In Upstate New York, where the Mohawk and Hudson River converge there are a cluster of cities. Small by today's standards, they combine to make a metropolitan area of about three quarters of a million people. But they are old, Albany will soon be celebrating its 400th birthday and Troy, well Troy is the place where Henry Hudson turned around. Schenectady is the third of the triumvirate, the city that light made. A range of other cities fill the spaces in between: Waterford, Cohoes, Watervliet, Green Island, Rensselaer, each shaped by the industry that made them strong and the ethnic groups that defined them; each made rich by the power of water and what it carried.
For a hundred years they have been on the downside, except for Schenectady, which was made mighty by electricity, its downfall was more precipitous and recent. In each, stately homes were abandoned for new ones in the suburbs. Rich farmland was covered with split level ranches and absurd 12-room show homes with multiple rooflines. Neighborhoods in Albany's center can have poverty rates 10 times those of Delmar, a suburb just several miles away. A vigorous wave of urban homesteading in the early 80's stabilized some of Albany's neighborhoods, but that seems a long time ago. In other cities, Troy, Schenectady, Cohoes, the revival was more recent and seems to be continuing.
My garden is in the City of Albany, in a pleasant neighborhood of tree-lined streets. Many of the buildings nearby have been cut up into apartments for students, although this is probably the healthiest part of town, in terms of home ownership.
In terms of gardening, we are well within Zone 5. Frosts end sooner here and begin later then they would if we were outside of town, but because the garden is located next to the large open area of a park, the first frost struck my garden a little sooner than it did at some of the smaller gardens immediately surrounded by buildings.
Our CG is pretty big, about a half acre in size I would guess. There must be 30 or 40 garden plots, farmed by couples, families and friends. It is difficult to know all of my fellow gardeners. I did not attend our spring clean up last year, which is a great way to become acquainted, because I had to work. My lovely wife represented us instead. This year I will make it.
Another constant of the gardening year, where fellow gardeners mingle, is at sign-ups. Each returning gardener is required to reregister their plot and pay their yearly fee. I did that last week. To my surprise the fee was $15, not the $20 I mentioned in my first post. What a deal! An added bonus is the free seeds, with a great selection of vegetables and flowers to choose from. I made an order from FEDCO for some seed potatoes and onions a few weeks back, because they are something you can't count on from CDCG. I got great seed garlic from the organization last fall, which I am excited about. This will be the first time I have grown either potatoes or garlic.
Returning gardeners can keep their plots, or they have first choice at new plots that have opened up elsewhere. Sometimes people want to get a sunnier plot, or even move out of the garden to another one closer to their home. Some gardens are quite popular and difficult to get into. Gardeners' may have to wait several years to get the perfect location.
Next comes new gardener sign-ups, untimely covered, under the posting of WHEN
