LA CROSSE, Wisconsin (WXOW)- Crop harvests this summer have been down at the Kane Street Community Garden. This was partially due to the warm spring. Many of the crops that typically ripen in the summer were harvested earlier this year.
But the heat and lack of rain have also taken a toll. "We're down a bit, I think because of the heat." Says the Kane Street Garden Coordinator Todd Huffman. "Some of the crops were suffering. But we still harvested a lot, we just harvested earlier. So we really need to plant a lot now and hopefully have a real good fall."
The garden lost almost their entire crop of eggplant. And vegetables that start to look nice have to be harvested immediately before the plants come under stress.
But most of the plants are looking healthy and bearing fruit. Huffman says this is due to dedicated volunteers, and an efficient watering system. "We do try to use drip irrigation. It's much more efficient because you don't get the evaporation. And it's not really good to water the plants on the leaves. It will water right down the row and it will soak real deep.
Despite the hot weather the garden plans to plant their fall crops on schedule so they get have enough sunlight. Huffman says they'll just have to keep using supplemental watering.
All the produce that is grown at the Kane Street Community Garden is donated to the community and delivered to food pantries and meal sites.
