Spring Wildflower Walk

Sustain DuPage's series of workshops with Pat Armstrong continues with a Spring wildflower walk through Naperville's Knoch Knolls Park, nestled between the East and West branches of the DuPage River and featuring gorgeous displays of our native spring wildflowers.  Sunday, April 27th 1:30-4:00.  Click here to learn more and purchase tickets 

Get Green and Geeky with Us!

Sustain DuPage is embarking on The Great Web Re-Pot—a fun website redesign project! Just like repotting a plant gives it space to grow, we’re giving our website a fresh start to better serve our community.

We need volunteers who are passionate about making an impact, wanting to try something new and if you have experience in websites, photography, graphic design and project management that’s a bonus but not necessary.  

The Great Web Re-Pot kicked off in March with a planned launch by June (fingers crossed). We're already making progress but still have space to expand our team. If interested, please reach out to Rob England  roberte@sustaindupage.com  / 630-347-6214 and he can give you all the details. Let’s nurture this project together and watch it grow

 

One Seed, One Community

 

For those participating in our One Seed, One Community project this year, NOW, the first week of April, is time to plant your Norfolk Spinach! Spinach grows best in cool weather, so direct sow seeds in your sunny garden and watch for sprouts in 7-14 days.

Once seedlings are 2" tall, thin to 8-12" apart (optimal for seed saving, which is our primary goal).

For best yields, plan to harvest continually and make successive plantings every ten days.

To get an overview of the entire process of growing spinach and saving seed, read through this article from Seed Savers Exchange.   

Instructions to grow with Sustain DuPage will continue each month, but if you have any questions please email Betty here or our general email box.

NOTE: If you're growing Cherokee Trail of Tears Pole Bean this year, instructions won't start until our May newsletter. For now, scout out a sunny location in your garden where you can provide a sturdy trellis; as these are very productive and can climb up to ten feet tall.     

 

Food Security Squad

 

FSS Tomato Seedling Effort is in full swing with a planned delivery date of May 19th to the Peoples Resource Center, Wheaton. We hope to supply a plant for every person/family that requests one, along with instructions on tomato plant care. 

 

On Saturday, June 7th, the Food Security Squad will sponsor a food pantry drive, from 10:00–11:30 am at the Sustain DuPage Garden in Wheaton (find us here). All donations will benefit the Glen House Food Pantry in Glen Ellyn.

 

We will accept cans, boxes or containers of the following items:
- Canned goods: fruits, veggies, soups - especially low-salt or no sugar added
- High Protein: peanut butter, tuna, beans, and canned chicken, chili, or stew
- Whole Grains: whole wheat pasta, brown rice, cereal
- Household: disposable diapers, bar soap, toothpaste, shampoo, toilet
paper, laundry detergent
No fresh or refrigerated items at this drive please.

 

The garden team will be on site that day working in the garden and tours will be
available, along with a Member Market and the opportunity to peruse our amazing seed cache. Sounds like the morning will have something to offer for everyone!

As always, please consider planting an extra row or a few extra plants of veggies/herbs that can be donated to the FSS project, knowing it will help support our DuPage County neighbors in need.

Please send an email to dianef@sustaindupage.org or info@sustaindupage.org  with questions or to volunteer for our projects.

 

  

Gardeners

 

Starting in April, the Gardeners project will be meeting twice weekly at our communal garden on the grounds of the Theosophical Society in Wheaton. Feel free to join us Wednesday evenings from roughly 5:30-sunset. The start time varies as people arrive after work, so we appreciate your flexibility. Saturday workdays are from 9 AM-12 PM. Please note that if there is rain, lightning, or strong wind present, the workday is automatically cancelled. We look forward to seeing you!

 

Compost Crew

 

Big thanks to everyone who continued to donate their scraps to our compost pile over the winter. Our crew has already been hard at work transforming those donations into compost for our new garden beds. We'd just like to remind everyone that we do not accept scraps that are delivered in plastic bags, even the "biodegradable" variety. Although biodegradable bags will eventually break down, in reality they shred and scatter long before then and pollute the lovely arboretum where we have our garden. The other item we cannot accept are K-Cups and other coffee-pod type products--these too create litter once deposited. We love that our community is so passionate about contributing to this program, but please be kind to our volunteers who are processing all of these scraps for free with their labor. It's definitely easier to make a drop-off in a plastic bag, but that translates into hours spent by our crew sorting through mushy refuse to pick out bits of plastic or cleaning garbage drift out of our adjacent natural areas. We thank you for your understanding and hope that you can continue to support this important project with both your scrap donations as well as keeping unwanted items at home. If you'd ever like a tour of our community composting program, please join us on Saturday mornings between 9 AM-12 PM for a demonstration.    

 

Turners

Our Turners Reading & Discussion Group is once again active and ready to grow! Core Volunteer Aime B. will be facilitating this project and wants to know when you would like to meet. Please fill out this survey to help Aime determine the best time for Turners meetings, and what books you are interested in reading. More than just a book club, the Turners project gives our community an opportunity to connect through dialog and discussion, expanding our understanding of both interesting topics as well as each other! If you're a fan of engaging conversation, then this is the right group for you! 

 

Seed Cache

SAVE THE DATE: Join us on Saturday, May 17th from 1-3p for our 3rd annual Plant and Seed Swap with the Wheaton Public Library! We welcome veggies, herbs, fruit shrubs, natives and more. If you don't have extra seedlings to share; no worries -- all are welcome to come take plants and seeds. All plants remaining after the swap will be donated to our local food banks. Link to details here. Any questions, email Lisa.   

 

In Our Community

04/03/25 7 PM DuPage Organic Garden Club - Growing Great Tomatoes . Dreaming of vibrant, juicy tomatoes from your own garden? Dave Hodge, a tomato aficionado, will share practical tips to help you grow a bountiful harvest. Learn how to select the best varieties, plant and care for your tomatoes, and manage common challenges like pests and diseases. Whether you’re growing tomatoes in the garden or in containers, this program will help you achieve success! RSVP here.

04/22/25 through 4/28/25 One Earth Film Festival
Mark your calendars to attend the Midwest’s premiere environmental and climate justice film festival from April 22 to April 28, for the celebration of Earth Week! Experience in-person screenings across the Chicagoland area, as well as two virtual watch parties across the globe, featuring a diverse, acclaimed selection of films that inspire, educate, include, and mobilize action. For more information, click here.

04/24/25 10 AM-12 PM DuPage Farm Bureau "Grow Where You Are"

Join the DPFB for a FREE adult education event focused on urban gardening
and soil health with a guest speaker from Gardenworks! Attendees will
participate in a planting demonstration and will be provided with a light lunch. Register here.

Coming up in Sustain DuPage

5/3/25 10:30 AM: True Wellness - Nurturing our bodies, soul and planet This holistic event brings together many community groups to nurture ourselves and the planet. Kyla Muhammad from the Conservation Foundation will present an interactive cooking class and presentation, "Wild Berries and Native Plant Herbal Teas". The program will begin with an invocation from Joseph Standing Bear, of the SOARRING foundation, followed by brief yoga and meditation workshops. Event details here.      

5/17/25 1:00 PM: 3rd Annual Plant and Seed Swap - Dreaming of Summer and fresh produce from your garden? Get a head start on your garden and join Sustain DuPage at our free Plant Swap! This event is mainly about plants and seedlings - as folks start seeds indoors for their garden, we inevitably have extras, and that’s where the plant and seedling sharing comes in!  Link to details here. 

5/18/25 2 PM: Creators Summer Solstice Prep. Join us for our next crafting meeting where we'll have our usual "Craft & Chat", but we'll also be preparing for June's summer solstice party. This will include activity ideas, decorations, etc. Weather permitting, we'll meet in the SD garden. There will be no formal Creators meeting for April, but all are free to craft at the garden during workdays on Saturday mornings. 

5/19/25 8:30 AM: FSS Tomato Seedling Effort - delivery of tomato seedlings to People's Resource Center, Wheaton. 

If your organization's event falls within the mission of Sustain DuPage and you'd like to advertise it in our newsletter, please contact us at info@sustaindupage.com.