Welcome To Southside Green Thumbs

This is the inaugural post for the blog that supports Gardeners at the WCCA /Westchesterfield Community Association Garden, Metcalfe School, Fiske School, and the garden club at St. Mark United Methodist Church. The group, Going For The Green (GFTG) a summer enrichment program is supported by grants from the City of Chicago, Children and Family Services. Some aspects of GFTG have been developed into continuous ongoing projects.

We will be showcasing the work of gardeners from those areas, as well taking questions and comments from any of the persons who sign on as members. General as well as specific gardening topics will be discussed.

It should be noted that even though I am a master gardener, acting as a consultant to the programs above, I do not represent the master gardener program in an official capacity... on this blog I am serving more as a gardening coach and many of my views reflect the master gardener training. I have also been involved in gardening for 68 years. At 10 years old my father engaged the whole family in a gardening effort (we had three victory gardens). My mother was a master canner and preserver. We did all of this without running water, electric refrigeration, and city gas. Our heat came from a coal and wood burning stove.

These experiences in this family of 11, 9 children and 2 parents, have led me to believe that there should be no hunger in America. We were never without food, cultivated or wild. There were no fast food restaurants in my childhood days. We grew our food and prepared it fresh every day.

I hope to show in this blog that gardening does not have to be expensive, but it does require time. We have been blessed with air, water, temperature, soil, and light. It is up to us to work in concert with nature and provide for our needs. Cooperative efforts are paramount, but if not available a person can go-it alone.

A major focus of this blog will highlight resources, techniques, education, and the need for a cooperative attitude.