by Edible Evanston’s Maria Alamo, MPH, RD, LD

by Laura Bradley, master gardener

You can generally tell if someone is a gardener or not by the way they react to rabbits. If you are outside with someone and they say, "Look at the cute bunny!" chances are they have never woken up to evaporated lettuce, mowed down tulips, or nibbled tomatoes. These admittedly adorable mammals seem to be especially pesky and prolific in Evanston. I am asked for a rabbit solution that is legal and humane at least once a week during the growing season.

If 2014 will be your first garden or your fiftieth, you have the luxury of looking at your space and determining the best place available in your yard, balcony, or windowsill to grow the garden you want. You may have already planned out what you want to grow, now you need to find the right place to set yourself up for success. The three most important considerations for where to place your garden are:

There are lots of ways to extend the growing season for your garden, but we might be a little late to the game for some of them.

An orchard was designed and constructed in Eggleston Park (McCormick Blvd & Bridge Street, Evanston, Illinois, 60201) as joint project of the Northwestern University Brady Scholars (Brady Scholars) and the New Leaf Urban Garden (NLUG), with support from Edible Evanston (EE) and the City of Evanston (City) Parks and Recreation Department (Parks Department). This is the first orchard in an Evanston City Park. The new orchard, constructed in May and June 2013, includes nearly 50 fruit and nut trees and nearly 30 raspberry bushes.