Hami Garden

 

Sunday May 29, 2016

Hami Garden Fundraiser at SORO Festival
Robertson Blvd between Cattaraugus and Cadillac.
Sunday January 5, from 11am to 4pm

Buys seeds, succulents, compost bins. Prices are low. And we have lots of Milkweed seedlings in our effort to bring back the Monarch butterflies.

Friday January 22, 2016

Hamilton students came back to school on Monday January 11, after winter recess, the garden volunteers began working again to keep the Hami Garden flourishing.  The bird bath was turned into a planter for succulents,  the lettuces were harvested and more replanted, compost was added to a former bed of sweet potatoes.

Like Garden manager Paula Waxman always says: The garden is like  “a baby (who never grows up), it needs constant care, to be tended, fed and watered all the time.”

Community volunteers. Please come Saturday mornings 10am, enter via Canfield Gate

Next Sunday morning February 7 is the annual BACK YARD FRUIT HARVEST.  Please volunteer to work as fruit pickers, or offer access to your fruit trees.
Call 310 559-2552 or email hamigarden@gmail.com

Thanks for your help.

RVNA, Reynier Village Neighborhood Association

Sunday June 7, 2015

Hamilton High students worked very diligently this spring to tend their school garden, weeding, mulching, planting beans, melons, pumpkins, cucumbers, tomatoes, potatoes, sweet potatoes, eggplant, swiss chard, and corn; so it would look beautiful for graduation held on June 4th.
Today Sunday June 7, they manned a booth at the annual SORO Fest to raise money for the garden by selling succulents, worms and compost bins.
And now that the students no longer come to school for their classes, it’s up to community volunteers to step up their efforts to care for the garden.  Come by and learn useful tips on how to grow vegetables in your backyard.

Summer hours are Tuesday and Saturday from 10am to 12pm
Enter from the Canfield gate.
For more info email: hamigarden@gmail.com

March 7, 2015

A hand-painted sign is now marking the Canfield gate that gives access to the Hami garden to community volunteers.
Please come over to nurture this SORO Green Team project, help high school students learn how to grow their own food, and get many life lessons in the process.
You will get some useful tips on how to grown vegetables in your backyard.
Saturdays 10 am to noon.
For more info email: hamigarden@gmail.com

Thanks for your support
Reynier Village Neighborhood Association
SORONC (South Robertson Neighborhood Council) Green Team

Tuesday August 19, 2014

A week ago Tuesday August 12 the Fall semester started at Hamilton High, the students are back and they returned to work in the Hami Garden. Every Tuesday the garden hours will either be 1.30 to 3pm or 3 to 4.30pm according to dismissal time.
For community volunteers the Saturday hours remain 10 to 12 noon.

We’ve been working on the herb garden, watering and weeding, we are creating borders with eggshells provided by the garden volunteers. We are nursing about 100 seedlings which will be ready to plant once we get the beds ready.  Meanwhile the tomatoes are ripening.

Please come and help, learn some tips on how to tend a vegetable garden.
Enter through the Canfield gate (now marked by a sign) South of Cattaraugus
For more info email: hamigarden@gmail.com

Cherry tomatoes

Tuesday June 17, 2014

Hamilton students have been tending their beautiful school garden for the past several months: harvesting peas, lettuces, beets, carrots and radishes, turning compost, mulching, planting seedlings, experimenting with red-leaf lettuce varieties.
They learnt valuable lessons about growing their own food and getting in touch with the earth.
Now that the school year is over, we need volunteers from the community to care for the garden during the summer.

Please join us (enter through gate on Canfield)
Tuesdays 11am to 1pm
Saturdays 10am to noon

emails us for more details: hamigarden@gmail.com

Paula Waxman, Garden Manager
George Pessin, Master Gardener

Red leaf lettuce

 

Friday May 23, 2014

The Hamilton School Garden will have a booth at SORO Fest, Sunday June 1. We need volunteers anytime from 8am to 6pm to set up, sell plants and compost bins, so we may raise money for the garden. It ‘s a fun, painless way to give back to your community!

If you can help, please contact: hamigarden@gmail.com

Thanks!
Paula Waxman, Garden Manager
George Pessin, Master Gardener

flower bouquet

Tuesday January 7, 2014

The Hami Garden will be closed today, while students are on Winter Break.
Tuesday hours, 1.30 or 3 pm depending on class schedule, will resume on January 14.

We invite neighbors and volunteers to join us on Saturdays 10 to 12 pm
starting on January 11, 2014
Enter through the gate on Canfield south of Cattaraugus and walk left, you’ll see us.

Paula Waxman, Garden Manager
George Pessin, Master Gardener

emails us for more info: hamigarden@gmail.com

Beet Greens

Saturday December 21, 2013

The Hami Garden will be closed on Tuesday December 24, Christmas Eve, and Tuesday December 31, New Year’s Eve.

Happy Holidays!
See you in 2014!

George Pessin and volunteers

Saturday November 16, 2013

The Hami Garden will be closed during Thanksgiving week.
Tuesday November 25 and Saturday November 30

We’re open:

Tuesday Nov 19 1.30pm
Saturday Nov 23 10am
Tuesday Dec 3 1.30pm

Please stop by to volunteer, help us pull out some weeds, prune and mulch.
Check out the bounty of winter vegetables: beets, carrots, caulifower, purple cabbage, enjoy the blooming flowers of the Californian Native plants.

August 17, 2013

corn husks

Summer vacation ended early, with the school year starting in August rather than September.  Hamilton students had their first day of classes on Tuesday August 13.
The Hami garden is open after dismissal on Tuesdays (1.30 or 3pm depending on class schedule) for those who missed it and wish to take a look at the corn husks and carry sacks of soil and mulch.
We’re still harvesting cucumbers and tomatoes, basil, eggplant, strawberries, beans and peppers.  Yet to ripen are our melons.

We invite neighbors and volunteers to join us on Saturdays 10 to 12 pm.
Enter through the walk in gate on Canfield south of Cattaraugus.

Paula Waxman, Garden Manager
George Pessin, Master Gardener

emails us for more info: hamigarden@gmail.com

 

June 12, 2013

Now that the school year has ended and students are no longer attending classes, the Tuesday hours for the Hami Garden have changed for the summer.

We welcome all neighborhood volunteers to come and help us on

Tuesdays from 11am to 1pm
Saturdays from 10am to noon

Get some fresh air and exercise, learn how to grow your own vegetables.
Enter from Canfield gate.

Email us for more info: hamigarden@gmail.com

May 11, 2013

For the past few weeks students and volunteers have been building 7 raised bed in the Hami garden, getting ready to plant summer vegetables.  The 4×16 feet rectangular wood frames will prevent soil erosion and water run off and give the garden a tidy look.
Please come by to help with this awesome effort.
Saturdays 10am to noon. Enter from Canfield gate.

Email us for more info: hamigarden@gmail.com

Mark your calendar and stop by the Hami Garden booth at the
16th SORO Festival on Robertson
Sunday June 2 – 11am to 4pm

March 30, 2013

During the school’s Spring break, students and volunteers have been harvesting the last of the beans and lettuces in the Hami garden, and getting the beds ready for planting warm weather vegetables like corn, cucumber, eggplant, pepper, quash, tomatoes and melons.
Won’t you join us? Saturdays 10am to noon.
Remember, two hours in the garden is equivalent to an hour at the gym.
Mulch love
Paula Waxman, Garden Manager
George Pessin, Master Gardener

January 8, 2013

The Hamilton School Garden is back to regular hours, after the student’s return from winter break.

SATURDAYS: 10 am to noon

TUESDAYS after school: 1.30 pm or 3 depending on dismissal time

We need community volunteers for these annual SORO NC Green Team initiatives

Urban Fruit Pick – January 20 from 9 am to noon

Teams of students and neighbors harvest backyard fruit donated by good folks.

E-Waste Drive – Jan 26 from 10 am to 2 pm

Hamilton High School front parking lot

E-waste is anything with a cord and cell phones.

If you can help, please contact Paula Waxman by phone at 310 559-2552 or email

Tuesday December 18, 2012

Winter break schedule

Saturdays Dec 22 and Dec 29: 10 am to noon

Tuesdays Dec 25 and January 1: closed

Monday November 12, 2012

Please note this holiday schedule.

The Hami garden will be closed for Thanksgiving next week, when students are not in school. It will be open:

Tuesday Nov 13 from 1.30 to 3 pm

Saturday Nov 17 from 10am to noon

Tuesday Nov 27 from 1.30 to 3 pm

Tuesday August 14, 2012

We are now proudly displaying the official plaque certifying the Hami Garden’s status as Wildlife Habitat, because it provides four elements required to sustain animal life: food, water, cover, and places to raise young.   The Head of the Hamilton Science Department, Mrs. Karen Laramay applied for it and it was granted in June.

As Hamilton students return back to school this week, the Tuesday Hami garden hours will start either at  3 pm after classes or at 1.30 pm on early dismissal days, so they may tend the garden after class, harvesting, pruning, watering and planting.

Weekend hours for community volunteers remain on Saturdays 10 am to 12 pm.

Please come out to help, enter from Canfield gate, email us for more info: hamigarden@gmail.com.

Swiss chard, lettuce, garlic

Saturday June 23, 2012

Now that school is out and students are on vacation, we have NEW summer hours for Hami Garden volunteers, starting this week.

SATURDAYS (not Sundays) 10am to noon

TUESDAYS: 10am to noon

Last week we harvested lots of vegetables, cucumbers, squash and a truck-load of basil, that Paula used to make a pesto sauce, an Italian specialty from the city of Genova.  Blend 2 cups of basil in food processor with garlic, olive oil, pine nuts (or walnuts), salt and pepper.  Cook whole wheat pasta al dente, drain and mix with pesto, top with freshly grated parmesan.

For more info email us at hamigarden@gmail.com

Storytime

June 6, 2012

The second annual storytelling day took place in the Hami Garden on Wednesday June 6, organized by Karen Laramay, Science department head at Hamilton High School, and Anne Sutton, first grade teacher and Green Team leader at Shenandoah Elementary school in Reynier Village.  The teenage students read their compositions and other books to the younger kids, who really enjoyed their field trip.  It was a lovely exchange of ideas and laughter.

Please come out on Sundays from 10 am to 12 pm to volunteer your time to the lovely garden, it constantly needs Tender Loving Care. Walk through the gate on Canfield.

Email us for more info: hamigarden@gmail.com

Hamilton School Garden – SORO Green Team

Chinese Elm

Terry, Paula, Larry

Saturday March 24, 2012

The Community Tree Planting was a huge success. More than 200 volunteers (mostly high school students) showed up this morning and worked under the expert supervision of the LA Conservation Corps (they also provided trucks, brooms and shovels) to plant 15 new trees along South Robertson Blvd between Cadillac and Cattaraugus.

The Bagel Factory, Coffee Bean and Starbucks donated food and coffee.

SORO Neighborhood Council devoted 25% of their annual budget to this project, the first phase of a larger revitalization of South Robertson.

See pictured above: Terrence Gomez, SORONC Treasurer, Paula Waxman and Lawrence Hess, SORO Green Team co-chairs, and a freshly planted Chinese Elm, below: LA Conservation Corps with volunteers planting a tree.

LA Conservation Corps and volunteers

March 6, 2012

You probably noticed the sorry state of the trees that were planted on Robertson Blvd years ago.  They are called Chitalpas and many did not survive. Now, thanks to the efforts of our SORONC Green Team (with Million Trees LA, Councilmen Herb Wesson and Paul Koretz) 13 new trees, Chinese Elms this time, will be planted in those empty wells.  The LA Conservancy Corps will plant and maintain the trees for 2 years, but we also need community volunteers to help.

Saturday March 24, from 8 am to noon.

Email the Green team or call Paula Waxman at 310-559 2552

Paoula, Larry, Andrey, Donna

February 9, 2012

The SORO Green Team organized a fruit pick on January 22 and collected 2500 pounds of ripe oranges, tangerines and lemons from neighbors gardens.  Co-chairs Paula Waxman and Lawrence Hess loaded this incredibly bountiful and colorful harvest into Larry’s truck, with the help of student volunteers from Hamilton high school, Andrey Bailey and Donna Feria, and they donated it to the SOVA and St. Augustine Church food banks.

Produce from the Hami School Garden, which is not not eaten by students or volunteers, is also donated.  From January 2011 to January 2012, the garden workers have taken over 600 pounds of produce to local food banks.

Please volunteer to work in the Hami Garden.

Email us for more info: hamigarden@gmail.com

brussels sprouts

Sunday – January 15, 2012

The Hamilton School garden is blooming with bountiful green leafy vegetables spreading their wide leaves in the winter sun:  baby broccoli, purple brussels sprouts, black and green kale, as well as the green leaves of the buried carrots.  All along the beds you can see the black pipes of the drip irrigation system surrounded by the brownish mulch chips.

Paula Waxman, Larry Hess, George Pessin and community volunteers were toiling away today, happy to be outdoors engaged in some meaningful physical activity.

Please join us next Sunday from 10am to 12 pm.

Enter from open side gate on Canfield north of Cattaraugus.

Students are invited to come work in the garden also on Tuesdays at 3pm.

For more info send email to hamigarden@gmail.com

kale

garden=happy

December 23, 2011

Now that school is out for winter break, the Hami garden will be open on different days and hours.

Sunday 12/25 Christmas: not open

Tuesday 12/27 not open

Wednesday 12/28 open from 1:30 to 3:00ish

Sunday 1/1 New Year: not open

Wednesday 1/4 open from 1:30 to 3:00 ish

Sunday 1/8 open from 10 to noon

Tuesday 1/10 open at 3:00 dismissal

Remember, the garden is like a baby, it needs constant care.

So work off some of that holiday stress and eggnog by coming in to give it some TLC.

HAPPY HOLIDAYS

bucket of tomatoes

Monday September 12, 2011

Now that the school year has started, students will be working in the garden with George on Tuesdays (NOT Wednesdays) after classes, from 3 to 4.30.

The bountiful summer crop of fruits and vegetables has been harvested, we picked the last of the tomatoes on Sunday, September 11, and the empty beds are ready for fall planting.

Please come by to participate in this joyful ritual, bury some seedlings in the earth.

Community volunteer hours are still Sundays from 10 am to 12 pm

student with trombone squash

Wednesday August 10, 2011

Students from the “Steeping Forward” summer program have been enjoying working in the Hami Garden.

They carried 90 bags of soil and spread it around the vegetables. They harvested the corn and roasted it, they opened up a watermelon and they ate it on the spot, messy but delicious.

You may want to join them on Wednesdays, between 1 and 3 pm or volunteer on Sundays, 10 am to 12 pm, learn more about gardening, do something good for the earth and for yourself.

Enter through the Canfield gate, email us for more info.

artichokes

Sunday July 3, 2011

Hot summer days are finally here!

Come and look at the Hami garden’s giant cornstalks and burgeoning watermelons.

The most stunning sight is purple flowering artichokes.

Summer hours for students are now on Wednesdays, 1 to 3 pm, to coincide with the 10-week Summer Teen program for incoming Freshmen, Stepping Forward.

SORO Neighborhood Council and Reynier Village Neighborhood Association made donations to support this excellent program, and you may do so as well, by contacting: beth@bethryan.com

Community volunteer hours are still Sundays 10 am to 12 pm.

Walk in through the Canfield gate, bring a hat and wear sunscreen, be ready to sweat while you work away, we could use your help for gardening chores.

Send us an email for more info hamigarden@gmail.com

flowers

Sunday April 3, 2011

Community and students volunteers showed up today, as they do every Sunday, to tend our beautiful garden, and they were rewarded with bouquets of colorful sweet pea flowers to take home.

In this springtime, tall flowers -red, yellow, blue and purple- cover up the fence.

Inside the vegetable garden, giant plants are full of mature artichokes.

Here’s a quiz for you, “Are artichokes fruits or vegetables, flowers or thistles?”

Look up the answer here

artichoke

Please visit the Hami Garden and discover its many wonders.

Sundays 10 am to 12 pm.  For more info, email hamigarden@gmail.com

watering the verbena

Sunday February 6, 2011

Community volunteers continue to take care of the blossoming Hami Garden: watering, planting, pruning, raking, mulching, composting, etc.

A purple verbena bush is gracing the California perennials bed.

The sweet peas are growing up tall like a forest.

The broccoli spread their large leaves to the sun.

Please come by and take a look, do some work, on Sundays 10 am to 12

Enter through the small gate on Canfield.

broccoli & sweet peas

sunflower and marigolds

December 5, 2010

The winter vegetables have been planted: peas, onions, brussel sprouts, broccoli, artichokes and lettuces.

The yellow marigolds are flourishing, a big sunflower sprouted all on its own, and the Hami Garden looks more gorgeous than ever.

Please stop by to enjoy it and help with some gardening chores.

We’re there on Sundays from 10 to 12.

The Canfield gate is open, look for the red and white flag.

For more info email: hamigarden@gmail.com

October 8, 2010

The Grand Opening of the Hamilton School Garden on October 7 was a success, city officials, community members, parents and teachers were justly proud of this accomplishment.

But the ones who really enjoyed the day’s activities were the students who came by and got their hands dirty, digging and mulching, harvesting the bountiful crops: basil, tomatoes, eggplant, lettuce, etc.

SORONC Board member and photographer Barry Levine documented the events through photographs and video

Garden Manager and videographer Samantha Lyon interviewed SORO Green Team co-chairs Paula Waxman and Larry Hess.

Master Gardener George Pessin was very excited that many Hamilton students signed up for Garden Club, that meets Tuesdays after school.

Community members are invited to work on the garden on Saturdays 10.30 to 12.30 pm.

We’re still looking for an Assistant Manager to work with students and teachers on weekdays.

Please contact us at hamigarden@gmail.com

pumpkin

September 27, 2010

The Hami Garden will have its “Grand Opening” on “Back to School” day, Thursday October 7.

Students and teachers are invited to visit, enjoy the summer bounty of vegetables and flowers, from 7 am to 4 pm, parents and members of the community from 4 to 7 pm.

It is a great accomplishment for our neighborhood to have been able to provide students with hands-on experience on how our food is grown, help them understand our connection with the earth and with the community.

We extend our thanks to the many volunteers who have worked hard to make this possible: Paula Waxman and Larry Hess of SORO Green team, Garden Manager Samantha Lyon, Master Gardener George Pessin, Weekend Manager Andrea Elam, Science teacher Karen Laramay and the students from the Hami Garden Club, Garden Manager Erin Amini, photographer Barry Levinson, Saran Kirshbaum, Steven Coker, etc

We are still looking for more weekday help and weekend volunteers.

Please visit the Hami Garden Facebook page

Contact us to volunteer: hamigarden@gmail.com

Samantha Lyon

Larry Hess

September 11, 2010

Volunteers have been working in the Hami garden to get it ready for the start of the school year on Monday September 13.

Larry built retaining walls of broken concrete to hold the soil around some of the beds.

We have a new Garden manager: Samantha Lyon and a weekend manager: Andrea Elam.

Stay tuned for news of the Grand Opening celebration, coming soon!

Sunday September 5, 2010

Paula Waxman shows how the scarlet runner beans will climb up the fence and, hopefully, cover it up completely for a greener look.

The Hami Garden is looking for regular volunteers willing to work 2 hours every weekend, when the garden will be open for 2 hours each Saturday and one Sunday a month, from 10.30 am to 12.30 pm.

We’re also looking for an Assistant manager who will commit to 4 hours a week, Monday through Friday between 8 am and 3 pm, school hours, as needed to fit into students and teachers’ schedules.

Please email Paula if you’re available: paulawaxman@soronc.org

Sunday August 21, 2010

Lots of tomatoes have been growing on several plants in the Hami garden, bordered by bright yellow marigolds.  Community volunteers who showed up today to prune and harvest walked home with some red juicy ones to eat.

We will be taking a little time off next week to prepare for the start of school year.

Many thanks to all the students and volunteers who worked on the garden during the summer break, and to Erin, the garden manager.

Please email Paula if you want to become part of our team of volunteer gardeners: paulawaxman@soronc.org

Erin shows squash

July 19, 2010

Now that summer school has started at Hamilton, volunteers are invited to work in the Hami Garden from 12 to 2 pm om Mondays and Wednesdays.

ALL STUDENTS can get extra credit applied to Science class next year AND community hours!

Eggshells were sprinkled around the base of the plants to help keep the snails and slugs away.

Compost was added to the tomato beds, more seeds were planted, humongous cauliflower and broccoli, some squash and lettuces were harvested. Tomato cages were built and they look AWESOME.

This week we will be removing cauliflower, broccoli, and brussel sprouts, planting canteloupe, watermelon, some more squash, some eggplant and peppers!  We will make some trellises for our melons and cucumbers.

This Sunday July 25, from 10 to 12, we will finish installing the new irrigation system and plant the last of the drought-tolerant plants.

Please come out and help!

For any questions send email to Erin: hamigarden@gmail.com

lettuces

June 23, 2010

As the school year ends this week at Hamilton High School, work on the Hami Garden continues.

Many varieties of vegetables and herbs have been planted: lettuces, tomatoes, squash, beans, artichokes, etc.

A fence was erected to protect the area, which will be covered with pretty vines in due time; meanwhile bright yellow marigolds highlight the vegetable beds.

This Saturday, June 26, from 10 to 12, we will be planting all of our native, drought tolerant plants.

Please come out and help us landscape.

Email Erin with any questions at hamigarden@gmail.com

Erin and Saran tend garden

May 3, 2010

We visited the garden this past Sunday and saw Hamilton students mixing nutrients into the compost and mulch to prepare the soil for planting, volunteers from SORO Green team digging up trenches for drip irrigation.

Please come out to help, Sundays 10 to 12.

Sign up for volunteer hours, get free donuts!

The garden is located in the North West corner of the track area, at Cattaraugus and Canfield.

Email Erin for latest schedule and questions hamigarden@gmail.com

March 27, 2010

A lot is happening at the Hami Garden.

We have cleared the area of debris, weeded, hand tilled, composted, bought a storage shed, installed compost bins, and have begun roto-tilling.

Hamilton Science teachers are bringing their classes to the garden.

We are in the garden every Saturday and Sunday from 10 to noon.

Come out to help, sign your name on our volunteer list, get free donuts!

Next big event: Wednesday March 31, 12.30 pm

RAL youth will dig trenches for a drip irrigation system.

Nika raking

March 14, 2010

Work on the Hami Garden is progressing.

More and more volunteers are showing up to help: students, teachers, neighbors…

Please stop by and take look, sign in, put in a couple of hours worth of work

Every Saturday and Sunday from 10 am to noon.

Enter from gate on Cattaraugus SW corner Canfield.

On Saturday March 13, video interviews with the principal organizers of this community effort were taped by videographer Samantha Lyon.

Paula Waxman, SORO Green team co-chair, SORON Board

Lawrence Hess, SORO Green team co-chair, landscape designer

Erin Amini, Hami Garden manager, community gardener

Nika Allahverdi, Hamilton student, environmental club S.A.F.E.

Karen Laramay, Hamilton biology teacher

Photographer Barry Levine, SORONC Board member and Reynier Village resident, will continue to document the progress of the Hami Garden.

Nika & Samantha

March 2, 2010

Work has started on the “Hami Garden”, students broke ground during Winter break, compost bins were installed, weeds cleared, volunteers started tilling the soil.  The official completion is planned for June, but might be completed as early as May 1st.

Please consider volunteering next Sunday March 7 at 10 am, rain permitting.

For access info and to sign-up email PaulaWaxman@soronc.org

Erin Amini, Hami gardener

Hamilton students

Volunteers tilling

The “Hami Garden” is a project of SORO Green Team, co-chaired by Paula Waxman and Lawrence Hess.

They organized it with student Nika Allahverdi, co-founder of the S.A.F.E. Environmental Club at Hamilton High School, and science teacher Karen Laramay; they applied for a City Beautification Grant, that was awarded by the city and matched by the South Robertson Neighborhoods Council.

Erin Amini has volunteered to manage the garden.

Larry has designed the landscaping: it will include a permanent area of drought-tolerant Mediterranean and California native plants and two seasonal planting beds for the use of the Hamilton High student body and various departments.

Blog page editor: Elisa Leonelli-SORO Green Team + RVNA Board-Communications