Closing Out the Growing Season
September Recap and October Forecast
September gave us a couple of good reasons to gather before the growing season winds down. We celebrated the season at Cathy and Kevin’s Harvest Brunch, and we tackled garden chores at the September Monthly Maintenance event. It’s always satisfying to see how we come together, be that sharing bread or working side by side.
As we head into October, we’re closing out the growing season and making the most of what’s still growing, ripening, and ready to harvest.
Upcoming Events
Creek Week Cleanup
Saturday, October 3, 2026
10:00 AM - 11:00 AM
Corner of Willamette & Franklin St.
Garden Cleanup and Winter Prep
Sunday, November 1st
10:00 AM - 1:00 PM
Mid Shooks Run Community garden
October Announcements
Don’t Forget: October 31st is the last day of the growing season
October 31st marks the official end of our 2026 growing season and the last month of official garden activity. If you’d like to keep tending your plot after this date, reach out for approval before the growing season ends.
One more end-of-season reminder: If you’d like your $50 plot deposit to carry over to next year, there are two things to take care of before the season ends:
Participate in at least one garden maintenance event for the full scheduled duration, or work with garden leadership in advance to complete an approved alternative.
Clean up your plot by October 31st. Look for the checklist, below, to help make sure everything is ready for winter.
Garden leadership will verify that both requirements have been met before deposits are carried over to the 2027 season (or refunded if it’s your last year with us).
Tear It Down and Pack It Out
End-of-Season Cleanup
Please take time to leave your plot in the same (or better!) condition than when you found it.
By October 31, remove all annual plants, weeds, and plant debris. If you have perennials, they may remain, but please trim and maintain them so they look neat and intentional.
Take home all personal materials that could shift or blow away over the winter. This includes stakes, strings, poles, tomato cages, Wall-o-Waters, decorations, and other loose or lightweight items. Please don’t leave these behind—let’s avoid adding to the tomato cage graveyard!
Pack out your trash and garden waste, too. Do not pile garden waste in shared areas. If you’ve been maintaining a compost pile outside your plot, either incorporate that material into your soil or take it home with you. If you borrowed a container from the garden to hold compost, please return it to the greenhouse for winter storage.
Before you go, make sure your plot and the pathways around it are tidy and ready for winter. Covering your cleared soil with straw is encouraged.
End-of-Season Cleanup Checklist
Make sure your plot is ready for winter!
Clear your plot by October 31
Remove all annual plants, weeds, and plant debris.
Perennials may remain, but trim and maintain them so they look neat and intentional.
Incorporate compost into your soil or take it home.
Cover cleared soil with straw.
Take home personal materials
Stakes, strings, and poles
Tomato cages and Wall-o-Waters
Decorations and other loose or lightweight items
Pack out waste
Remove all trash and garden debris.
Do not leave garden waste in shared areas.
Return borrowed materials
Return borrowed compost containers to the greenhouse for winter storage.
Tidy up
Weed and tidy the pathways and areas surrounding your plot.
Leave your plot clean, safe, and ready for next spring.
The Monarch Milkweed Project Pays Off
Three years ago, we started a little experiment: source native milkweed, grow it to maturity, and see if we could create a place where monarch butterflies would stop by to lay their eggs. It took patience and effort to nurture some very slow-growing plants.
Near the tail end of this growing season, we spotted our first monarch caterpillar on the milkweed!
After three years of tending, growing, waiting, and watching, it was exhilarating to finally see evidence that the milkweed was doing exactly what we hoped it would do. We’ll be keeping an eye out for more monarchs in the seasons ahead.
Meanwhile, we’re celebrating our victory.
Planned Water Shutoff
Our irrigation system will be winterized in mid-October. This process involves draining and blowing out the lines to prevent freeze damage over the winter.
Once this happens, garden hydrants will remain off until April or May of 2026 when the system is restarted for the new growing season.
Please note: If we experience an early freeze, water service may be shut off before mid October, so plan your watering accordingly.
2027 Board of Directors and Officer Elections
Our annual Board of Directors election is coming up! We’ll hold the election at our final garden maintenance event of the year, Garden Cleanup and Winter Prep on Sunday, November 1.
Members will cast ballots on the 2027 Board from the proposed slate. Members are also welcome to make additional nominations before the vote. If you’d like to nominate someone, reach out!
Board service is a chance to be part of the behind-the-scenes work that keeps the garden moving forward: making decisions, tackling challenges, and dreaming up new projects and helping shape the future of our community garden.
We’re fortunate to have members who are willing to step up, bring their ideas to the table, and help steer the garden forward. Thank you to those who have served, and to those who are willing to serve in the year ahead.
In Season at the Perennial Beds: October Edition
At Mid Shooks Run Community Garden, you can find an abundance of vibrant blooms and foliage that thrive year after year. Here’s what you’ll find ready to harvest in July in our perennial beds:
A variety of flowers. These hardy perennials provide a colorful display while attracting beneficial pollinators to the garden.
Herbs like thyme, marjoram, lavender, lemon balm, tarragon, and sage are flourishing, ready to be harvested for culinary and aromatic purposes. Check out the south-west corner of our perennial beds, which community gardeners can help themselves to!
Hot Peppers. Several varieties of prolific hot pepper plants are nestled in the 2’x6’ experimental beds and in the stainless steel planters along the west-facing perennial bed. Enjoy!
Walking Onions. Walking onions can be harvested throughout the season. In August, the bulbets make a great shallot substitute. You can also harvest the bulbets to plant in the fall so that you have your own crop of walking onions next spring.
Happy Gardening!
