Community Garden to start in spring
Alecks Kim
Issue date: 2/9/09 Section: Features
Media Credit: Jane Addams Hull-HouseAlthough the Hull House Community Garden is thought to be somewhat "experimental," its supporters are hoping that it will endure and inspire and unite locals.
During the weekly "Re-Thinking Soup" program at the Jane Addams Hull-House on Jan. 27, a public meeting was held to discuss the upcoming UIC Community Garden, located at the Hull-House Center for Urban Agriculture, off of the corner of Taylor and Halsted.
The Center for Urban Agriculture is a joint effort between the UIC Office of Sustainability and the Jane Addams Hull-House Museum on land that had been loaned by the Department of Biological Sciences. According to the Center's website, its mission is to "create and sustain an organic garden that emphasizes the importance of community, sustainability, diversity, and beauty" (www.uic.edu/sustainability/community/garden.html).
The Center for Urban Agriculture, located on 1020 S. Union Street, will have a sizable area devoted to community gardening. As explained at the meeting by Angela Larsen, a member of the Office of Sustainability, interested gardeners and groups of gardeners have - until Feb. 16 - the opportunity to apply online for a plot sized either 5'-by-6' or 5'-by-12'. Organizers plan on contacting applicants at the beginning of March to finalize allotments and have agreements signed. Plots are open to members of the UIC community including students, alumni, faculty, staff and the general neighborhood.
The garden, headed by Hull-House Farmer Ryan Beck, will be run communally, but gardeners are required to practice sustainable and organic techniques and refrain from using genetically-modified seeds and to keep the site "as clean as possible." Genetically modified organisms, he explained, can spread their altered genes to other plants that they pollinate.
According to the Office of Sustainability's webpage on the Community Garden, since the garden will largely function as an "educational site," gardeners will be provided various "workshops on gardening techniques, sustainable practices, cooking and preserving, and more." Those who can't commit to their own plot can volunteer instead for projects involving canning, green architecture and vertical gardening.
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The Center for Urban Agriculture is a joint effort between the UIC Office of Sustainability and the Jane Addams Hull-House Museum on land that had been loaned by the Department of Biological Sciences. According to the Center's website, its mission is to "create and sustain an organic garden that emphasizes the importance of community, sustainability, diversity, and beauty" (www.uic.edu/sustainability/community/garden.html).
The Center for Urban Agriculture, located on 1020 S. Union Street, will have a sizable area devoted to community gardening. As explained at the meeting by Angela Larsen, a member of the Office of Sustainability, interested gardeners and groups of gardeners have - until Feb. 16 - the opportunity to apply online for a plot sized either 5'-by-6' or 5'-by-12'. Organizers plan on contacting applicants at the beginning of March to finalize allotments and have agreements signed. Plots are open to members of the UIC community including students, alumni, faculty, staff and the general neighborhood.
The garden, headed by Hull-House Farmer Ryan Beck, will be run communally, but gardeners are required to practice sustainable and organic techniques and refrain from using genetically-modified seeds and to keep the site "as clean as possible." Genetically modified organisms, he explained, can spread their altered genes to other plants that they pollinate.
According to the Office of Sustainability's webpage on the Community Garden, since the garden will largely function as an "educational site," gardeners will be provided various "workshops on gardening techniques, sustainable practices, cooking and preserving, and more." Those who can't commit to their own plot can volunteer instead for projects involving canning, green architecture and vertical gardening.
Viewing Comments 1 - 2 of 2
Lisa Junkin
posted 2/09/09 @ 12:26 PM CST
Apply for a plot at the community garden at http://www.uic.edu/sustainability/community/cgarden.html
gifts for gardeners
posted 4/22/10 @ 8:56 AM CST
I would love to get more information on this. A lot of the young kids in my area did a day course on gardening lately but now, it's over and they have no way to show off their skills so a community garden would be just the thing for them and also would be a nice place for older people to go and relax. (Continued…)
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