Discovering A Local Community Garden

We have a garden in our suburban yard, but I am, at best, a lazy gardener. My raspberries do well, despite my neglect. I have hit or miss vegetables in several raised beds every year. (Usually planted late.)

I have always been fascinated by the community garden idea. My first exposure was in Kiel, Germany. Where many, including my host family at the time, benefitted from the availability of garden space near apartment housing. Then again later, I enjoyed visiting community gardens in Boston, where there is a community garden located on the same ground as when it was begun, as a victory garden, during World War II. Still thriving, it is located in the Fredrick Law Olmsted Emerald Necklace green space of the Fenway in Boston. You can learn about that historic community garden from their website Fenway Victory Gardens.  More recently, during my day to day travels of driving my teen-aged children around, I've been stumbling upon local community gardens in my current Chicagoland stomping grounds.

My 17 year old son has a new job. Sometimes (usually), teenager jobs require the commitment of a parent or other adult. Since he doesn't have a car yet, or for that matter, a driver's licence. His job requires a driver. I'm typically that driver. I don't mind, he has taken on a new responsibility, is learning a lot and I have been experiencing the opportunity to travel a new path because of it. As a result, I have been making a few new local discoveries. The Old Schoolhouse Community Garden being one of them. Located just steps away from the parking lot of my son's work place, the well manicured garden called to me and my camera.

Included are some of my photos of the Old Schoolhouse Community Garden in Westchester, IL.

Their welcome sign is a little bit contradictory. I stayed on marked paths and was careful not to disturb anything. Every raised bed had it's own wonderful and delightful beauty. So many wonderful, sweet surprises to photograph.

Located next to an old schoolhouse with property owned by Immanuel Lutheran Church, the garden is a delightfully well maintained community garden of raised beds. Their website is very informative and complete. It includes an application to secure the use of a raised bed, as well as all of the guidelines for participation. Somewhere, there is a great organizer behind the scenes!

Beautiful, healthy and productive melon plants. Someone is going to enjoy the fresh taste of that one!

A bit of creativity is added to the mix with these colorful little beaded plant identification markers.

The garden is complete with hospitality for the butterflies.

Gardening related classes are offered at the old schoolhouse itself. Unfortunately, I missed the recent canning class. Hopefully, I'll be able to benefit from some of their other upcoming classes.
They do have a few more events listed for this fall.
http://www.oshcommunitygarden.org/events-classes

For further general information about the Old Schoolhouse Community Garden in Westchester, IL, their website is at:
http://www.oshcommunitygarden.org/.

Community garden or home garden, this little tool collection plus folding stool is useful. Click on the image to head over to amazon to view and/or purchase. This is an affiliate link. Thanks for visiting!

Home State Travel

When planning a family vacation, central Illinois may not be the first destination that comes to mind. However, we have visited the state capital of Illinois on several occasions and if you have the opportunity, are interested in American history, are teaching it to homeschooled children or reinforcing a school curriculum, I'd highly recommend a stop in Springfield, IL.

Surrounded by beautiful and productive farmland, Springfield's biggest draw is it's historical connection to our most famous of presidents, Abraham Lincoln. There are a series of attractions in Springfield that offer an informative and revealing look into his life and times.

Lincoln's Tomb Association website.

A life of hard work, dedication to learning, greatness, tragedy and mostly his legacy of commitment to freedom and of ending slavery, learning about Abraham Lincoln is a key to understanding the history of the United States of America and it's foundation of liberty.

Visit these attractions for an in depth view:

• The Lincoln tomb at Oak Ridge cemetery has an interesting history itself.
• The Lincoln Museum and Library presents the information and artifacts in an engaging and accessible way for visitors of all ages. Excellent gift shop, too! The Lincoln Museum website.
• The Lincoln New Salem State Historic Site is a reconstructed village of where Abraham Lincoln spent his young adulthood. It is located about 20 miles northwest of Springfield and presents a - you are there - experience of the 1830's. Check days and hours of operation.

Abraham Lincoln - discover more about the man, the president, his life and times in Springfield, Illinois.
                                          
A few good Lincoln reads, available at amazon.

And more history resources at Schoolhouse Teachers. To explore click the image below.

I'm a 'City Mom'

     Early this spring, I became a participant in a unique Illinois Farm Bureau program. Developed to introduce non-rural families to agriculture and educate them about farming practices in Illinois, urban and suburban dwelling moms are recruited to participate and have the opportunity to tour several Illinois farms over the course of the season to see firsthand how crops and livestock are raised. Sponsored and coordinated by the Illinois Farm Bureau and Illinois Farm Families, tours are hosted by Illinois farmers and include presentations by a variety of agricultural professionals.

     
Previously referred to as ‘field moms’, participants have been given the new and appropriate title of 'city moms' this year. When I was contacted with acceptance into the program, I was delighted. I was also a bit surprised by my new title. Despite having lived all of my life in cities or suburbs, I've never really considered a city label for myself. Something about growing up in Nebraska just one generation removed from the farm, I suppose. So even my initial acceptance and participant title in the program has had me re-evaluating some of my own views; despite my love of and desire for more time in the country, I am a life-long city dweller.
     
As one of the "city moms" I have the privilege of touring Illinois farms with the group. During each tour we are presented with information regarding the farm itself, what products are produced there and given an overview of farming practices and techniques that are employed in the production of food by the hosting farm family. Each tour has included information presented by the farm family members and by other professionals involved in the agriculture industry.  Presenters have included; dietitians, farm bureau representatives, industry representatives and most meaningfully, Illinois farmers themselves.
     
We have been given an abundance of information and food for thought.  It is clear that there is a lot more going into every decision and practice that occurs on each farm than can be communicated in a short sound bite or one blog post.

A few of the facts about farming in Illinois that have stood out to me include:

• 97% of farms in Illinois are family owned.
Many are incorporated, like other family owned business'  for legal purposes, but continue to be family owned, farmed and operated, often with many extended family members joining in.

• Cook County has a farm bureau.
This was really a surprise to me. Cook County, Illinois actually has 8,499 acres being farmed on 127 farms.

• Illinois is a major producer of pumpkins.
I love knowing the ingredients for my favorite fall recipes are locally grown.

Other general farming information new to me:

• USDA certified organic does not mean raised completely pesticide and chemical free.

• The use of GMO seeds reduces the need for the use of pesticides by the grower, actually improving the health of the soil and safety for the farmer and consumer.

• Farmers continue to produce what the market demands.

• Farmers have a wide variety of choices about the practices employed on their farms.

Sweet corn in a no-till field.

Nick Saathoff, 4th generation family farmer and ‘city moms’ tour host, farms the Meyer- Saathoff farm with his wife, Missy, three children and extended family members. They gave examples from their farm.  Nick plants both GMO and non GMO corn.  He also plants both sweet corn and feed corn. He explained his use of GMO seed and some of the benefits of using it, including the reduced need for pesticides on the GMO crops. He has no reservations about using GMOs but he is making the extra effort to plant non GMO corn, which adds to his many farming considerations, including keeping those crops separated. He plants both because there is a market demand for both crops. Farmers, like any family business, respond to the market to continue to be an economically viable enterprise.

• Farmers choose viable (reproducible and sustainable) options for making a living and continuing to do so. 
The farmers we’ve met have communicated their deep concern for the land.  They care about the land and the soil. They have to consider the costs of production and maintaining the means of that production. They cannot use chemicals indiscriminately on their crops because they depend on the continued health of their fields for production. They have to consider the costs to themselves and their land to stay in business. 

• Farmers use advanced technology to assist them in food production.
Despite at times, having a bit of a techno phobia myself, and despite believing myself to have an excellent sense of direction, I love my GPS. Living in a large urban area it is nearly impossible to know the names of all of the surrounding suburbs, finding ones way to new locations sometimes requires an extensive atlas. Enter GPS technology - I can find my way to a new destination more quickly and so much more safely. Farmers take the use of this technology a few steps further. They use GPS systems for soil evaluation and planting. Theirs GPS system provides details about their fields and landscape equivalent to us having a system that could inform us of a newly developed pot hole on the streets of our daily commute. Smart farming.

Farming is a unique business with only 2% of the population still farming nationally, farmers are unique business people with a myriad of concerns and considerations.  A farm family in 2015 has to consider; soil health, technique choices, advanced technology and market demands.  Along with all of these practical considerations there are the intangibles.

Nick

Nick's son

As Nick puts it, "The farm is more than land and crops.  It is our family heritage and future."

http://www.watchusgrow.org/about-us/meet-the-farmers/nick-missy-saathoff-family

     
The Illinois farm families hosting the city moms program are communicating that sentiment. They are sharing their concern for that heritage and allowing us, to see firsthand how that concern influences their livelihood. Regardless of the number of generations we are removed from the farm, we all continue to be connected to the land by the food we eat. 'City Moms' are developing a deeper understanding of the work and the heritage, our connection to it and each other.

Wheat