Weekly Weeder 

by Scott Morris
August 14, 2026

The world faces many problems today, but Sunshine has always been a place where friends gather to do good work. The board meeting last Tuesday was no exception. Attendees welcomed representatives from the UT chapters of the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers and the National Electrical Engineering Organization to learn about their agrivoltaics project. The board appointed Doug Zullo as assistant treasurer, and it also created and charged a new audit committee, appointing Tiffany Ondracek, Michael Hanlon, Corinne Hughes and Stan Babbitt. The board authorized the formation of the Facilities, Groundskeeping and Sustainability Workgroups for the Sunshine site. It requested that the Facilities Workgroup proceed with hose station replacement, Groundskeeping Workgroup research and develop a khaki weed suppression program and the Sustainability Workgroup study the feasibility of a new composting program. Team leads and committee chairs from across the site sent the board updates in the inaugural monthly Sunshine Operations Report. There will be a myriad of service activities this fall, and many options for getting involved.

August 14, 2026

Photo by Susan Van Haitsma

Dave’s corner passion
Our good fortune

–Susan Van Haitsma

August 14, 2026

But soft! What fruit through yonder foliage breaks?
It is the east, and Juliet is the tomato.
Arise, fair grape, upon thy vigorous vine,
and shame the common cherries,
who already hang pale with envy.

O Roma, Roma! Wherefore art thou Roma?
Deny thy paste, refuse thy determinate habit;
or, if thou wilt not, be but sworn my love,
and I shall leave my cluster.

‘Tis but thy variety that is my enemy.
Thou art thyself, though firm and thick of flesh.
What’s Roma? It is neither leaf nor stem,
nor blossom, cage, nor any garden part.
O, be some other fruit!

What’s in a name? That which we call manure,
by any other word would smell as rank.
So Roma would, were he not Roma called,
retain that dense and meaty flesh
which makes him fit for sauce.

Yet I grow on—indeterminate—
sweet, prolific, and resistant to cracking,
while thou, compact and practical,
ripenest all at once.

Thus are we star-crossed lovers:
I, destined for the salad bowl;
thou, for the saucepan—
both planted deep
in warm amendments
the seed catalog called “organic matter,”
but which the gardener knew
was bull manure.

–Ron Lucey

Submit your own garden- or nature-themed literary creation to the Weekly Weeder.

by Ila Falvey
August 14, 2026

One of the advantages of being a gardener at a community garden is the exchange of information.  Also, an advantage is growing produce that is difficult to buy commercially.  An example of this is a variety of butternut squash–Rugosa squash. It takes about 120 days to mature, but it is worth the wait. 

This squash weighs seven pounds, about the same as a newborn baby. Photo by Ila Falvey.

Read about this remarkable squash: Violina Di Rugosa at Specialty Produce 

by Ila Falvey
August 14, 2026

Is anyone from Sunshine (with a truck, time, and interest) willing to pick up mushroom blocks for Sunshine?

Central Texas Mycological Society has a program to collect blocks from local farms that would otherwise end up in landfills. Read more about it and/or schedule a pick up time here:

https://www.centraltexasmycology.org/volunteer?ss_source=sscampaigns&ss_email_id=6a7b1997b2fc1d497d829b74

by Scott Morris
August 6, 2026

For the first time in years, the leaf pile is composting. Moisture from frequent rains and a bit of aeration from the tractor operators grooming it a few weeks ago triggered the process. Compost generated from leaves, also known as leaf mold, is a clean, balanced, living soil amendment that results from a lower-temperature fungal process. It boosts organic matter, improving moisture retention and feeding bacteria essential for nutrient availability and soil health. Leaf mold can be worked directly into soil from the pile, used as a top dressing mulch, or as a seed starting medium if sifted through a ½” mesh. It has almost no inorganics, so most of it will ultimately gas off. Newer leaves added to the northern end of the windrow are drier and not active, so you’ll have better results mining dense material from the southern end. Please keep the pile as neat as possible as you remove the dry capping material.

The compost core is estimated to be about 30 cubic yards in size, about half of the 60 cubic yards of leaves measured on August 4th. Midline temperature readings at a height of four feet were recorded as high as 123 degrees. The temperatures closer to the ground were lower, likely due to more anaerobic conditions caused by the weight of the material above it. Most of the leaves are from the live oak leaf drop in March. Brought to our site by landscapers, leaf windrows have been a part of the site’s landfill diversion and large-scale composting program begun over 40 years ago.

While the extra rain this season has caused everyone countless hours of additional site and plot maintenance, it’s great that it delivered the unexpected reward of 15 tons of free compost!

by Ila Falvey
August 6, 2026

Last week the husband-and-wife team of Lisa Taylor and Mark Zagorin worked diligently for several hours pulling weeds out of the raised bed area. Thank you, Lisa and Mark, for your efforts on this task.

by Ila Falvey
August 6, 2026

Khaki weed (Altenanthera pungens) is the plant kingdom’s version of the fire ant.It is a noxious perennial weed with prickly burrs (seeds) that stick to everything. It is a relative newcomer to Austin, and it has managed to spread very aggressively. Sunshine gardeners have been battling it for several years and losing the battle. But gardeners are as resilient as khaki weed and the battle continues.

Now is the ideal time to pull out weed khaki weed. The burrs are very obvious so the plant can be identified easily especially in areas that haven’t been mowed.

The goal is to contain the seeds and dispose of them to reduce the spread. Removal of the plant properly will help accomplish this. Also, note that removing Khaki weed counts as TSBVI hours.

This video will aid you in this task. It was recorded and edited by Yang Zhang, features Yang and Vanessa, and was “directed” by Ila.

Here goes your text … Select any part of your text to access the formatting toolbar.

August 1, 2026

Volunteers from the waiting list joined Sunshine members to work on site maintenance Sunday morning. Among the projects were hackberry removal, mowing and line trimming, accessibility garden maintenance, greenhouse weeding, khaki weed removal, hose hanger maintenance and the removal of a large palm tree. We don’t have the names of everyone who helped, but lending a hand were Lexie, Ryan, Doug, Steve, Jen, Laura, Stan, Elaine, Jessica, Katherine, Kay, Aneka, Mary, Bob, Sam, Sarah, Scott, Vicky, Vic, David, Withanage, Lauren, and a pair of Lisas, Rachels and Susans. Thanks also go to Ray for mower repair for this event, Randy for knocking out a lot of mowing earlier in the week, Brian for taking on projects later this week, and to the Beautification Committee, Matt and Allison, and Ila and Yeong, who shared their time slots and provided support and encouragement to the volunteers. 

In early 2011, during a discussion between Don Freeman, Randy Thompson, Jim Willmann, and me on the best varieties of tomato plants to grow in Central Texas, the idea of the Tomato Trial Garden was generated. To determine the best varieties, we decided to grow different varieties in the plot near the entrance to Sunshine Community Garden (SCG) Four plants of eight varieties, for a total of 32 plants, would be grown each spring. The number of harvested tomatoes for each variety by the date harvested is recorded.
 
Since 2011, 104 tomato varieties have been grown during the 16 years. Thirteen varieties have been grown more than once. Two popular varieties at SCG are Celebrity and Cherokee Purple, Celebrity has been grown nine times. The average yield for Celebrity is 42 tomatoes per plant. Cherokee Purple has been grown twice. The average number of tomatoes harvested per plant was 17.
 
The varieties grown in Spring of 2026 and the average number of tomatoes harvested per plant are shown below. The harvest from Bloody Butcher was astonishing, 181 tomatoes per plant.

The harvest from Money Maker was also noteworthy, 117 tomatoes per plant. The harvest from San Marzano was disappointing, only 6 tomatoes per plant.
 
Bloody Butcher – 181
Celebrity Plus – 60
Eva Purple Ball – 21
Money Maker – 117
Purple Boy Hybrid – 93
San Marzano – 6
Thorburn’s Terra Cotta – 66
 
During the past 16 years, 19 varieties grown in the trial garden have yielded 60 tomatoes or more per plant. These 19 varieties include five varieties grown in 2026.
 
These 19 varieties are: Amish Gold, Ancienne Belge, Arkansas Traveler, Bloody Butcher, Celebrity, Celebrity Plus, Champion II, Cream Sausage, Early Girl, Flamme, Garden Gem, Jamaican Ghana, Lemon Boy, Money Maker, New Girl, Purple Boy Hybrid, Stupice, Thorburn’s Terra Cotta, and Viva Italian. 
 
Like Bloody Butcher and Money Maker grown this year, five varieties (Amish Gold, Early Girl, Garden Gem, Stupice, and Viva Italian) noted above yielded an astounding number of tomatoes, over 100 tomatoes per plant. Amish Gold has been the most productive of the varieties. The number of harvested tomatoes was 201 per plant.
 
Tomatoes from the tomato trial garden are donated to Micah 6 or other food pantries. Since 2011, over 17,400 tomatoes have been harvested. 
 
— Submitted by Jeff Taylor

Editor’s Note: Last week we published an early draft of this article instead of this version. We apologize for the error. 

The Xerces Society granted us permission to publish this lovely color graphic with helpful tips about protecting pollinators.

August 1, 2026

July Donations / 2026 Cumulative Total

Sunshine Produce — 514 lbs / 2626 lbs
Purchased Dry Goods & Produce — 16.5 lbs / 400.25 lbs

July was a good month for the food pantry. As predicted, our outstanding tomato crop dwindled, but lots of other spring/summer vegetables continued to be donated. One fun part of organizing produce donations is seeing the variety of produce donated by Sunshine gardeners. See the photo of the Armenian cucumbers donated by a generous gardener. Armenian cucumbers are such an interesting and delicious vegetable, and these cucumbers are perfect! I was so happy to see them, and of more importance, I’m sure several food pantry clients were also happy to see these cucumbers.  

Think of Micah 6 when trying to decide what to do with your excess garden bounty.  

Fresh Produce Donations:

Donations of fresh produce (from your garden or purchased) may be left in the cool room (south end of the trailer) or in the trailer refrigerator. Please bag and refrigerate items that are best stored cool. Occasionally we have to throw out vegetables that have been left on the cool room table for too long. Labels, ties, and a variety of sacks are kept in the cool room for your convenience. Labeling produce, especially if it is not a common vegetable, is helpful to both the food pantry staff and clients. Thank you for your help!

Purchased Dry Goods Donations:

Please consider donating non-perishable food items. Leave your donations in the cool room at the south end of the trailer.

Non-perishable donation suggestions:

• Canned meats such as tuna and stew (pop-up tops preferred)
• Canned vegetables and soup
• Dry beans and rice
• Healthy cereals
• Peanut butter
• Packaged milk and juice that requires no refrigeration

Deliveries to the food bank are currently once a week — Saturday, around 9am. 

Food insecurity is a significant problem for many people in Austin. The Saturday Micah 6 Food Pantry currently serves an average of 120 households per week, which is an increase from past years.  Austin is an expensive place to live, especially for families with children. Your generosity is appreciated!

–Submitted by Walter Kuhl

August 1, 2026

August is an old man

August is an old man —
gnarled —
cut off at the knee
Longevity a living corpse
You are here said the wasp
while burrowing in the tree

August is an old man
in the sun, diminished —
blemished, bitten brown
Silent buzzing whisper ticking down

August brought you back
from death —
sticky slime of sugared breath —
Breathe on me.

August is a old man
berated, broken,
emblematic memory
through nature disregarded.

Life is for the living
sings the bee
If I become dust
it’s as if I just departed.

Nothing more,
nothing begun,
nothing ended,
nothing started.

So it is with you, old man.
August had its way with you.
🐝

–Lisa Kiewra

Lisa wrote that her poem was inspired by the garden.

Submit your own garden- or nature-themed literary creation to the Weekly Weeder.

August 1, 2026

Heirloom Expo 👨‍🌾

This looks like a fabulous event for those of you who might be in the “neighborhood.” (It will be held at the farm for Baker Creek Heirloom Seed Company, in Mansfield, MO. Mansfield is perhaps best known as the location of the Laura Ingalls Wilder Home and Museum, and the annual “Wilder Days” festival will be held just before the Heirloom Expo.)

The 15th National Heirloom Exposition will be held Sunday and Monday, September 27-28, 2026 in Mansfield, MO. Thousands of gardeners and seed savers will gather to celebrate heirloom plants, swap seeds, visit vendors, and tour Pioneer Village. Tickets are $10 per adult, and are good for both days. Free camping is available.

To read more about the exposition:
https://www.rareseeds.com/heirloom-expo

Mushroom Blocks 🍄‍🟫

Mushroom blocks from Hi-Fi were dropped off last Sunday by Angel from Central Texas Mycological Society.

Great for mulching and if you’re building a new raised garden bed, here’s a lasagna gardening recipe for success:

Help keep 10,000 blocks out of landfill per week. Mycelium blocks are black gold for your soil. They’re the perfect carbon-rich base layer to fill raised beds, improve structure, and feed your soil for years. They are for moisture retention, mulching, nutrient cycling and breaking down woody matter, you can also amend your soil and get it ready for fall planting. They are more carbon rich than nitrogen and 100% organic matter.

Great for mulching and if you’re building a new raised garden bed, here’s a lasagna gardening recipe for success:

  👇 Bottom 6″ = broken-up mushroom blocks (carbon powerhouse)
  🌿 Middle 6″ = coffee grounds, grass clippings, or veggie scraps (nitrogen boost)
🌱  Top 6″ = finished compost or topsoil (ready for planting!)

Help spread the spores and also share with your friends and neighbors. You can also—sign up to volunteer! CTMS need hands to process, distribute, and spread the word. Every block diverted is a win for your garden AND the planet.

To volunteer or donate:
https://www.centraltexasmycology.org/donate

–Angel Schatz 

Happy Gardening!

For older issues, please send your request in the Contact Us form below.