HART of Winter

The Hanna Agricultural Resource Team (HART) met at 5 p.m. on September 15 at the Hanna Market.

“We need to get ready for the cold weather,” Chairman Perry Goodrich, said. “We already got one snow storm, so it makes sense to start preparing our gardens.”

HART member Ellen Freeman told the group that several wooden posts were starting to rot.

“There are a few options, from replacing the posts entirely to getting some steel poles and attach them to the posts for stability during the winter,” P. Goodrich said.

The group decided that steel posts were the best solution with winter coming soon and, if the posts needed more repair after winter, it could be done easier.

Several HART members said they would be going to the community garden on September 19 to work on their garden beds and would work on attaching the steel poles to the posts.

A decision was made to move plastic panels for a greenhouse that have been stored at the garden from their present site outside the garden perimeter to inside the garden.

“We need to get the beds shut down before we can really decide where the best place for those panels are,” P. Goodrich said.

HART has discussed applying for 501(c)(3) non-profit status, but previously had decided against it.

“It is time to look at doing so again,” P. Goodrich said. “There may be options and reasons that we haven’t considered. We find ourselves functioning like a non-profit, but we don’t really have any of the benefits.”

Bed covers are ready to be put on the gardens once the weather dictates the need.

Linda Goodrich, group secretary, said that Nancy Anderson of the Hanna Basin Museum and Historical Society had remarked how green the grounds around the buildings had become since HART had started working on the gardens for the cottage on the museum site.

“That was Miss Rose (Dabbs) I told Nancy,” L. Goodrich said. “Because Rose can’t really do digging and some of the other heavy work, she got on the ground and cleaned out the sprinklers. She did an amazing job.”

“It was something I could do and it was nice that Nancy said something,” Dabbs said.

“This is one of the reasons we exist,” L. Goodrich said. “It is not just for our members to work on the community beds, but to help gardens throughout the town where we can. The Hanna Museum is a very worthwhile project.”

Freeman said a new hose needed to be purchased for the spring.

“Just make sure what we buy is kink free,” Freeman said. “I suggest looking at purchasing it now and storing it because this is the time of year when garden materials and tools go on sale.”

“I would like to learn more about the greenhouse out in Medicine Bow,” P. Goodrich said. “I understand the Flansburgs have an amazing one. This is something for us to research further. It would be great to have a greenhouse year round.”

HART decided to have one more meeting before hibernating for the winter. The tentative meeting time will 5 p.m. on October 20.