Join us on Wednesday, 5:00pm until dusk, for garden stewardship! Read on for more garden news.

Focus on… Bur Oak

350 years ago, in September of 1673, a group of people from the Kaskaskia tribe led Louis Jolliet, Father Jacques Marquette, and their expedition to a place where they could carry their boats a short distance across the watershed from the Mississippi River system to the Chicago River and on to Lake Michigan. Around that time, a pivotal event in Chicago history occurred when a squirrel living beside the north branch of the Chicago River buried acorns it had collected for the winter. Four of those acorns did not get eaten but germinated, growing into four bur oak trees; part of the oak savannah that once spanned much of this area. They were already large trees a hundred years later when Jean Baptiste Point du Sable and his family established a farm at the mouth of the Chicago River, planting the seed of the settlement that came to be called Chicago. The trees stood undisturbed for another hundred or so years, but then the river was moved and the area cleared for housing. Somehow the trees survived and eventually the land on which they stood was absorbed into the grounds of a school. Years later, children at that school, inspired by these same four trees, removed the asphalt that surrounded them and sowed native plants, starting the garden that we know and love.

Today there are many bur oaks (Quercus macrocarpa) in the garden; the four elder oaks and their descendents. They can be recognized by their distinctive round lobed leaves, with a deep cut in the middle that almost divides each leaf into two parts, and their large acorns where the cup wraps most of the way around the nut, looking somewhat like a big woolly hat. These are the largest acorns of any North American oak, giving rise to the scientific name macrocarpa, which means ‘large fruit’.

This year the oaks in Chicago are having a mast year; a year in which they produce many more acorns than they would in a normal year. There are two great mysteries to such events. First, why they happen. This may be down to weather and availability of resources, but it is also thought that by occasionally producing acorns in excess, it is possible to satiate the squirrels, ensuring that some acorns survive to germinate without spurring an increase in the size of the squirrel population. The second mystery is how all the trees in one area synchronize mast years; again local weather may be the determining factor, but there is still a lot to be discovered.

When I see children at the school playing under the old oaks, I sometimes try to imagine the Miami or Potawotami children who may have played under these same trees and fished in the river that ran by. I’d like to think that some of the younger bur oaks in the garden now might still be here in another 350 years. Perhaps people of that future time will look at those trees and imagine our children playing under them. Next time you are close to one of the large bur oaks, try closing your eyes and listening for the echoes of their past. These four grand old trees are our living connection to the history of our city.

The “Focus On” series is written by Jeremy Atherton, the parent of a Waters 5th grader. He is a research scientist at Northwestern University Medical School. In addition to volunteering at Waters Garden, he is a steward at Riverbank Neighbors and a member of the 47th Ward Green Council.

Event: How Does Your Garden Grow?

Saturday, October 7th, 10am to 11:30am
All Saints at 4550 N. Hermitage

This Ravenswood Neighbors Association (RNA) event sponsored by Chicago Community Gardeners Association (CCGA) will teach area gardeners eco-friendly fall & winter garden care, including the benefits of fall leaf mulch application and zero-trim of dead flower stems. Gardeners will also learn how they can contribute bagged leaves to RNA’s Mulch Madness (Nov. 4th) and later collect leaf mulch at a community compost site.

Special Guest Lorena Lopez from Museums in the Park-Chicago Park District will instruct gardeners on effective communication with neighbors about the ecological and community benefits native gardens provide.

Fall is upon us, but we’re still at it! Join us in the garden for stewardship and friendship on Saturday morning, 10:00am to noon.

Celebrating the Autumnal Equinox

The Autumnal Equinox is coming. Around the 23rd of September. The exact moment doesn’t much matter to me. The amazing thing is that it is a world-recognized, unifying moment for every culture back through very ancient times. Something shifting, moving from one moment to the next.

What does it matter to us? What will we notice? How will we be affected?

It matters because, in a world ridden with religious, political, class, and racial divisions, the Equinox (and the Solstices) are moments of shared awe and recognition that we share One world, One reality, and that it is beautiful.

When we started restoration of the riverbank and Waters school grounds, we sought events that we could be part of to bring our community together. The celestial Solstice and Equinox were laden with ancient ritual, with scientific revelation, with Universal appeal.

So join us to celebrate this worldwide event. The official date and time aren’t that important. But the Equinox reminds people all around the world that a shift is beginning. What will you notice??

On September 23, the length of the day and the night will equalize. 12 hours dark, 12 hours light. Worldwide. On that day, the Sun will rise due east and set due west. This means, amongst other things, that there will be some awesome and unusual spectacles on Chicago’s east-west grid streets. The Sun will pour into the streets, painting them with color and blinding drivers.

Another thing is that this day, this moment, marks the time of maximum reduction of the rate of daylight shortening. This has been going on since the Summer Solstice. Slowly, slowly at first, the days began to shorten after June 20, accelerating to maximum at the Autumn Equinox. (Did you notice? It’s 7:30 and dark?) After this day, from our perspective, the shortening of the days will slow down until the Winter Solstice.

We will also witness this if we take note of the azimuth of the noontime Sun. The Sun dips, lower and lower onto the southern horizon until, at Winter Solstice, it stops, and reverses, heralding Spring.

What a thing! Going on everyday, all around us and around the world. Celebrate! Light a fire. Sing a song. Share food. Tell a tale.

This is one way to connect with the whole world, back through ancient times, and with the celestial.

– Pete

Thank you to all who joined last Saturday’s Open House. It was wonderful to see everyone, and we got so much done—repaired fences, transplanted raspberries, continued to gather important native seeds, planted community cold frames, and more!

Join us on Wednesday, 5:00pm until dusk, to keep the good work going!

Read to the end to check out some other magnificent gardening events happening in Chicago this month and next. And save the date for Kidical Mass on Sunday, Oct. 22, which will start at Waters School and end with a celebration in the garden! More info on that below.

Focus on… Tall Thistle

Thistles tend to have a bad reputation as garden weeds. Certainly the non-native Canada thistle (which has nothing to do with Canada) is one of the worst invasive species in Waters Garden, but even so, its flowers are actually quite pretty. The native tall thistle (Cirsium altissimum) is definitely a pretty plant. Like the sunflowers discussed previously, thistles are members of the Asteraceae family, meaning that their blooms are actually composites of many tiny flowers. However, thistles lack ray florets and only have disc florets, which are usually purple colored. Last time, I mentioned the involucre on the rear of the sunflowers; the involucre is a whorl of leafy bracts on the rear of composite flowers, and with thistles, it is what gives the flowers their distinctive shape. The involucre of the tall thistle is somewhat bell-shaped and is covered in tiny spikes.

One way to tell tall thistle from other native thistles—especially the similar-looking pasture thistle—is the shape of the leaves. The leaves of tall thistle are either not lobed at all or are only shallowly lobed, whereas most of the other native thistles have deeply lobed leaves. Note though that there is quite a lot of variation, and the tall thistle plants currently growing in Waters Garden actually have quite prominently lobed leaves. In addition, the leaf undersides (known as the abaxial surface), but not the upper sides (known as the adaxial surface), are whitened by a dense mat of hairs. Botanists use the term tomentose to describe hairs this dense and matted; there are over 30 terms for the varying levels of hairiness of plants in the glossary that I have, which may seem excessive but it allows for precise descriptions of plants.

Tall thistle is largely biennial (living for only two years), though it can survive a few years longer than two. A variety of bees, butterflies, and moths visit tall thistle flowers for nectar. Then, when it goes to seed, it provides food for goldfinch, sparrow, siskin, and junco. So while short-lived, this under-appreciated plant is definitely a strong contributor to the garden ecosystem. Tall thistle grows under the southeast bur oak in Waters Garden; check them out while they are still in bloom.

The “Focus On” series is written by Jeremy Atherton, the parent of a Waters 5th grader. He is a research scientist at Northwestern University Medical School. In addition to volunteering at Waters Garden, he is a steward at Riverbank Neighbors and a member of the 47th Ward Green Council.

Save the Date for Kidical Mass—October 22, 2023!

Join Kidical Mass for a slow, easy-going, and fun group ride focused on kids of all ages and families that will tour the Lincoln Square neighborhood!

Gather @ Waters Elementary 10:00am; depart @ 10:30am. Return to Waters @ 11:00ish for a Garden Celebration, including stories, hot cider, and more fun activities.

Festive dress and decorations encouraged. All kids must bring a parent/guardian with a bike.

More Garden Events Around Town

Check out upcoming gatherings in the Chicago Community Gardeners Association free fall event series!

Garfield Park Community Gardens Tour
Saturday, September 23 • 9:30am–2:00pm
More info and register here.

Oriole Park Teaching Garden Is Turning 10!
Saturday, September 30 • 1:00–3:00pm
More info and register here.

Haven’t stopped by the garden in a while? Come see us at the Open House on Saturday, 10am–noon

This weekend, we’re holding an Open House, extending a special invitation for Waters families and community members to come out and see what our wonderful garden is all about.

It takes a village to care for the beautiful ecosystem that our neighborhood school holds. Indeed, we humans are a critical part of this ecosystem, showing up in ways that provide shelter for treasured plants and animals and tending to our own selves and community in the process.

In this time of so many environmental crises, it is refreshing to show up to our local school garden knowing our human hands are doing this good work.

We’ll have a diverse array of tasks, including ones that are great for children and new gardeners. And if you’re not up for “work,” just come by to relax in this beautiful space.

We’ll run periodic tours and explore the ecological bounty around us.

– Kristin and Megan

Focus on… sawtooth sunflower

Sawtooth sunflower (Helianthus grosseserratus) is one of two species of native sunflower that grow in Waters Garden. Like the New England aster discussed previously, it is a member of the Asteraceae family, meaning that its blooms are composite flowers each made up of many tiny disc and ray florets. Like all sunflowers, the ray florets of sawtooth sunflowers are infertile and only the disc florets produce seeds.

At this time of year, a lot of the native plants blooming in the garden have similar-looking yellow flowers, and learning to tell them apart can be difficult. But if you spend time in the garden and observe the plants closely, you will gradually start to recognize the differences between them. One area to look for differences that can help with identification is the rear of the bloom. Composite flowers have a whorl of leafy bracts at the rear called an involucre; the individual bracts of the involucre are called phyllaries. As can be seen the first photo below, the phyllaries of the sawtooth sunflower are loose and spreading; this can help differentiate these blooms from those of other species with composite yellow flowers, such as the Heliopsis, Silphium, and Rudbeckia species that grow in the garden.

The common name ‘sawtooth’ refers to the serrated edge of the slender, lance-shaped leaves, but the amount of serration is very variable and some leaves are barely serrated at all. The leaves are often opposite (branching in pairs) lower down the stem and alternate (branching singly) closer to the flowers. A characteristic of the leaves that some observers note is a tendency to fold up along the central vein into a V shape, and to droop along their length, forming an arch. If you take time to enjoy the sunflowers in the garden, take a closer look at the involucres at the rear of the blooms, I think that they are often as interesting to look at as the front.

The “Focus On” series is written by Jeremy Atherton, the parent of a Waters 5th grader. He is a research scientist at Northwestern University Medical School. In addition to volunteering at Waters Garden, he is a steward at Riverbank Neighbors and a member of the 47th Ward Green Council.

Join us for a beautiful fall evening in the garden! Wednesday evening, 5pm to sunset.

Finally, a break in the weather… which means new plants!

Ecologically and individually, extreme heat and drought can make life miserable. For me, it is very hard to go out into the heat and intense light to provide the care that plants, especially newly planted ones, need. So, what a relief to feel the air, the breeze, the mist and coolness.

This spring, we ordered small plants to enrich species diversity at Waters Garden and the Riverbank Neighbors Natural Area. I hesitated to “plug them in” because I feared that they would not survive the possible heat, drought, intense sun, and competition from much stronger, aggressive, and more established plants. So we decided to re-pot them with bigger containers and care for them at school and at our homes–with constant attention, watering, fertilizing, bug control, etc. We put some into the ground as a control, to see how they would do. We tried to water and weed these young ones too, but without the persistence and closeness of garden care.

The difference was obvious and huge. Today, we have some big, beautiful plants (some 10 or 15 times bigger) that are ready to be re-introduced to our existing plant community.

The method we use is interesting. We choose a place in the natural area over-dominated by aggressive natives: rosin weed, saw-toothed sunflower, heliopsis, etc. And we remove them in a restricted area, deep down to the roots, and loosen the soil and add amendments (weed-free compost, peat moss, sand) to increase soil water retention and absorption. Then we plant, and protect the plants with fencing and flagging, so that we can keep track, and add water or bug protection if needed.

This is a higher level of commitment, to go through this process and then watch, watch, watch, and care. So that’s one of the more complicated, careful, dedicated tasks on the list for riverbank and Waters Garden. Are you game?? Let us know.

– Pete

Its a very beautiful morning to join with
friends, family, and community
to work together in the beauty of nature.
10-12. This in an open community invitation.
If you’ve wondered about the famous
Waters Garden, come on by,
every week Wed 5-sunset, Sat 10-12,
last Saturdays 12-1 music circle,
often with a shared meal,
a potluck -avoiding common allergens, helping to clean up,
bringing your own utensils, and food to share.
Have a beautiful day.

Focus on… New England aster

New England aster (Symphyotrichum novae-angliae) is possibly the easiest of the North American asters to identify. There are six species of aster that grow in Waters Garden, all flowering in the late summer and early fall. This one has the largest and darkest purple blooms, along with hairy stems and dark green leaves that clasp around the stem at their base.

Like all members of the Asteraceae family, each bloom is not a single flower, but is actually a compound flower made up of many tiny flowers. The flowers that make up the central circle are called disc florets and the flowers that produce the ‘petals’ are called ray florets. Each bloom on a New England aster has 50 to 100 disc florets that start out golden yellow and later turn purple, and 50 to 75 purple rays. The ray florets are female and produce no pollen, whereas the disc florets are androgynous, having both male and female reproductive parts. They are mostly pollinated by long-tongued bees such as bumblebees and honeybees.

See if you can find some New England aster in the garden and take a closer look at the disc and ray florets.

The “Focus On” series is written by Jeremy Atherton, the parent of a Waters 5th grader. He is a research scientist at Northwestern University Medical School. In addition to volunteering at Waters Garden, he is a steward at Riverbank Neighbors and a member of the 47th Ward Green Council.

Dear Garden Friends, 

Join us tonite for stewardship, fire and food and a special visit from Lauren Umek,   Project Manager in the Department of Cultural and Natural Resources  of the Chicago Park District. We will be able to have an informal chat about volunteer stewardship opportunities and strategies for protecting these areas and increasing biodiversity. This conversation will begin at about 7:00 by the fire circle. Bring a friend and join us.

Garden Stewards

Hello Garden Friends and Neighbors,

A scorcher today, but tomorrow promises to chill out a bit, to provide us a lovely setting for stewardship in the Garden. Please join us from 10:00 until ….1:00 to pitch in, to work, and learn, and enjoy the company of an amazing group of kids, parents and neighbors who are dedicated to caring for a precious bit of land in our community. 

There is work and wonder for all, from clean up, to weeding, fence and path tending, fire building, cooking and serving each other. And if you play an instrument, bring it, and gift us with song.

Below are some garden images from the past week: the acorns from the bur oaks are starting to drop (assisted by hungry squirrels, pawpaw are thickening, hazelnuts are weighing down the branches that carry them, the sunflowers and rudbeckia are in full flourish, Joe Pye Weed (3 species) are casting their gentle pink glow, and the swales are alight with cardinal flower, boneset, monkey flower and blazing star. 

We have work to do and joy to share.

Join us!

Pete (for garden stewards)

Hello garden Friends, It’s hot. and almost midway through the calendar summer. Much of our garden is thriving thanks to care and watering, and has yielded berries, and squash and broccoli and garlic, and more. The native gardens are thriving and diverse and beautiful. Paw paw and hazelnut are in fruit. Children graze the parkway garden savoring the last sweet raspberries.  And, importantly, our garden community is growing and healthy. So, let us meet this evening, and take it easy: stay in the shade, no heavy lifting and if you bring food to share, let’s bring cold dishes so we won’t have to make a fire and cook.  Next Wednesday evening we will be visited by Lauren Umek, Head of the Natural Areas division of the Chicago Park District. She has valuable knowledge about the Horner Park and River Park bank restorations, and natural areas management in general. She will join us for an informal Q &A around the fire circle.  Pete  (for garden stewards) Below are some of Jeremy’s latest photos.

Today promises to be a rainy day, going into our stewardship time. But, maybe not. There is always a shelter from the rain, friends to talk to, new plants in bloom. So, come by after 5:00, stay for a while, or until dark.

Fotos below by J. Atherton, clockwise Button Bush, False Sunflower, Common milkweed, Cardinal flower

Garden Stewards