[Info-distribution] Winter Newsletter

Debbie Rea thegardenerwife at gmail.com
Tue Jan 21 11:30:17 CST 2025 

Hello!

Thank you for the information about the seed swap map! That's very useful,
and I've shared it on my Facebook page.

I enjoyed watching the Legacy Gardener videos about Erma Purnell and
Doretha Penn. However, the third video you listed has a broken link and I
could not find it. I just wanted to let you know.

Thank you very much!

Digging it,

Debbie
The Gardener Wife <https://thegardenerwife.com>
*GROW SOMETHING, something beautiful–even better, something to eat!*


On Sun, Jan 19, 2025 at 4:46 PM CCGA <info at chicagocommunitygardens.org>
wrote:

> Upcoming Seed Swaps • Ways to Celebrate Winter • Remembering Julie Samuels
> • 2024 Highlights
> View this email in your browser
> <https://mailchi.mp/8cc69a555f8b/ccga-8th-annual-gardeners-conference-register-10303703?e=9971cd8dd6>
>
> *News for Community Gardeners*
>
> *"**Winter is not a season, it's a celebration"*
> — Anamika Mishra
> Celebrating Winter's Stillness
>
> As we start to focus on the year ahead while our gardens hibernate under
> the snow, we’re sharing some news and events as well as some highlights
> from our work together the past year. With everything going on around us,
> we hope you’re finding ways to celebrate Winter, whether that means
> getting inspired with gardening content and the new seed catalogues,
> planning a new garden bed, or finding moments of stillness in nature. We’re
> excited to share another year of growing together with you!
> *CCGA Monthly Meeting this Tuesday*
> Join us for our first monthly meeting of 2025 this Tuesday, January 21, at
> 6pm on Zoom. All are welcome! Details can be found on the CCGA website
> <https://chicagocommunitygardens.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7f2904daf2a26a891c68f8bb0&id=794b698ba3&e=9971cd8dd6>.
>
>
> *Winter 2025 Edition*
>
>    - Volunteer with CCGA!
>    - Winter 2025 Seed Swap Events
>    - A Few Ways to Celebrate Winter
>    - Remembering Julie Samuels
>    - 2024 Highlights
>    - CCGA Legacy Gardener Film Project
>
> Volunteer with CCGA!
>
> CCGA is an all-volunteer collective of community gardeners and needs
> people power to thrive. If you have a passion for supporting our gardening
> communities (and have a little time to share) then you have come to the
> right place!
>
> The *Communications team
> <https://chicagocommunitygardens.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7f2904daf2a26a891c68f8bb0&id=e4acb0b827&e=9971cd8dd6>* needs
> help supporting all of CCGA’s communications including the website,
> community garden map, social media, newsletters, writing, graphic design,
> photography, and some workshop/special event technical support and
> promotion. You don't have to have professional experience to be on the
> team, just a zest for communications and amplifying all the amazing work
> gardeners and growers are doing in Chicago!
>
> The *Advocacy & Outreach team
> <https://chicagocommunitygardens.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7f2904daf2a26a891c68f8bb0&id=77e5180b38&e=9971cd8dd6>* is
> focused on tackling bigger-picture issues that affect all of us who are
> growers. While Chicago’s neighborhood gardens are our immediate focus, we
> also help to create policies that support the health and sustainability of
> green space and people in Chicago by working with the City and other
> partners and organizations with whom we share common goals.
>
> The *Resources & Distributions team
> <https://chicagocommunitygardens.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7f2904daf2a26a891c68f8bb0&id=c6d0772f7e&e=9971cd8dd6>* always
> needs help with growing seedlings and distributing plants. We would also
> like to hear from you if you learned/tried something in your garden last
> summer that you’d be willing to share with other gardeners *this winter
> at a workshop*. Last year, community gardeners shared their knowledge
> about growing luffas, cultivating sprouts indoors and planting containers
> for pollinators. Email resources at chicagocommunitygardens.org if you’re
> interested in sharing your skills through a workshop!
>
> Contact the team you're interested in joining by clicking on the team
> links above!
> Find a Seed Swap!
>
> *National Seed Swap Day is January 25 *and the U of I Extension, Cook
> County created a handy interactive map to help you locate a seed swap. It's
> inspiring to see so many swaps happening around the city and suburbs! To
> add your swap to the list please email sbatka at illinois.edu. Thanks to *Sarah
> Batka* from *U of I Extension* for compiling and providing access to the
> seed swap map!
> Seed Swap Map
> <https://chicagocommunitygardens.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7f2904daf2a26a891c68f8bb0&id=ebc07783ae&e=9971cd8dd6>
> For more *events and workshops*, check the CCGA events calendar
> <https://chicagocommunitygardens.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7f2904daf2a26a891c68f8bb0&id=c8caf164f4&e=9971cd8dd6>and
> follow us on Facebook
> <https://chicagocommunitygardens.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7f2904daf2a26a891c68f8bb0&id=f7598b44b4&e=9971cd8dd6>
> and Instagram
> <https://chicagocommunitygardens.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7f2904daf2a26a891c68f8bb0&id=f5b00827f1&e=9971cd8dd6>!
> If you'd like us to share your event, you can add it to the calendar and
> send an email to communications at chicagocommunitygardens.org
> <communications at chicagocommunitygardens.org?subject=Please%20share%20my%20event%20(W2025%20newsletter)> for
> us to share a post on our social channels.
>
> Ways to Celebrate Winter
>
>    1. *Make Seed Bombs.* Some of us have bags of seed pods in our
>    freezers needing to be stripped of dried petals. Seeds can be rolled
>    into seed bombs
>    <https://chicagocommunitygardens.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7f2904daf2a26a891c68f8bb0&id=6573dd31f1&e=9971cd8dd6>
>    for easy planting.
>    2. *Make Pine Cone Bird Feeders. *Find a large and open pine cone and
>    attach string, wire, or pipe cleaner to the top to create a hanger. Then
>    smear it with sunflower butter (no allergies) and roll it in sunflower
>    seeds or another birdseed.  For a gardener’s upgrade, add native tree fruit
>    that you might see locally, like hackberry drupes, sweetgum, catalpa pods,
>    and sycamore balls. Dark-eyed Junco like to stay on the ground but will eat
>    seeds that fall from feeders. The Northern Cardinal, Carolina Chickadee,
>    Red-breasted Nuthatch, and the Blue Jay will love this biodegradable
>    wildlife fodder. Here are some helpful instructions.
>    <https://chicagocommunitygardens.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7f2904daf2a26a891c68f8bb0&id=cefc1df9e9&e=9971cd8dd6>
>    3. *Do Some Birdwatching. *There are no longer leaves to break the
>    fall of the sun, and cold bare branches are truly not silent. The birds
>    mentioned above are still here and watching them can help you understand
>    ecosystems and how creatures respond to environmental changes. It’s easier
>    to spot birds in winter (especially for little eyes). The stillness of
>    winter allows for bird calls to be crisper and clearer. Merlin, by
>    Cornell Labs
>    <https://chicagocommunitygardens.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7f2904daf2a26a891c68f8bb0&id=5e6fd7eb23&e=9971cd8dd6>,
>    has a great website and apps to help with identification.
>    4. *Try Identifying Trees in Winter by Their Bark. *Oh, what a
>    challenge but a glorious endeavor if you can find a walk led by someone
>    knowledgeable. Take a virtual walk with Tom Ebeling
>    <https://chicagocommunitygardens.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7f2904daf2a26a891c68f8bb0&id=6c4c7d6e6c&e=9971cd8dd6>,
>    an Openlands community arborist, and begin to identify trees in Winter at
>    the Garfield Park Conservatory!
>
> Remembering Julie Samuels
>
> *Julie, enjoying the exhibits at one of the CCGA Annual Conferences.*
>
> We mourn the loss of our dear gardening friend and mentor *Julie Samuels*,
> who passed away on July 19, 2024. A Celebration of Life was held for her in
> August in Oak Park. Many from CCGA attended and there were well over *two
> dozen* speakers who gave testimony to the grace, selflessness, and truth
> that Julie gave us with her friendship, as an organizer, and her propensity
> to propagate! Her online obituary can be found here
> <https://chicagocommunitygardens.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7f2904daf2a26a891c68f8bb0&id=2d3561369e&e=9971cd8dd6> and
> you're welcome to add a memory or story.
>
> We’ve formed a committee working to create a lasting tribute to Julie and
> will share details as they develop. If you’d like to be a part of the
> committee or have any stories to share of Julie, please send them to us at
> communications at chicagocommunitygardens.org or message us on Facebook
> <https://chicagocommunitygardens.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7f2904daf2a26a891c68f8bb0&id=839cca3e63&e=9971cd8dd6>.
> Let’s share our treasured memories of our time working with Julie and her
> enormous impact on Chicago community gardens!
> Looking Back on 2024, Thank You!
> *Clockwise: a beautiful selection of plants from Resources' fall
> distribution, a Garfield Park Garden Tour attendee at Kuumba Tre-Ahm Garden
> in August, and Ms. Erma Purnell and Ms. Juline Clinton at the How To Keep
> It Going event in May honoring our Legacy Gardeners.*
>
> While plans for 2025 are coming into sharper focus, we'd like to take a
> moment to look back at 2024 to acknowledge all the work CCGA volunteers and
> gardeners accomplished together. From the thousands of plants grown and
> distributed by the Resources team to the Garfield Park Garden Tour, we
> thank each and every one of you who lent your time and talents over the
> last year! We're also incredibly grateful to all of the community gardeners
> who participated in workshops, events and plant distributions! We are
> honored to support your work in your community gardens which forms a vital
> bridge between your community and the natural world. We’ve highlighted just
> a few of the many incredible things that happened in community gardens last
> year. Read our 2024 wrap-up and new year message on the website to learn
> more!
> Read 2024 Highlights
> <https://chicagocommunitygardens.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7f2904daf2a26a891c68f8bb0&id=28381a87f5&e=9971cd8dd6>
> CCGA Legacy Gardeners Film Project
>
> The *Legacy Gardeners Film Project *was created to recognize those
> lifetime gardeners who have made an impact through their leadership and
> service. These gardeners have taught generations, showing us how to value
> hard work, nurture a tiny seed, and feed the soil and our communities. CCGA
> has been honored to create short films so far highlighting three amazing
> legacy gardeners:
> <https://chicagocommunitygardens.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7f2904daf2a26a891c68f8bb0&id=72e5b216b1&e=9971cd8dd6>*Erma
> Purnell
> <https://chicagocommunitygardens.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7f2904daf2a26a891c68f8bb0&id=8997fbc490&e=9971cd8dd6>,
> Doretha Penn
> <https://chicagocommunitygardens.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7f2904daf2a26a891c68f8bb0&id=c14f9e1982&e=9971cd8dd6>
> *and* Juline McClinton
> <https://chicagocommunitygardens.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7f2904daf2a26a891c68f8bb0&id=8912492a1f&e=9971cd8dd6>*.
> This year, our goal is to learn about and record the personal histories of
> more of our senior garden leaders.
>
> Do you know a Legacy Gardener? We want to tell their story! We aspire to
> feature those gardeners who have worked the soil beside us and, over a
> lifetime, have made an impact we can’t overlook. This is someone, still
> living, who has built a legacy, not intentionally wanting recognition or
> success, but someone who has given their energy and wisdom to fellow
> gardeners and their community through leadership and service.
>
> Please forward the name of your nominee to the Education team
> <education at chicagocommunitygardens.org?subject=Legacy%20Gardener%20Film%20Project>.
> Using the criteria in the paragraph above, please share why you nominate
> this person. You may give your name or remain anonymous. Nominations will
> be considered once we receive the permission of the legacy gardener to be
> videotaped.
> Support the Legacy Gardener Film Project
> <https://chicagocommunitygardens.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7f2904daf2a26a891c68f8bb0&id=fce518de95&e=9971cd8dd6>
> [image: Facebook]
> <https://chicagocommunitygardens.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7f2904daf2a26a891c68f8bb0&id=17403e1be6&e=9971cd8dd6>
> [image: Instagram]
> <https://chicagocommunitygardens.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7f2904daf2a26a891c68f8bb0&id=09163897eb&e=9971cd8dd6>
> [image: Website]
> <https://chicagocommunitygardens.us14.list-manage.com/track/click?u=7f2904daf2a26a891c68f8bb0&id=3493e04e07&e=9971cd8dd6>
> [image: Email] <info at chicagocommunitygardens.org>
> *Copyright © 2025 Chicago Community Gardeners Association, All rights
> reserved.*
>
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