The West Chicago Garden Club

One of my favorite poets, Robert Frost, described the erratic nature of spring in the following words:

The sun was warm but the wind was chill,
You know how it is with an April day,
When the sun is out and the wind is still,
You’re one month on in the middle of May.
But if you so much as dare to speak,
A cloud comes over the sunlit arch
And wind comes off a frozen peak,
And you’re two months back in the middle of March.

He certainly had it right about the weather when we started gardening at Kruse this spring. When it wasn’t raining so hard that we had to cancel, it was freezing cold and windy. Then, all of a sudden, it was a humid 80 degrees. Nevertheless, our valiant crew soldiered on. We started out cleaning up and cutting back. Then we all spent one morning attacking the creeping Charlie and sticky-weed (i.e. bedstraw) only to discover the next week that we didn’t get it all. We moved on to planting and I think the garden is looking great. Sometimes, we start out with a walk-around, not just to see what needs to be done, but also to stop and enjoy the beauty of the garden itself, something I need to remind myself to do in my own garden as well.

More than twenty years ago , two local women decided to restart the West Chicago Garden Club with the intention to make restoring the Kruse Garden as its main community project. I think they would be astonished to see what we have accomplished. I think they would also be surprised that our first little plant sale at the Fox Center would result in BloomingFest and the spreading of plants from our gardens throughout all the local communities .We can be proud that we have fulfilled the goals set out for us at that time.

Dick and I will miss seeing you all at the May meeting . Right after the plant sale, we are leaving for England to visit the Chelsea Flower Show and tour other English gardens. Look for his pictures on the garden club website or Facebook. I’ll be the small woman he insists on including in his photographs.

The Kruse Garden is located at 527 Main Street, West Chicago, IL 60185

For our May meeting we will be visiting the Wildflower Sanctuary in downtown Batavia. The Wildflower Sanctuary was created and continues to be maintained by The Plain Dirt Gardeners in Batavia.  Sarah Kimber and Terri Hoehne of the Plain Dirt Gardeners will be our guides.  We will meet them at the Peg Bond Center (bandshell) 151 N. Island Avenue, which is located along the Fox River and across from City Hall.

There is parking next to the Peg Bond Center and also to the north of City Hall.

The total distance from the Peg Bond Center through the Wildflower Sanctuary and back is about 1/2 mile. We will see a variety of spring ephemerals and native trees and shrubs in the garden.

We will not have a snack table.  You may want to try one of the pubs or restaurants in downtown Batavia before or after the program.   A friend that I volunteer with really likes El Taco Grande on River Street.

Please note the starting time will be at 6:30pm (a little earlier than our normal 7pm start).

Our  West Chicago Garden Club Plant Sale is BACK!  It will be on Saturday, May 21st from 9:00 AM – 2:00 PM. It will be at the heart of the West Chicago Blooming Fest in Downtown West Chicago.

Most of our plants come from our members’ gardens or are raised in their greenhouses. You will find Natives, Annuals, Perennials, Vegetables, Herbs, and even some small shrubs and trees.

The sale will be held Rain or Shine! Arrive early for the best selection.