In 1999, Sue Hartman and Karen Kaplan from the Environmental Concerns Committee of District 73 1/2's PTA, approached Art to see if anything could be done other than the recommended excavation and replacement of all the soil.
Art looked upon the 100' x 53' weedpatch as a great opportunity to plant a sand prairie, with the plants and grasses one might find at Illinois Beach State Park near Zion.
Volunteers from the village and PTA planted the area in sections interspaced with wide paths surrounding an information kiosk.
Art provided the plants and advice gratis. (Art is always real good for giving free advice.)
In the spring of 2000, in a moving ceremony with representitives from the school and village and students who also worked on the project, our friend Joseph Standing Bear of Midwest SOARRING, dedicated the garden.
By the way, Joseph presided over the Blessing and Dedication of the Loren Fillmore Camp Memorial Wildlife Habitat at the Pav YMCA in Berwyn - June/July 2002, which was Art and Linda's Wildflowers' CommunityProject for 2001.
By the summer and fall of 2001, the Middleton Prairie Garden was in full glory. It is being added to, a section at a time, and stewarded (weeded) by local volunteers.
Local Boy Scouts recently surrounded the whole front yard with a beautiful split-rail fence, paid for with funds from Environmental Concerns Committee.
The are native cactus in Illinois!
This prickly pear loves Middleton's sandy soil.
If you would like to help care for this garden, please call
Sue Hartman at 847-674-6933.For seasonal updates, click here!
