Smells Like Green Spirit

This weekend at Kilbourne Park (3501 N. Kilbourne Ave, just west of Milwaukee Ave and Addison St) from 10 am to 2 pm there will be an amazing sale of organic seedlings…veggies, herbs, and flowers.

In the words of the Chicago Park District Website:

“Customers can expect more than 150 varieties of open-pollinated tomatoes, such as Aunt Ruby’s German Green Tomato, Copia, Green Zebra, and Black Cherry . There is a limited supply of tomatoes, so gardeners are encouraged to stop by early.The Kilbourn Park Organic Greenhouse accepts payment for plants by cash and check only.

On Wednesday, May 21 from 6 – 7:30 pm, the Kilbourn Organic Greenhouse will host Gardening Basics: Free Question Answer session by the Master Gardeners of CookCountyChicago – University of Illinois Extension. Bring your questions and come to this evening’s discussion such as; how to plant, when to plant, fertilizing, composting, watering, mulching. We will have several Master Gardeners available to answer your gardening questions. This program is sponsored by Master Gardeners of Cook County Chicago, a program of the University of Illinois Extension.”

Click here to visit the Chicago Park District Website

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I think one of my biggest complaints about eco-friendly clothing (no offense to anyone here) is that most of it looks too flowy and hippie to me. What about the chic eco-friendly clothing? What about the eco-friendly mods and punks? The eco-friendly yuppies? The green clothing industry has properly outfitted the hippies, now what about everyone else?

A boutique in Houston, called Green by Adeline, is a “high fashion” boutique in the Galleria area where everything is made from all-natural materials like bamboo, corn, soy, hemp, and wood pulp. The store features a bamboo floored runway for future fashion events, fluorescent and halogen lighting to cut down on energy consumption, and is located at 5136 Richmond Ave.

Endeavoring to be relatively affordable (prices range from $30 shirts to $700 gowns), Adeline makes sure her products follow through on their promise to be made from what they say they are.

If you’re in the Houston area, check out the long awaited high fashion green boutique!

Website: www.greenbyadeline.com

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In North America alone, around 30-35 million trees are sold for the holidays…luckily though, the jolly trees are a recyclable, renewable source of holiday joy as typically around 3 seedlings are planted for every Christmas tree cut down, and as around 93% of Christmas trees purchased are estimated to be recycled.

Recycled Christmas trees are used for a variety of purposes, including for chipping (for mulches and to line trails), for enrichment of fish habitats, for the reduction of beach line erosion, for the stabilization of the shorelines of lakes and rivers, and for the management of river delta sedimentation.

 Although perhaps the best idea for the holidays is a living Christmas tree that is planted in your yard, dug up for the holidays and then replanted, choosing a real Christmas tree over an artificial one means using a recyclable product versus a likely unrecyclable artificial tree, and supporting North American businesses. (Most Christmas trees are grown in Oregon, North Carolina, Michigan, Pennsylvania, Wisconsin and Washington whereas most artificial trees are produced in China.)

For more info and pro live Christmas tree propaganda, visit the website of the National Christmas Tree Association.

And, here are a list of locations to drop off your Christmas tree in Chicago:

Bessemer Park: 8930 S. Muskegon Ave.

Devry Institute: 3401 N. Rockwell

Forestry Site: 900 E. 103rd St.

Garfied Park: 100 N. Central Park Ave.

Grant Park: 900 S. Columbus Dr.

Humboldt Park Boathouse: 1440 N. Sacramento Blvd.

Jackson Park: 6300 S. Cornell Dr.

Kennedy Park: 11320 S. Western Ave.

Kelvyn Park: 4438 S. Wrightwood Ave.

Lake Meadows Park: 3117 S. Rhodes Ave.

Lincoln Park: Cannon Dr. at Fullerton

Margate Park: 4921 N. Marine Dr.

Marquette Park: 6700 S. Kedzie Ave.

McKinley Park: 2210 W. Pershing Rd.

Mt. Greenwood Park: 3721 W. 111th St.

North Park Village: 5801 N. Pulaski Rd.

Norwood Park: 5801 N. Natoma

Portage Park: 4100 N. Long

Riis Park: 6100 W. Fullerton

Rowan Park: 11546 S. Avenue L

Sheridan Park: 910 S. Aberdeen St.

Warren Park: 6601 N. Western Ave.

Wentworth Park: 5625 S. Mobile Ave.

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It seems like the best place in the Chicago area to buy a used bike besides Craig’s List (which I haven’t done), or a farm auction in Wisconsin (where my friend’s dad buys bikes for $10, but which I would have no idea how to go about doing…) is Working Bikes.

Working Bikes is a non profit collective which, besides selling used and refurbished bikes at reasonable prices, ships bikes to low income people in countries like Nicaragua, Cuba, Kenya, and Ghana to meet their transportation needs…pretty cool, huh?

Mostly run by volunteer staff, Working Bikes funds much of its operation from bike sales at its storefront, located at 1125 S. Western Ave, where you can also buy things like bike locks and bike helmets.

Location and Hours

1125 S. Western Ave

(312) 421-5048

Wednesday, Saturday, and Sunday: Noon - 5 pm

Check out their website : www.workingbikes.org

They suggest you get there early on the weekends, especially in the summer months, as the bikes go pretty quickly.

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I’ve often wondered how someone can possibly make a living in this day and age as a farmer, and must bashfully admit I envision long, arduous, miserable hours of slaving away to scrape pennies out of the fields. Reading about huge corporate farms makes me sad, especially when it comes to the way it puts independent farming out of business, and the way they treat their employees.

Something we can all do to support local, independent farmers, to get fresh fruits and vegetables straight from the source, and to get more involved in our communities and the process of agriculture is to look into what CSA’s or Community Supported Agriculture are available near us. This type of operation completely eliminates the middle man, thus ensuring more money goes straight into farmers’ pockets, and fresher food goes into our homes and bellies.

Often, CSA’s will have consumers pay an amount up front to receive some of the bounty of the fields, which is picked up about once a week. Buying from local farms that take part in this process not only saves you money, but the farmers make sure to have as much of a variety as possible in each batch.

A Website you can visit to find CSA’s in your area is:

http://www.organicconsumers.org/csa.htm

CHICAGO AREA CSA’S

Although I’ve yet to visit a CSA, some listings for CSA’s in the Chicago area are:

• Sweet Earth Organic Farm
  • 608-875-6026
  • www.sweetearthorganicfarm.com
• Prarie Crossing - Community Supported Garden
  • 847-548-4030

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Summers in Chicago means one thing…no, no not e. coli ridden dips in Lake Michigan…Farmers Markets!

Here are three list of this years Farmers Markets for your Farmers Marketing Pleasure - Downtown Farmers Markets, Neighborhood Farmers Markets, and Independently Run Ones:

DOWNTOWN

• Daley Plaza - Washington and Dearborn
  • Thursdays
  • May 17 - October 4
  • 7am - 3pm
• Federal Plaza - Adams and Dearborn
  • Tuesdays
  • May 15 - October 30
  • 7 am - 3 pm
• Prudential Plaza - Lake and Beaubian Ct.
  • Tuesdays
  • June 5 - October 23
  • 7 am - 3 pm
• The Park at Jackson and Wacker
  • Thursdays
  • June 14 - October 18
  • 7 am - 3 pm
• Museum of Contemporary Art - Chicago and Mies Van der Rohe
  • Tuesdays
  • June 19 - October 30
  • 10 am - 6 pm

NEIGHBORHOOD FARMERS MARKETS (in alphabetical order)

• Ashburn - 71st and Kedzie (in Marquette Park)
  • Sundays
  • June 10 - October 21
  • 7 am - 2 pm
• Austin - Madison and Central (Emmet Math, Science and Technology Acadamy Parking Lot
  • Saturdays
  • July 7 - October 27
  • 7 am - 2 pm
• Beverly - 95th and Longwood (City Parking lot)
  • Sundays
  • May 27 - October 21
  • 7 am - 2 pm
• Bronzeville - 29th and MLK Jr Dr (Dunbar Vocational Career Academy Parking Lot)
  • Saturdays
  • June 30 - October 2o
  • 7 am - 2 pm
• Chatham - 85th and Langley (Seaway National Bank Parking Lot)
  • Wednesdays
  • July 25 - October 17
  • 9 am - 2 pm
• Dunning - Eli’s/Wright College - Montrose and Forest Preserve Ave (Eli’s Cheesecake Company Parking Lot)
  • Thursdays
  • June 14 - October 18
  • 7 am - 2 pm
• Edgewater - Broadway and Norwood (Corner of True Nature Foods)
  • Saturdays
  • June 9 - October 20
  • 7 am - noon
• Gately/Pullman - 111th and Cottage Grove (In Arcade Park)
  • Wednesdays
  • June 13 - October 31
  • 7 am - 2 pm
• Hyde Park - 52 Place and Harper
  • Thursdays
  • June 7 - October 25
  • 7 am - 2 pm
• Lawndale - Grenshaw and Homan (Community Bank Parking Lot)
  • Wednesdays
  • June 13 - October 17
  • 7 am - 2 pm
• Lincoln Park - Armitage and Orchard (Lincoln Park High Parking Lot)
  • May 19 - October 27
  • 7 am - 2 pm
• Lincoln Square - Lincoln/Leland/Western (City Parking Lot)
  • Tuesdays
  • June 12 - October 30
  • 7 am - 2 pm
• Morgan Park - 92nd and Ashland (Shiloah MB Church Parking Lot)
  • Saturdays
  • June 9 - October 27
  • 7 am - 2 pm
• Near North - Division and Dearborn
  • Saturdays
  • June 2 - October 27
  • 7 am - 2 pm
• North Center - Belle Plain/Damen/Lincoln
  • Saturdays
  • June 16 - October 20
  • 7 am - 2 pm
• Printers Row - Dearborn and Polk
  • Saturdays
  • June 16 - October 20
  • 7 am - 2pm
• Southshore - 70th and Jeffrey (Shore Bank Parking Lot)
  • Wednesdays
  • June 13 - October 24
  • 7 am - 2 pm
• Uptown - 1145 W Wilson (Truman College)
  • Thursdays
  • June 14 - October 25
  • 7 am - 2 pm
• Wicker Park/Bucktown - Wicker Park and Damen (In Wicker Park)
  • Sundays
  • June 3 - October 21
  •  7 am - 2 pm

INDEPENDENTLY RUN

•  Chicago Green City Market - 1750 N Clark and Stockton (In the South end of Lincoln Park)
  • Wednesdays and Saturdays
  • May 16 - October 31
  • 7 am - 1:30 pm
  • www.chicagogreencitymarket.org
• Farmstand at the Chicago High School for Agricultural Science - 3857 W 111th St
  • Monday thru Saturday (Closed Sunday)
  • June 25 - September 25
  • 7:30 am - 3 pm
• Garfield Park Conservatory- 300 N Central Park
  • Saturdays and Sundays
  • 9 am - 5 pm
  • www.garfield-conservatory.org
• Homegrown Chicago - 2626 W Division St
  • Saturdays
  • July 7 - Nov 3
  • 12 - 3 pm
  • http://www.prcc-chgo.org/coophumboldtpark.htm
• Logan Square - Southeast corner of Logan, Milwaukee, and Kedzie
  • Sundays
  • June 3 - October 28
  • 10 am - 3 pm
  • www.logansquarefarmersmarket.org
• South Chicago - 83rd and Marquette
  • Tuesdays
  • July 10 - October 23
  • 9 am - 12 pm
• Southport Green Market - 1420 W Grace
  • 8 am - 1 pm
  • June 9, July 14, August 11, September 8, & October 13, 2007
  • www.southportneighbors.com

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