Our meetings begin at 6:30pm and are held at the Streamwood Fire Station #31 1204 S. Park Ave. Streamwood
Wednesday, April 17, 2024
Guest Speaker – Lindsay Zimmerman
Lindsay Zimmerman will share her gardening expertise on starting plants from seed. Zimmerman is the current president of Sustain DuPage and has been leading their quarter-acre communal garden program since 2016. The garden’s focus is on building community through teaching and experimenting with organic and sustainable gardening techniques. She draws upon her background in both sustainable gardening and conventional farming, as well as her training with the U of I extension Master Urban Farmer Training Program, to inform her work in the Chicago suburbs. She and her garden co-founder Andrew Van Gorp received the 2021 Changemakers of the Year awards for their work from (MOSES/Marbleseed), the largest organic and sustainable farming conference in the US.
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Wednesday May 15, 2024
Guest Speaker: Member of The Conservation Foundation
Topic: Building a Rain Garden
Learn how to build a rain garden in your yard to help conserve water and prevent runoff issues. The guest speaker is from The Conservation Foundation, one of the region’s oldest and largest not-for-profit land and watershed conservation organizations dedicated to preserving and restoring open space, protecting rivers and watersheds, and promoting stewardship of the environment in northeastern Illinois.
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Wednesday, February 21, 2024
VERMICOMPOSTING
Guest Speaker – Tim Moore
Learn how earthworms can turn kitchen produce scraps into valuable garden compost that can enhance garden soil. The process is called “Vermicomposting” It’s all natural and helps produce healthy vigorous plants by adding nutrients to garden beds. Moore will explain the process and provide instructions on how to set up and maintain a home vermicomposting bin.
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Wednesday, March 20, 2024
THE NEW INVASIVES: JUMPING WORMS, STINK BUGS, VIBURNUM LEAF BEETLES, ETC.
Guest Speaker – Nanette Kalschuer
Gardens will need to be on the lookkout for new invasive species that are becoming pests in northern Illinois, including the jumping worm, native to East Asia. These worms are voracious eaters, consuming more plant material than the standard earthworm. This affects soil quality and there is growing concern how it may impact natural forests and agricultural lands. Kalschuer will provide details on identifying these pests and how to help control their spread. Kalschuer has a master’s degree in Natural Resources & Environmental Sciences from the University of Illinois-Urbana. She retired from the Department of Agriculture where she worked as a Plant and Pesticide Specialist conducting diagnostic inspection of commercially grown nursery and greenhouse stock.
Lindsay is the current president of Sustain DuPage and has been leading their quarter-acre communal garden program since 2016. The garden’s focus is on building community through teaching and experimenting with organic and sustainable gardening techniques. She draws upon her background in both sustainable gardening and conventional farming, as well as her training with the U of I extension Master Urban Farmer Training Program, to inform her work in the Chicago suburbs. She and her garden co-founder Andrew Van Gorp received the 2021 Changemakers of the Year awards for their work from (MOSES/Marbleseed), the largest organic and sustainable farming conference in the US. https://sustaindupage.com/