Jun 7, 2006 6:25 pm US/Central
North Side Garden Grows With Volunteer Help
Some Say Wicker Park Garden Has Revitalized Park
by Diann Burns
CHICAGO (CBS) ―
Variety is the spice of life and a great concept to keep in mind as you grow your garden.
Recently, CBS 2's Diann Burns paid a visit to a Chicago garden where a little variation goes a long way.
"This garden is a beautiful garden. It has every aspect of wet, dry, sun and shade. People come here and see what they can grow in their own gardens," said Wicker Park Garden Club president Richard Tilley.
At about 8,000 square feet, the Wicker Park Garden has various sections, various types of soil, and a rainbow of plant colors, textures and heights.
It's run completely by the dedicated volunteers of the Wicker Park Garden Club.
The focal point of the garden – a fountain – is surrounded by four beds with a variety of colors and textures.
Planting in the gardens is timed so that bloom-times vary.
"It's a combination planting that works really well for continuous bloom and transition of colors as the season progresses," said Larry Clary.
For example, the sun garden blooms from early spring with irises in front. The middle part of the garden flowers in June. It's showtime for lilies in July.
The shade garden is right next door to the sun garden.
"That's a heavy shade, and the ferns and hostas do quite well here," Richard said.
Shade plants like it rich. Irises and catmint don't.
Not all plants thrive in the same kind of soil. Some like it rich while other don't. At the Wicker Park Garden, there is a variety of soils thanks to some fancy footwork. Garden volunteers dug clay, mixed it with leaves and peat moss, and turned it twice.
"We realized very much to our pleasure it was already so improved, it's basically soil now, real soil," Larry said. "We're showing it to all our friends."
The Wicker Park Garden is a place for all sort of friends to gather, learn and just have fun.
"This garden has rejuvenated this park. People come from all over Chicago to see this garden," Richard said.
The City of Chicago named the Wicker Park Garden "Garden of the Year" last year.
It's also getting ready for the mayor's landscape awards. There are competitions for community gardens, schools, single family homes and more. The deadline to apply is June 30.
(© MMVI, CBS Broadcasting Inc. All Rights Reserved.)
