The INDEPENDENT, April 18, 2002
Plant, book sale
at Banks Library
The Annual Plant and Book
Sale sponsored by the Friends
of the Banks Public Library will
be held Saturday, April 27, from
9:00 a.m. to 1:00 p.m. at the
Banks Public Library, 111 Mar
ket Street.
A preview night for members
of Friends of the Library will be
Friday, April 26, from 7:00 to
8:30 p.m. Membership will be
available at the door.
A nice selection of perenni
als and shrubs will be available
at great prices. Hardback and
paperback books and maga
zines will also be available at
low prices.
For more information, call
Karen Ballard at 503-324-
8733.
The hardest job that people
have to do is move religion
from their throats to their
muscles.
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Can Ton Dig It?
By Schann Nelson
I intend to write once a month about
what is happening in my garden. By sharing
what I have done that works—and doesn’t
work—hopefully others will be inspired to
plant something. The joy of growing things
is available to everyone, whether in a few
small pots or a large garden plot. In our
temperate climate we are blessed with an
environment that will allow almost every
thing to grow. Some things take more effort
and special treatment, but persistence pays off.
One of the best things about the yard and garden at this time
of year is seeing the results of previous work. The bulbs planted
in the fall with such loving care, are poking their heads out. Plant
divisions, watered religiously over the summer to keep them alive,
are growing vigorously. Shrubs, berries, and fruit trees dormant
for the winter are beginning to show signs of life and the promise
of bounty.
Every year I plant peas with a lot of faith but probably very lit
tle sense. Since my vegetable garden is ten raised beds I go out
in late January and cover one or two beds with clear plastic. This
keeps the cold drenching winter rains off the beds and even the
slightest amount of sun warms the soil. By the middle or end of
February I can go out, fork over a bed and plant peas. This year
I planted ‘New Century’ shelling peas and ‘Mega’ snap peas. A
month ago both were coming up nicely. Unfortunately, it looks like
the voles really like the taste of very young shelling peas. I can
Church Directory
V ernonia F oursquare C hurch
A ssembly
of
G od
Pastor Paul Pastor
850 Madison Avenue
Vernonia, 503 429-1103
Darwin Harvey, Pastor
662 Jefferson
Vernonia, 503 429-4615
Sunday Worship Service: 10:30 a.m.
Children’s Sunday School
Sunday School 9:45 a.m.
Morning Worship 11:00 a.m.
Evening Worship 6 00 p m
Wednesdays 7:00 p.m.
Evening Service
Youth Ministry
Children’s Ministry
Nursery Available
Men’s Ministry 7:45 a.m.
3rd Saturday each month
V ernonia C ommunity C hurch
Grant Williams, Pastor
957 State Avenue
Vernonia, 503 429-6790
Sunday School 9:45 a.m.
Morning Worship 11:00 a.m.
Children's Church w/Nursery
Sunday Youth Group
Junior High 3:00 - 5:00 p.m.
Senior High 6:00 - 8:00 p.m.
Prayer Meeting, Wed. 7:00 p.m.
Women’s Bible Study, Thurs. 7:00 p.m.
G race R eformed B aptist
C hurch
D.J. Dickey, Pastor
Grant & North Streets
Vernonia, 503 429-1919
Sunday Services: Adult Prayer &
Children's Sunday School 9:45 a.m.
Morning Worship 11:15 a.m.
Evening Worship 5:00 p.m.
Wednesday Service:
All Family Bible Study, 7:00 p.m.
Page 7
Men’s Study, Tuesday 10:30 a.m.
Women’s Study, Wednesday 1:30 p.m.
Youth & Kids , Thursday 7:00 p.m.
F irst B aptist C hurch
John Cahill, Pastor
359 “A" Street
Vernonia, 503 429-1161
Sunday School 9:45 a.m.
Morning Worship 11:00 a.m.
Evening Worship
Saturday, 6:00 p.m.
N ehalem V alley B ible C hurch
500 California Ave
Vernonia, 503 429-5378
Sunday School 10:00 a.m.
Morning Worship 11:00 a.m.
Nursery available
C hurch of J esus C hrist
of L atter D ay S aints
Lee Knowlton, Branch President
1350 E. Knott Street
Vernonia, 503 429-7151
Sacrament Meeting, Sunday 10 a.m
Sunday School & Primary 11:20 a.m
Relief Society, Priesthood and
Young Women, Sunday 12:10 p.m.
S eventh D ay A dventist
Kevin Reiner, Pastor, 543-2254
2nd Ave. and Nehalem St.
Vernonia, 503 429-8301
Sabbath School 9:15 a.m.
Morning Worship, 11:00 a.m.
Prayer Meeting, Wed. 7:00 p.m.
S t . A ugustine (C anterbury )
E piscopal C hurch
The Rev. Robert Grafe, Pastor
375 North St. (Vernonia Grange Hall)
Vernonia, 503 429-3700
Sunday Services 10:00 a.m.
C hristian C hurch
Wednesday Service 7:00 p.m.
S t . M ary ’ s C atholic C hurch
Pastoral Associate
Juanita Dennis
960 Missouri Avenue
Vernonia, 503 429-8841
Mass Schedule
Sunday 12 Noon
Religious Education
Sunday 10:30 a.m.
Joel Stith, Pastor
410 North Street
Vernonia, 503 429-6522
Sunday School 9:30 a.m.
Morning Worship 11:00 a.m.
Every Wednesday:
Ladies' Bible Study 9:15 a.m.
Children’s Choir 3:00 p.m.
Family Bible Study 6:30 p.m.
Women's Fellowship, 2nd & 4th
Wednesdays, 1:30 p.m.
-
literally see little rodent tooth marks in the seeds left on the sur
face of the remaining seeds. Today I am replanting with ‘Oregon
Trail’ shelling peas, though it seems awfully late to plant a pea
with a 120-day maturity date, even if is supposed to be enation
resistant.
Last year I spent a lot of time moving, and dividing things in the
perennial flowerbeds. The irises are coming up, though I don’t
expect much bloom for a couple of years. The daffodils are, of
course glorious, like they are all over town, and the row of ‘King
Alfred’ bright, tall, yellow trumpets that I moved to the front of the
bed, and that I see as I drive in my driveway is coming along nice
ly. I’ve inter-planted the daffodils with the hardy bright yellow prim
rose and some blue grape hyacinths. By next year it should be a
solid row of riotous yellow to welcome spring with a little blue to
mellow it later in the season.
Also coming along nicely is a long row of daffodils I moved two
years ago. As my Uncle Ralph says, “Once you plant daffodils you
will always have them.” Suffering from overcrowding, I dug them
up planted them along the hedge at the front of the yard. Last
year, there were very few blooms but this year there are quite a
few. Since I have both early and late varieties of daffodils planted
in both sun and partial shade, I can pick daffodils into the month
of May, most years.
Last fall I chanced upon an inspiring book, The Art of the
Kitchen Garden, by Jan and Michael Gertley. The Gertleys have
studied the famous European “knot” and monastic gardens that
were created to be both beautiful and bountiful. They keep their
beds small and easily maintained from heavily mulched paths.
Annuals such as parsley, marigolds, lobelia, and alyssum, replace
the boxwood hedges of Italian renaissance gardens. Included are
well laid-out geometric designs, based on a Japanese family
crest, an American quilt block, and a Celtic knot, for planting
mixed gardens of vegetables and flowers. Of course, these
include a HUGE number of border annuals (several flats), far
beyond my means. I have, however, used their ideas and planted
a bed of cabbages, with garlic creating a diamond pattern around
the cabbages. Hopefully, the design will be successful. I have
planted garlic or onions with cabbages in the past and noticed sig
nificantly less predation by cabbage moths so, at least, I expect
that to hold true.
Soon my tomatoes will be in the ground under hot caps. I order
plants from Territorial Seed Company and, as usual, I’ve probably
ordered far more than I can use. This year it was way too cold to
set them out, so I potted them up. They’ve progressed from the
two-inch pots they arrived in, to four-inch pots, and have been
kept under lights. They loved it! This year I’m growing the follow
ing varieties: Stupice, Legend, Willamette, First Lady, Fantastic,
Seatle’s Best of All, Persimmon, Tiger-Like, German Cherry, Sund
Gold and Sweet Million. It’s so-o-o-o great to taste that first gar
den tomato and if I can get it by the Fourth of July I feel enor
mously successful.
The misty weather we’ve been having is great for transplanti
ng. Though you need rain gear to do it, moving things around
when a light mist is falling is extremely successful. Plants set out
as transplants, or moved from one spot in the yard to another,
hardly even know they’ve been moved and just keep right on
growing. There is a narrow window at this time of year, and again
in the fall, between the ground being too wet to work in and too
dry for much success. I love working in the yard at this time of
year because any effort made has such great dividends. Weeds,
slugs and yellow-jackets controlled now will be much less of a
problem later. Unhappy perennials can be moved to a better loca
tion for more sun or shade, or better drainage, and be beautiful by
June. Now all I need is the time to get out in the yard.
Enjoy digging in the ground. Start fertilizing houseplants and
thinking bout taking them outside for their summer vacation. Plan
your vegetable garden, try new varieties, put a few herbs in pots
to grow in a sunny window. Happy gardening!