Edible Gardens at Lincoln Park Zoo's Farm-in-the-Zoo
Located in Lincoln Park Zoo’s Farm-in-the-Zoo, Presented by John Deere
Open to the public April 3 through November 13, 2010
Wednesdays and Saturdays 10:00am – 1:00pm
Providing hands-on gardening education and activities to children, adults and school groups.
For general inquiries: ediblegardens@theorganicgardener.net
Join us for our FREE Monthly Hands-on Gardening Workshop Series in The Edible Gardens
with Jeanne Pinsof Nolan, founder of The Organic Gardener, Ltd.
April - Spring Start: Soil Preparation and Planting Cool Weather Crops
May - Summer’s Arrival: Transplanting Warm Weather Crops
June - Necessary Nourishment: Feeding Your Plants for Healthy Growth and Production
July - Expand Your Growing Season: Planting Fall Crops
August - Keeping A Tidy Garden: Staking, Pruning and Harvesting
September - Growing Locally: Tips for Gardening in Chicago
October - Seed Saving 101: A Beginner’s Guide to Saving For Next Season
November - Time To Hit the Hay: Putting Your Garden to Bed for the Winter
WORKSHOPS ARE BY RSVP ONLY. Please subscribe to Green City Market’s eNewsletter and we will announce the exact date at the start of each month and instructions for RSVPing. Space is limited.
Jeanne Pinsof Nolan created and planted the Edible Gardens at Lincoln Park Zoo’s Farm-in-the-Zoo in the spring of 2005 at the request of Green City Market founder Abby Mandel, who envisioned an environment where children could learn what it takes to grow the food people eat – and how delicious the results can be. Today Jeanne, a young Chicago native with 20 years experience in garden-farming, maintains the welcoming, organic, hands-on vegetable garden for children just across the street from the Market. Originally presented by John Deere, the bucolic gardens – which now cover 5000-square feet – are a partnership between Green City Market and Lincoln Park Zoo. They also receive support from the University of Illinois Extension’s Master Gardener program. In 2008, more than 25,000 people visited, and more are expected in 2009. The Edible Gardens have been described as the perfect springboard for introducing the Midwest to what Alice Waters, locavore extraordinaire, calls “edible education.” In Jeanne Nolan’s opinion the gardens offer Chicago’s children and families "a wonderful opportunity to learn where their food comes from on a first-hand basis."
Located in Lincoln Park Zoo's Farm-in-the-Zoo, the Edible Gardens are designed to engage children with hands-on growing, weeding, compost making and harvesting, and introduce them to the concept of "farm-to-table". Programs are also available for school and summer camp field trips. The Gardens are supervised and planted by Jeanne Pinsof, Green City Market's Organic Gardener.
From April through mid-November, the Edible Garden is open to all, weather permitting, Wednesdays and Saturdays from 10 a.m.-1 p.m.
For more information about the Edible Garden and/or scheduling a field trip, contact Sara Gasbarra at sara@theorganicgardener.net.