May in Bloom: Garden Growth & Good News
April Recap: Raising the Beds, Raising the Bar
April was a landmark month for our garden — together, we modified 7 raised beds and built 6 brand new raised beds to expand our capacity! This achievement was no small feat and would not have been possible without the time, energy, and heart of our incredible volunteers. From hauling 13 cubic yards of soil to coordinating deliveries and wrangling logistics, you showed up and got it done.
A heartfelt thank you goes out to each and every person who lent a hand — your service to this community is deeply appreciated, and because of your support, we were able to complete this phase of our garden expansion project 6 months ahead of schedule.
We’d also like to express our sincere gratitude to Alpine Lumber for donating most of the lumber, to Homegrown and Happiness for delivering rabbit manure just in time, and to our garden members who contributed fasteners and lumber. Your generosity helped turn a big idea into beautiful, tangible garden space that will nourish both plants and people for years to come.
May Announcements
May Events
Great American Cleanup, Shooks Run Creek
Saturday, May 3, 2025
10:00 AM - 12:00 PM
Shooks Run Park
Meet up at the NW corner of Willamette Ave & Franklin St, Colorado Springs, CO 80903
May Monthly Maintenance
Saturday, May 31st, 2025
10:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Mid Shooks Run Community Garden
NW corner of N El Paso St & E Boulder St, Colorado Springs, CO 80903
Show Up - Dig In - Maintenance Matters
As we head into the heart of the growing season, this is your friendly — and essential — reminder to attend our monthly maintenance events. These gatherings are not just about weeding and wheelbarrows — they’re a chance to connect, contribute, and help keep our shared space thriving.
If you're unable to make any of the scheduled dates, you can still contribute! Reach out to the maintenance committee to get a list of solo tasks that need doing. There’s always something to help with, no matter your schedule.
Our garden runs entirely on volunteer power — there’s no staff behind the scenes. We are the ones who make this place work, so let’s keep showing up for each other and for the space we share. The more hands, the lighter the load — and the stronger our garden community becomes. Let’s all do our part to keep this space growing strong.
Water Schedule
We are pleased to announce that our partners at the Colorado Springs Department of Parks, Recreation & Cultural Services will be turning on the water to the community garden on Monday, May 5th.
Produce In Season at Mid Shooks Run Community Garden
Members of Mid Shooks Run Community Garden are welcome to enjoy the fresh produce available in the perennial bed system, located along the south and west fence line. This space is designed for shared cultivation, allowing everyone to harvest fruits, vegetables, and herbs as they ripen. Please remember to be mindful of others by taking only what you need and leaving some for fellow members. Regularly check the beds to see what’s in season and happy harvesting!
Rhubarb!
Rhubarb is currently in season at the community garden, particularly flourishing along the west perennial bed. To ensure the best flavor and tenderness:
Harvest rhubarb when the stalks reach a height of at least 12 inches and are firm to the touch.
Gently grasp the stalk near the base and twist it while pulling upward to avoid damaging the plant.
Leave some stalks on the plant to encourage continued growth throughout the season.
Always remember to discard the leaves - they are toxic if eaten.
Walking Onions!
Walking Onions are currently in season in the west perennial bed of our community garden. These resilient plants provide something tasty throughout the year, but the spring months are especially favorable for harvesting greens.
When picking walking onion greens, use scissors or a sharp knife to snip the outer leaves, allowing the inner leaves to continue growing.
Aim to harvest only a third of the plant at a time to ensure sustained growth and vitality.
Use the leaves in recipes that call for green onions, such as salads, soups, or as a garnish to elevate your meal.
Welcome our First Five New Additions to Our Planned Food Forest
The first new fruit trees for our food forest project have arrived at the community garden: three apple trees and two peach trees! Each variety was carefully selected for cold-hardiness, compactness, versatility, and disease resistance. In addition, we wanted to provide variety and staggered harvest times while promoting cross-pollination. Although they’re only a few feet high this year and we won't see fruit from these trees for a couple seasons, we embrace the essence of gardening: patience and long-term reward.
Here’s some info on the varieties selected:
The Zestar! apple is known for its crisp texture and sweet-tart flavor. Because it’s an early-season apple, it is often used for fresh eating and is well paired with foods such as walnuts, cinnamon, cheddar cheeses, and brown sugar. But it is versatile - it’s firm texture makes it suitable for use in a variety of baked goods, sauces, desserts, and salads. This apple can be stored up for two months without refrigeration.
Enterprise apples offer a uniquely spicy taste and excellent disease resistance, promising a reliable crop in the coming years. They are versatile and can be used for both fresh eating and cooking, but are particularly well-suited for baking, sauce, and storage, and are known for their delicious, sweet-tart flavor that improves with age. Their firm texture makes them a good choice for pies and other baked goods, and they also keep well in storage, making them a great option for wintertime snacking. Mid-season crop.
Renowned for their juicy sweetness and satisfying crunch, Honeycrisp apples are another versatile and delicious fruit. Suitable for both fresh eating and baking, this apple can be stored up for several months in the crisper drawer of your refrigerator. They are extremely cold-hardy and produce a late-season crop.
Frost peaches are yellow-fleshed freestone peaches with a light blush over greenish-yellow skin. They are equally prized for their sweetness and creaminess, adding diversity to our harvest. Again, this is a versatile fruit that can be enjoyed fresh, in salads, preserves, deserts, or even savory dishes. This is a mid-season crop that ripens in July or early August.
Celebrated for their rich flavor and firmness, Contender peaches are medium to large freestone peaches with firm, yellow flesh and red-orange skin. They are known for their firm texture and resistance to browning, making them a versatile choice for various uses: fresh eating, canning, freezing, and baking. The Contender peach is known for being cold-hardy and having excellent disease resistance. This is a late-season peach that ripens in mid to late August.
Kindness and Compassion
In today’s climate, where outrage and division are just a breath away, remember: this garden is a place for connection, not conflict. It’s a shared space where people of all backgrounds come together with a common purpose — to grow food, community, and understanding.
While we can’t control what happens outside our fence, we can choose how we treat one another within it. Please approach each other with kindness, patience, and respect. A simple act of generosity or a moment of empathy can go a long way in keeping our garden not just green, but truly good.
“Pop-Up Nursery” Coming Soon
To fundraise for the garden, we piloted our first ever “pop-up nursery" last year. After seeing promising results, we’re bringing it back this growing season. Starting Saturday, May 10th, you’ll see a variety of annuals for sale every weekend (Saturdays and Sundays) at the garden until Saturday, June 14th. All proceeds from the pop-up nursery are reinvested back into the garden. This year, we’re excited to focus our fundraising efforts on the community garden’s food forest project and create a thriving ecosystem that benefits both our members and the broader community.
