The West Chicago Garden Club

Many compliments were paid to the lilies of the Kruse Garden this past month!  The warm pink L.A. (longiflorum-asiatic) hybrid named Algarve, located by the front door especially garnered a lot of attention. It could easily be seen from the street on drive by and was magnificently showcased by the brilliant yellow of the Mary Todd daylily in the foreground!  What a stunning display it was!  This L.A. lily is as sturdy as a young tree with abundant flowers that hold up well and have fragrance of raspberries and roses.  It is the second year for this rock star and we hope it keeps performing for many years to come. 

Cultivation of lilies in this country is recorded as early as 1654 by Governor William Bradford of Plymouth Massachusetts and the popularity of the genus never fades. From natives to cutting edge hybrids they provide breathtaking displays of color, form, and fragrance!  It’s not too early to prepare your shopping list for ‘must have’ lilies to plant this fall.  Anyone interested in a group order?  Let Billie know by the end of July if you are. Continue Reading »

The West Chicago Garden Club is again sponsoring a free Open Garden Day at the historic Kruse House Secret Garden at 527 Main Street in downtown West Chicago on Sunday afternoon, August 1st. The West Chicago Historical Society will be offering tours of the Kruse House during the afternoon. 

In addition to tours of the Kruse House garden, there will be five other gardens on the free tour. These gardens were participants (including winners) in the 2009 Wonderful Gardens of West Chicago contest, sponsored by the West Chicago Garden Club. One garden on the tour is a large suburban garden with trees and shrubs planted in honor of each grandchild, a small garden railroad, and many lovely garden features and planting.

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Four of the gardens are on a cul-de-sac in the Woodboro townhouse complex. These gardens were started eleven years ago by several dedicated gardeners and the entire cul-de-sac now represents what a group of dedicated gardeners can do. There are many interesting garden features, a wonderful garden waterall and pond, and unique and lovely garden ornamentation.

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The gardens will be open from 1:00 p.m. to 6:00 pm on August 1st. Programs and refreshments will be available at the Kruse House  Parking will be available at nearby municipal lots. For a flyer, click here.

The Kruzies have been crazy busy with the plant sale but somehow we still found time to tend the Kruse Garden.  Just a reminder, we are there routinely on Monday mornings and you are fondly invited to join us if you can.  If the weather is ‘iffy’ give one of us a call to make sure what our plans are.  There are always fun jobs to do and the satisfaction of results will guarantee you’ll leave with a smile on your face and a song in your heart! 

Have you heard the good news?  Kruse House Museum & Garden was featured in the May/June issue of Chicagoland Gardening Magazine!  You will find the article on page 14 as the first of the Regional Reports. If you don’t subscribe, stop by the library and check it out.  Author Betty Earl, writer, photographer, and lecturer from Naperville did a great job of informing readers about the extensive garden and West Chicago Garden Club’s role over the past 11 years tending this charming garden.  It’s an honor to have recognition for our project and the Kruzies are even more enthused about making a beautiful garden!  Continue Reading »