Prelude to
Earth Day 2005
Lectures and Stimulating Discussion:
A Symposium To Explore Greening Concepts and to Discover How to
Incorporate Those Ideas into Your Daily Life
April 16, 2005 On April 16th, the Wicker Park Garden Club Presents a day of
lectures and lively discussions that focus on urban living and renewing as well as
receiving renewal from our Earth.
April 16th, Lectures 10 a.m. - 2 p.m.
Event Registration: $10
Wicker Park Field House - 1425 N. Damen Avenue,
Chicago
REGISTER TODAY: (773) 278-9075 or
wpgarden@aol.com
10 AM-11 AM
Designing with Horticultural Therapy Principles in Mind
MARGI HESS—Horticultural Therapist
11 AM-12:30 PM
Permaculture: Applications for the Urban Gardener
NANCE KLEHM—Nance Klehm Gardens, INC
12:30 PM-12:45 PM
Composting Options: Tumblers and Vermiculture
SUSAN FONTANA—Tumbleweedsales Composting
12:45 PM-1:30 PM
Conserve Chicago Together: Living an Environmentally Friendly
Lifestyle and Improving the Quality of Life in Chicago's Yards and Gardens
JOYCE COFFEE-- Program Director, Natural Resources and Water Quality
Division, City of Chicago Department of Environment/WRD Environmental
An Introduction to the City of Chicago’s Greening Programs: Water
Conservation and Management, Green Infrastructure, Rain Gardens, Native
Plantings, Vegetated Roofs, Birds and Buildings
1:30 PM-2PM
Visit the Park Kids Grow Propagation Room at the Field House
For 10 weeks each spring, children from Wicker Park’s ‘Park Kids
Program’ study plant propagation from seed and cuttings, learn basic garden
design principles, and then plant an ornamental garden in Wicker Park.
The program began with support from the Friends of the Parks.
HISTORY OF EARTH DAY & EARTH WEEK
The first celebration called EARTH DAY (March 21, 1970) was initiated by the
Mayor and city of San Francisco at the request of
John McConnell, president of WE, Inc. (now Earth Society). EARTH DAY was
intended as a yearly event to become global.
In January 1970, the Environmental Teach-In, who were
planning a one-time event for April 22, also decided to call their event EARTH
DAY. In 1971 Senator Gaylord Nelson announced an Earth WEEK--for the third week
of April -- as a yearly event.
EARTH TRUSTEES STATEMENT: "The nurture and renewal of Earth is our most urgent
task. To this end we, individually and with the help of others, seek in our
jobs, buying habits, travel, land use and other actions – at home, work and play
-- to respect and protect Earth's amazing web of life, its soil, water, air,
plants and living creatures, to act as trustees of our portion of our planet. We
believe every individual and family should have an opportunity for a stake in this planet, for a home,
education and meaningful work; that in their personal Earth-stake, or area of
responsibility, they should act, not as spoilers of Earth, but as stewards." --
John McConnell, Founder of Earth Day
Designing with Horticultural Therapy Principles in Mind Margi Hess,
Horticultural Therapist, 10 a.m. -11 a.m.
Jens Jensen in Siftings wrote “If those in charge of hospitals saw the
importance of gardens where the convalescent might while away the hours amongst
flowers and growing things, they would do much toward helping a speedy recovery
of the patient.” The healing affects of the garden on both the hospitalized and
the citizens of a large city was one of Jensen’s arguments for developing
Chicago into The City in the Garden. Margi Hess is a horticultural therapist,
using plants and nature to improve the well-being of those who are ill. She is
involved with a garden project at La Rabida Children's Hospital. The theme of
the garden is nutrition. She is working with children who come for out patient
treatment, their families, and community members to help tend a garden where
they learn about eating good food and getting exercise. Margi has consulted with
the Chicago Botanic Garden's School of Horticulture on its Certificate for
healthcare Design. This program is aimed at landscape architects who design
gardens at healthcare facilities. Margi suggests that we apply the principles of
horticultural therapy and healthcare garden design to the home garden setting.
PERMACULTURE APPLICATIONS FOR THE URBAN GARDENER:
Nance Klehm, Nance Klehm Gardens, 11 a.m. -12:30 p.m.
The word "permaculture" was coined in 1978 by Bill Mollison, an Australian
ecologist, and one of his students, David Holmgren. It is a contraction of
"permanent agriculture" or "permanent culture." Permaculture is about designing
ecological human habitats and food production systems. It is a land use and
community building movement which strives for the harmonious integration of
human dwellings, microclimate, annual and perennial plants, animals, soils, and
water into stable, productive communities. The focus is not on these elements
themselves, but rather on the relationships created among them by the way we
place them in the landscape. This synergy is further enhanced by mimicking
patterns found in nature. A central theme in permaculture is the design of
ecological landscapes that produce food. Emphasis is placed on multi-use plants,
cultural practices such as sheet mulching and trellising, and the integration of
animals to recycle nutrients and graze weeds. However, permaculture entails much
more than just food production. Energy-efficient buildings, waste water
treatment, recycling, and land stewardship in general are other important
components of permaculture. More recently, permaculture has expanded its purview
to include economic and social structures that support the evolution and
development of more permanent communities, such as co- housing projects and
eco-villages. As such, permaculture design concepts are applicable to urban as
well as rural settings, and are appropriate for single households as well as
whole farms and villages. Definition from ATTRA - National Sustainable
Agriculture Information www.attra.org
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