (Quaker) Elementary School to talk about homelessness, social justice issues, discrimination, poverty and of course our community gardening project. As you may have guessed the Quaker school specializes in talking to the students about justice issues and even has an Urban Farming class. These kids were very advanced in their understanding of homelessness.

After a presentation, the students helped us plant some seeds that will eventually get planted in the St. Paulus farm. Because it's currently the rainy season, the students helped plant some wild flower seeds that we will plant in order to encourage pollinators (bees, butterflies, etc) to our garden.

Workday Fun!

Hi There! My name is Case Garver. I'm a full-time volunteer for Welcome by way of the Lutheran Volunteer Corps. Part of my job is coordinating gardens, so most gardening related things like volunteers, materials, planning, logistics, and begging go through me!

This past Saturday workday Megan and I met with a group of experienced gardeners who know what's what when it comes to transforming an abandoned lot into a food-growing garden. Our friend Lauren from Produce to the People came by as well as Tree who I met at the free farm stand and Jonathan from Feel the Earth. We did some of the fun stuff like envisioning what we'd like to see in the site. Some things mentioned were chickens and ducks, a greenhouse, and a Cretan labyrinth.

I'm really excited to start changing the lay of the land in accordance with the vision we're developing. If you want to be a part of that visioning process and the work to get there come by and spend some time at the St. Paulus lot with me this Saturday from 10am-2pm. We're going to have a big dirt moving day to allow dumping access for large amounts of compost, manure, and woodchips! We'll have wheelbarrows, gloves, and buckets! Whooo-wheee! We've got a bunch of materials to work with that are going to need moved and organized. This kind of work needs volunteers! If you'd like to come by send me a line and I'll know to look for you!

peace.

Case.

DIY: Compost bins from Pallets

Pallets are a great item to recycle in the garden. You can find them around town or on sidewalks in transportation districts. They require a lot of hauling, but they're free! Pallets are strong enough to serve as framing for most building materials. One of the hardest things about building with pallets is when you find yourself with pallets of different sizes. So, if you can, try to get all your pallets from the same place. Here we built bins for our compost and manure out of 10 pallets. It's pretty straight forward the way we built them. We decided on three sections so we would have space for horse manure (free from local stables), compost that is ready to use and compost that is still composting.

Getting flat surfaces to meet up so you can nail the pallets together can be tricky. I recommend using small scraps of wood or pieces of broken pallets to nail the pallets together in spaces where the flat surfaces do not meet.

We put a layer of cardboard on the bin so the compost would not fall through the pallets.

Mural at St. Paulus nearing completion!

The mural at St. Paulus is quickly nearing completion! In the coming weeks Leanne and I will be out finishing the last panel, putting the finishing touches on the details and covering the entire wall with a varnish to protect it over the years. Leanne will be making wood-cutout animals and plants that will ad a 3D element to the mural and peek out on the Gough Street side.

Tamara Loewenstein, Curator + Community Arts Organizer

before commissioned mural by San Francisco artist Leanne C. Miller

St. Paulus Lutheran Lot at Eddy and Gough, San Francisco, CA

Urban Share is always interested in submissions for arts related projects. If you have an idea or project proposal please contact:

Tamara Loewenstein

Curator + Community Arts Organizer

Urban Share

tamara@tamaraloewenstein.com

Vertical Garden Design: Fence Pockets

Step 1: If you are planting on both sides of the fence, attach a potato sack to the fence by sewing it on with twine. If you will only plant on one side of the fence attach root barriers (like plastic sheeting) on the side you will not be planting on. Attach a potato sack to some chicken wire.

Step 2: Make a pocket on the fence by connecting the chicken wire to the fence with wire. Attach the sides and bottom, but not the top.

Step 3: Fill the pocket with soil, sphagnum moss, sphagnum moss/cactus soil mixture or a mixture of manure and compost. Then attach the top of the chicken wire pocket. Plant seedling or bigger plants with root systems, by cutting a hole in the potato sack. Using drought resistant plants will decrease the need for watering.