Hi Everyone!
Well finally it is time to simply go for it with your summer gardens. It is warm enough for corn, beans, tomoatoes, basil, cucumbers, peppers and winter squash—time to get your garden on. Here at the newly renamed JReed Blume & Bee Garden we’re having an amazing showing of roses at the moment. And we are looking forward to sharing pictures of our 150+ Dahlias later this season. At the Institute we’ve got lots of classes and our fabulous farm tours coming up and we are feeling fine in this beautiful mid spring weather.

purple splash rose ~ batchelor’s buttons ~ oranges & lemons rose

Urban Farm Tours ~ Get Your tickets now!!
TICKETS
Vallejo-Benicia
Best of Berkeley

SITE DESCRIPTIONS
Vallejo-Benicia
Best of Berkeley

FACEBOOK EVENT PAGES
Vallejo-Benicia
Best of Berkeley

IUH EVENT PAGE
Vallejo-Benicia
Best of Berkeley

Farm Tour Volunteers
We are seeking help with flyer & postcard distribution. Distribute 500 cards and 40 posters and receive 2 day passes to the tour of your choice. We need distribution throughout Berkeley, Oakland, El Ceritto. Albany for the Berkeley Tour and in the North Bay/Contra Costa County for the Vallejo Tours.
We also need volunteers to help the farmers at their welcome tables on June 11th in Berkeley. Help for a half day and attend the tour for free the other half day.
Just reply here or send an email with “Farm Tour Volunteer” in the title to iuh@sparkybeegirl.com

Seeking One More Site
Sadly our XS site we had lined up for the Berkeley tour had to cancel. We are seeking an XS site (lot size 3000 sf or less, farming area 1000sf or less) that has a lot going on. The site MUST be in Berkeley or just over the border 1-2 blocks. Please let us know of we should consider you!

Private Classes, Consultations & Tours
We offer many of our classes as private events for your workplace association, circle of friends or wedding party. Consider the fun of a two-hour cheesemaking, fermentation, mead making or canning class! We also offer farm & garden consultations, beekeeping lessons & consultations, emergency cull/butcher service and instruction and garden tour & tasting. Respond here or email iuh@sparkybeegirl.com.

Seeking Contacts in the Northwest
We are seeking farming and homesteading contacts in rural Oregon and Washington for a summer road trip. We are interested in meeting folks in different parts of the Northwest to see their places and learn about their areas. Feel free to forward this newsletter to them or offer us a personal introduction. Thank you in advance for your help on this!!

May in the Garden: Drip Irrigation
If you haven’t done it already, now is the time to install, tweak or repair your drip irrigation. Drip irrigation can seems daunting at first, but it is relatively simple to install a basic system. We have a great resource for this in the East Bay in the Irrigation Equipment Company They offer free Saturday classes in Drip Irrigation Basics through the Spring. If your system is already installed it is time to check it and make sure that all your lines and emiters are functional….I’ll be getting on that today just as soon as I write this newsletter!

May in the Garden: Soil Mixes for Containers
There are many reasons to garden in containers—lack of space, concrete patios, bad existing soil etc. Potting soil , even good quality expensive soil, lacks the same life and vitality of garden soil. For this reason when we pot into containers we create our own soil blends to increase both moisture retention and drainage, as well as to boost nutrition. Starting with a cheap to medium priced potting or garden soil some of the things we might add include:
1. Drainage: perlite, vermiculate, course sand or lava rock
2. Water Retention: peat moss, coconut coir
3. Nutrition: compost, chicken, steer, rabbit or goat manure, worm castings, alfalfa pellets
4. Nutrition: Organic Fertilizers (bone meal, blood meal, fish meal), Soft Rock Phosphate, Complete slow release pelleted fertilizer
5. Micronutrients: Coffee grounds (nitrogen), cornmeal (phosphorous), woodash (potassium), ground eggshelll (calcium), epson salt (magnesium),
How Much of Each? We mix by feel, but for a 2 cubic foot bag of soil consider adding a gallon or so from each of the 1st three categories and a handful of anything from the 4th and 5th categories. Mix and blend and try it out!
Container Gardens can also benefit from a monthly drenching of compost tea to keep life in the soil.

Busy (Web) Bees
Been busy working on some websites (a much needed update of the IUH site is likely to follow this summer)
Jreed and his Mongrol Hoard ~ Ratting Terrier Farm Service
WeLoveSheep.com ~ A small flock shearing cooperative
BeeRepair.com ~ Finally getting round to filling in my natural beekeeping site—check back for even more content soon!