2008 GreenNet Green and Growing Fair

What: 2008 GreenNet Green and Growing Fair

When: April 26, 2008 from 10 a.m. – 3 p.m.

Where: Garfield Park Conservatory – 300 North Central Park

Cost: FREE Admission – Open to All

Come one; come all to this extraordinary spring event! We have an outstanding line-up for GreenNet's 16th Annual Green and Growing Fair, including the launch of ONE SEED CHICAGO.

As One Book; One Chicago is to reading, One Seed Chicago is to urban greening. With this new program GreenNet invites you to Grow Together. This year's seed is the Sunflower. Imagine thousands of these versatile plants linking together community gardens across the City! Pick up your free seed packet at the Fair, at events throughout the summer or by sending your name and address to info@neighbor-space.org.

This year the Fair will feature several performing artists. Enjoy down home local musicians while eating lunch at the Green Cafe. While roaming through the Conservatory, you'll enjoy a sneak preview of Walkabout Theater's forthcoming play, "War Garden: An Experiment in Patriotic Agriculture." The show, which is co-produced by NeighborSpace, and this summer will be performed directly in community gardens throughout the City, is a comedic exploration of Chicago's wildly popular war garden movement of WWI (victory gardens in WWII).

Get first dibs! Buy the season's first spring vegetables and seedlings as well as seeds, worm compost and other gardening materials and supplies from local growers and vendors. Vendors will also be selling local crafts such as painted pots, notepaper & jewelry (just in time for Mother's Day!)

Enjoy these demonstrations, activities and more:

Square foot gardening

Basics of composting

Rot Pot seed starting

Home-made solar ovens

LOW COST Tool sharpening by the CHICAGO Botanic Garden's Green Youth Farmers

Community Garden Poster Session – Meet Chicago Garden Leaders

$5.00 Classes on Native Landscaping & Basic Composting

OUR Popular silent auction of garden related items

And….. the launch of ONE SEED CHICAGO: 2008 Sunflower - Come to the Fair to pick up your free seed packet

Posted by Ron Wolford at 12:47 AM | Permalink |

Help Judge Student Hort Projects at Ag School

Master Gardeners,

The Ag. School could use your help. They are in need of judges for the FFA Section Fair. You would be judging student horticulture projects/specimens.

When: Saturday, April 12

Where: Ag. School - 3857 W. 111th Street

Time: 8:30 a.m. - 12 noon

Needed: 8 to 10 people if possible

The judges will be orientated from 8:30 a.m. - 9 a.m.

Thank you for your consideration.

To volunteer contact Nancy at nkreith@gmail.com

Nancy Kreith

Extension Program Coordinator

University of Illinois Extension

3807 W. 111th Street

Chicago, IL. 60655

office: 773.233.0476

fax: 773.233.0910

cell: 708.567.6101

url: http://web.extension.uiuc.edu/cook/

Posted by Ron Wolford at 9:07 AM | Permalink |

Kate Needs Help With Youth Programs

Kate Weinans, Youth Program Organizer needs some assistance with the following programs:

Wednesday, April 16th–9 a.m.-2 p.m.

One Master Composter or Gardener to assist an already recruited MC (Ella Russell)

Dunne Elementary- 10845 S. Union, Chicago, IL

Assist in 4 classrooms: 2 Worm Compost Projects with 3rd graders and 2 Lettuce in a Bag projects with 1st graders.

Contact Kate at kweinans@uiuc.edu

Friday, April 18th-- 9:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m.

2-6 Master Gardeners

Ag School 3807 W. 111th St

Garden Workday with 80 high school students (and their teacher sand chaperones) in the Demonstration garden and perennial garden.

Contact Nancy Kreith at nkreith@gmail.com

Saturday, April 19th-- 9:30 a.m.-2 p.m.

1-2 Master Gardeners

Ag School 3807 W. 111th St Chicago IL

Garden Workday in the Demonstration Garden to 6-8 youth from Hull House (teenagers???! think)

Contact Kate kweinans@uiuc.edu

Tuesday, April 22nd- 9 a.m.-3 p.m.

1 Master Gardener 9:00 a.m. -12, noon, 1 Master Gardener 12 noon -3:00 p.m.(Jane Tiffen and Ruth Melulis are already in for MC's)

Daley Plaza 50 W. Washington St

Worm Compost Demonstration for Earth Day

Contact Kate kweinans@uiuc.edu

Friday, May 9th-12 p.m.-1:30 p.m.

1 Master Gardener

Christopher Elementary-- 5042 S. Artesian Chicago, IL

Assist 25 girl scouts re-pot flowering plants for Mother's Day. Anyone with inexpensive crafty ideas to spruce up those boring, cheap plastic greenhouse planters is WELCOME!!!! These will be gifts.

Contact Kate kweinans@uiuc.edu

Kate Weinans

UIUC Extension Youth Program Organizer

3807 W. 111th St

Chicago, IL 60655

Phone: 773-233-0476

Fax: 773-233-0910

kweinans@uiuc.edu

Posted by Ron Wolford at 11:05 PM | Permalink |

Common Threads Job Openings

Hello Friends,

We are growing here at Common Threads. As of this coming fall, we will have 17 different cooking classes going on in one week! Crazy exciting! Consequently, we have two openings here at Common Threads. Last summer, I emailed you two job descriptions and ended up hiring three individuals, all of who came from the Common Threads network. So again, I thought I would again go through the friends of Common Threads in search of two amazing people that might complete our family (at least for now)!

We are looking for a Client Service Coordinator and a Program Assistant. The Client Service Coordinator position is a job that requires wearing multiple hats (event coordination, grant writing and other admin tasks) and requires a real people person who is detail oriented. The Program Assistant will be working hands-on with our kids in the kitchen and garden on a daily basis, so this person needs to have a true love of children while also being diligent about coordinating class related logistics.

Thank you in advance for your help.

Have a wonderful day and a phenomenal week!

Linda

Linda Novick O'Keefe

Executive Director

Common Threads

312.752.2680 - office

312.277.9517 - fax

linda@ourcommonthreads.org

www.ourcommonthreads.org

Posted by Ron Wolford at 3:37 PM | Permalink |

Volunteer at Green and Growing Fair

We need volunteers to help with set-up, break down, seed planting demos, silent auction and garden book sale, greeting and information tables, and much more...

Volunteer shifts for the Green and Growing Fair are:

Set up: 6:30 a.m -9:30 a.m.

Break down: 2:30 p.m.-5:00 p.m.

First Shift: 9:00 a.m.-12:30 p.m.

Second Shift 12:00 p.m.-4:30 p.m.

If you would like to help with this fun event please contact me at hpicciuca@garfieldpark.org or by phone 773-638-1766x24 with your preferred shift time.

Highlights of the 2008 Green and Growing Fair

You will be able to buy the season's first spring vegetables and seedlings as well as seeds, worm compost and other gardening materials and supplies from local growers and vendors.

Vendors will also be selling local crafts such as painted pots, notepaper & jewelry (just in time for Mother's day!)

Demonstrations on...

Square foot gardening

Basics of composting

Rot Pot seed starting

Home-made solar ovens

Community Garden Poster Session

Popular silent auction of garden related items and more

Free Tool sharpening by the Botanic Garden's Green Youth Farmers

$5.00 Classes on Native Landscaping & Basic Composting

Lunch in the Green Café Accompanied by down home local musicians!

The lunch of ONE SEED CHICAGO: The Sunflower Seed!

Thanks so much and hope to see you at the event!

Harmony Picciuca

Garden and Volunteer Programs Coordinator

Garfield Park Conservatory Alliance

300 N. Central Park Avenue

Chicago, Illinois 60624

773.638.1766 x 24

hpicciuca@garfieldpark.org

Posted by Ron Wolford at 3:14 PM | Permalink |