By Dick Hocking
The weather patterns have been rather up and down. We had an early period of rain, but then there has been a drought with hot and humid weather. Watering the gardens has been a challenge.
For the Imani (a Swahili word meaning “faith”) Garden at Faith, there has been enough volunteer help to keep the garden growing. The results have been:
- Lots of lettuce and radishes by early June
- An abundant supply of green beans—we had multiple bags of beans!
- Then the cucumbers began to grow. There have been a lot. We planted the climbing-type cucumber on the fence-trellis at the north edge of the garden.
- The peppers came next—sweet yellow, poblano, and green bell peppers. The supply was modest.
- Now, we have an abundance of tomatoes, including cherry, big boy, and Roma. It is likely that the tomatoes will keep growing for several weeks.
All of this produce has been delivered to the COOL Pantry in Waukegan on a weekly basis.
For the Manna Garden at Prince of Peace in Waukegan, the situation has been different. Given the large size of the garden, there is a major issue with the need for volunteers. Members of the Eden Restoration Project have been working to achieve good soil conditions using wood chips. Only a limited number of plants have been planted. Asparagus has done well. A limited number of tomato plants are growing. There are a small number of fruit trees growing. There is much work to be done to achieve the desired results.