Garden FAQs

Where should I park?

Please park along the west side of Harris Road (southbound in the direction of travel). The shoulder is reinforced beneath the soil. Do not park along the horseshoe drive or in Farm parking spaces. These locations are reserved for Liberty Prairie staff and volunteers, guests, and our educational partners.

When is water available in the Gardens?

Water is usually available by mid-April when the risk of regular overnight freezes ends. Water service is discontinued for the winter once overnight temperatures dip below 30 degrees for consecutive days, usually in late October. There are two spigots, one adjacent to the garden shed and another along the walkway by the western plots.

When does compost arrive in the spring?

Compost is usually delivered in mid-April.

Are there restrooms available at the Gardens?

Gardeners are welcome to use the porta potty on the farm near the tall barn (red front).

What is the Liberty Prairie Community Garden Ethos?

Healthy plants require soil rich in nutrients, organic matter, and beneficial microorganisms. At the Community Gardens we regenerative growing techniques to build soil organic matter naturally using compost, mulch, and low-till approaches to gardening. Our gardeners agree to use organic inputs only.

Compost: We provide finished compost as shared resource. Why is compost important?

• Organic materials are nutrient rich and readily biodegradable, making them a valuable resource (not waste).
• All forms of decomposition emit carbon dioxide and methane. Both are greenhouse gases, but methane has a significantly greater warming potential, around 30 times more than carbon dioxide.
• When organic matter decays in landfills, decomposition takes place in an oxygen deprived environment, which produces a higher ratio of methane to carbon dioxide.
• We cannot recapture organic materials from a landfill, wasting this valuable resource.
• Compost production usually takes place in an oxygen rich environment, which significantly reduces the ratio of methane to carbon dioxide.
• Local compost trumps commercial compost. Benefits of our on-site system include control over inputs and the elimination of transportation cost and fuel.

Fertilizer: Organic fertilizer is permitted; however, fertilizers may not include phosphorus.

• Organic fertilizers release nitrogen more slowly than synthetic fertilizers, which helps nutrient uptake and can limit overapplication.
• Commercial fertilizers prominently display their Nitrogen - Phosphorus - Potassium (N-P-K) values. When using a commercial fertilizer, the middle number must be ZERO (e.g. 6 - 0 - 6).
• The production of synthetic fertilizer requires a lot of fossil fuel, and as the fertilizer breaks down in your garden it releases nitrous oxide, a gas that heats the planet nearly 300 times more than carbon dioxide over 100 years.

Mulch: We recommend mulching your plot with hay, garden straw, or leaf mulch.

• Layering mulch and compost helps suppress weeds while providing a permeable structure for seedlings and roots to expand and grow.
• Untreated wood chips are available at the Community Gardens year round to refurbish the paths between plots. We do not recommend using chip mulch in your plot because they take a long time to break down.

Tilling: We encourage no- or low-till approaches to gardening. Why should you ditch your rototiller? Frequent tilling:

• Depletes soil organic matter and reduces productivity.
• Increases rainwater and irrigation runoff.
• Disrupts or eliminates beneficial microbial activity in soil.
• Brings weed seeds to the surface for germination.

What's your refund policy?

If you are unable to garden with us, we issue refunds as follows:

• Before end of year: full refund
• January 1 through March 31: 50% refund
• April 1 or later: no refund