Saturday, June 19 at 1 PM // Rain date June 26 at 1 PM

Meet at Vedgewater community garden, and please RSVP in advance to help our planning process, and so that we may reach out if the event is rescheduled due to inclement weather!

This summer, Edgewater Environmental Coalition and 6018North present Dig In, a monthly gardening conversation series about native plants, soil, water, and cultural ties to locally grown plants. Together with Nance Klehm, Melissa H. Potter, and Carmen Vidal-Hallett, we explore various types of native planting, feminist gardening, rain gardens, and soil amendments. Programming will launch from Vedgewater community garden, and is free and open to the public.

The first event is the start of Flax Feminism: Observational Drawing and Recording Project by Melissa H. Potter exploring the flax plant for the disappearing woman’s craft of spinning, weaving and textiles, and its health benefits for women at all stages of their lives. Flax is a drought-tolerant plant and a soil remediator, suitable for a city garden experiencing climate change. The plants will be cultivated for handmade paper fiber to be spun into thread and be observed throughout the season. This program gives an introduction to a form of observational drawing and recording plants in their changing environments. This method allows for observation of growth changes throughout the season as plants come to fruition with consideration for climate change stressors on plants, such as wind, heavy rains, heat, and changing weather patterns. The goal is to consider plants in increments of time both small and large, and how we might better support our gardening efforts with more knowledge of patterns over time. We will discuss use of Nature’s Notebook for volunteer observation in the Edgewater community.

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This project is a part of Sustainability Awareness within Edgewater, generously supported by the Edgewater Chamber of Commerce – SSA#26. Gardening at Vedgewater is facilitated by the Peterson Garden Project in partnership with Loyola University of Chicago, Edgewater Chamber of Commerce and 48th Ward Office of Alderman Harry Osterman.

Edgewater Environmental Coalition brings a green voice to local challenges, empowering people to build and maintain a more sustainable future through action, organizing, education, and advocacy. We are rooted in advancing a healthy and verdant Edgewater.