The West Chicago Garden Club

The two faces of January – One to look forward and one to look back.

Back: the Kruse House Gardeners estimate they collectively spent between 450 – 500 hours in the garden last year. Angie, Tom, Kerry, and Billie worked pretty much every Wednesday morning and Keith and Jan Grismore were there about half the time. Barbara Darrah is considering throwing her hat into the garden. We hope to see her regularly next year as well.

We maintained and beautified. Nothing exceptional, but the garden looked good all year. The GC held our June meeting in the garden, Gallery 200 sponsored an “art in the garden” event, and the Historical Society held their Ice Cream Social in the garden. The Saturday Kruse House Museum visitors enjoyed the garden and the neighbors, especially the condo dwellers, found pleasure in the garden as well.  The garden is a
casual sanctuary for an untold number of guests. The birds and the pollinators left notes thanking us for providing home and food for them as well.

Forward: April will be right along and we will again clean up the garden and meet the new year with enthusiasm. The “to do” list includes trimming shrubs and removing some of the mountain of yard waste that has accumulated along the east fence. That’s just for starters. Our planning is fluid so we’ll report progress as it develops.

— Billie Childress

Attention all Garden Club Members—The Garden Club is Sponsoring a Mosaic Art Class. This is a great opportunity for you to create a unique piece of art for your home or garden

Dates: February 24 and March 3, Saturday mornings 9-noon. Must be able to commit to both classes.

Place: Galley 200, at the corner of Fremont and Washington in downtown West Chicago

Cost: $10 (the GC will assume the other half of the class cost)

Description: Mosaic art piece will be created on a 6 x 16 slate tile. The tile, mosaic pieces, glue, grout, and sealant will be provided.

Instructors: Angie and Billie will be available for guidance

Sign up: Contact Billie Childress by February 10

     Most of the members of our club have visited the Kruse House at one time or another. While there are a great many wonderful plants and flowers to see, there is one area that gets passed by most of the time. And that are is our great herb garden.

     The herb garden is located on the East side of the garage in a very large wooden planter. The planter itself was donated by Billie and was made with planks from trees she had cut down on her property. There are different herbs in the planter from time to time so I thought it just might be interesting to take a look at a few of them.

     THYME, Thyme belongs in every herb garden. It is easy to grow and does well in pots. Gargling with thyme tea is excellent for treating bronchitis, sore throats, laryngitis and tonsillitis. This plant has been in our planter from the start and does very well.

     SAGE, Silvery green sage looks beautiful in the garden and it’s as beneficial as it is good looking. Sage tea is an old remedy for hot flashes and was used to reduce fever. Sage has been used for centuries to improve memory and cognition, and a number of studies have suggested that the herb has the potential to treat age-related memory deficits as well as attention disorders in children.

     Parsley, Yes parsley is more than just a garnish. Some say it is Mother Natures breath mint because fresh parsley is a very effective cure for halitosis. Parsley is a diuretic and parsley tea is recommended for treating and preventing urinary tract infections. Many people swear it also prevents and shrinks kidney stones, detoxes the liver and helps you lose weight Warm compresses of parsley tea are used as a treatment for sties and inflammation of the eyelids.

     So that’s my suggestions for the beginning herb Gardner. It’s amazing how many ailments you can treat using just the fresh leaves of different herbs. And since they are the same herbs you cook with, you know they are safe.

     As Henry David Thoreau once said “A man may esteem himself happy when that which is his food is also his medicine”.

     That’s it for now folks, see you at the potting party.

Happy Spring,
Tom