Home Gardening

Why Garden at Home Preparing to Set Up Your Space The size of your space and your budget will determine how much food you can grow and which way to grow makes the most sense.  Types of Gardens Decide What You Want To Grow Considerations: required container sizes, seasonality, sunlight, nutrient density, food preference Set […]

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Season Extension

Extending Your Produce: Intro to Pickling, Fermenting, and Making Stocks and Broths Season Extension Workshop Using Fresh Produce: Four Seasons Gardening Resources Table of Contents

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Gardening Basics

Grounding Yourself The Gardeners Journey Even if we follow the planting instructions, sunlight requirements, and feed and water our plants…  …Remember the seeds and seedlings are the result of thousands of years of activity; they are full of genetic codes that make them what they are.  They want to grow and reproduce to continue life […]

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Making Your Own Soil

How to Make Your Own Soil DIY Potting Soil | Savvygardening.com Considerations: location of whatever you’re planting (inside and/or outside) Making Your Own Soil Quick Instructions 9 Ways To Nourish Your Soil Mix in a specific amount in solid form, in soluble form (i.e. water), composting with decomposing fruit peels, grass clippings that have not been sprayed […]

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Taking Care of the Soil

Soil & Soil Health Workshop Recording Principles of Soil Health How to Make and Nourish your own Soil How to help your soil retain more water Places to Buy Seeds Soil Contamination Testing Logan Labs | Send them samples, and they will send you results. Soil testing is an important part of creating a healthy […]

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Resources for Educators

Common Bytes via Common Threads | Recipes, games, nutrition lessons and other resources for learning about cooking healthy foods! Curriculum and Activities via Big Green at Home | Learning Garden curriculum options that focus on Food Literacy and Real Food Education. Educator Bundles via Big Green at Home | A collection of activities that are short and easy to implement with […]

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Roots Watering Hole Podcast

Roots Watering Hole will be producing podcasts for multiple purposes – One track is a monthly gardening education and food literacy series co-hosted by Orrin Williams the Food Systems Coordinator at the University of Illinois at Chicago and soil scientist Dr. Akilah Martin. The second track is devoted to independent content created by Orrin Williams […]

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Chicago Grows Food Grow Kit

Welcome to your Grow Kit What’s included Setting up Watering Just like humans, plants need water to survive. Plants get water from rain or from us watering them. It’s important to think about where you will get water from to water your plants. Water sources: How much water do my plants need? Check your seed […]

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Resources for Families & Students

For Families Activities at Home via Big Green at Home Small Bites on Demand via Common Threads | Common Threads is offering FREE on-demand (self-paced) Small Bites lessons for elementary school-age children! For Students Activities at Home via Big Green at Home Common Bytes via Common Threads Recipes, games, nutrition lessons and other resources for learning about cooking healthy foods! Small Bites on Demand via Common […]

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