Comments on Ecological Gardening: Matteo and His Fig Tree

Hi, I commented on this post a while back. I was ...

2012-01-27T17:15:22.567-08:00

Hi,

I commented on this post a while back. I was the one from Franklin Park who moved Downstate. I just wanted to let you know that I serve on the board of the Illinois Stewardship Alliance. ISA promotes environmentally sustainable, economically viable, socially just local food systems through policy development, advocacy and education. I see that there is much in common between what

Hi Janet, That's an interesting fact about fi...

2011-06-02T07:55:36.575-07:00

Hi Janet,

That's an interesting fact about fig trees. Matteo didn't mention it.

That's fascinating way to look after a fig tre...

2011-06-01T15:22:56.144-07:00

That's fascinating way to look after a fig tree.We grow ours in a pot in the greenhouse. I understood to get a good crop the roots should be restricted and that way all the goodness goes into producing a good crop of fruit. Did Matteo mention that?

Thanks, Robert, I'll check it out.

2011-05-21T06:40:24.326-07:00

Thanks, Robert, I'll check it out.

Hi Adrian, You can find the cucumber/melon seeds ...

2011-05-20T12:10:49.300-07:00

Hi Adrian,

You can find the cucumber/melon seeds here:

http://www.growitalian.com/

Or look around places like Caputo's.

Jean, Thanks for the good words! Yeah, that fig t...

2011-05-19T07:10:06.527-07:00

Jean,

Thanks for the good words! Yeah, that fig tree is amazing. This year it came through just fine, but Matteo says it's getting too big to trench, so now he's thinking about on some kind of arrangement with insulation. I guess I'll have to find out what happens with that next spring.

Carole, That's really true. I first learned ...

2011-05-19T07:07:04.263-07:00

Carole,

That's really true. I first learned to listen by talking with and learning from my own grandparents.

Don, That's interesting. I think it's a g...

2011-05-19T07:04:42.126-07:00

Don,

That's interesting. I think it's a good sign that Wendell Berry is making it into college readers. You're making creative use of it, too. Leviticus, hmmm. Aldo Leopold thought every conservationist should read and ponder the Old Testament.

Robert, I really appreciate your comment. It'...

2011-05-19T06:59:31.230-07:00

Robert,

I really appreciate your comment. It's inspiring to know that your own life work came from learning from people like this. I'm now wondering where i can get the seeds for the "Italian Melon." Thanks for the link. I'll check it out.

Adrian, This is both a vivid character portrait an...

2011-05-18T18:58:43.073-07:00

Adrian, This is both a vivid character portrait and a wonderful lesson in garden creativity. I was moved by all the love and labor that goes into that fig tree. -Jean

What wonderful stories! And how awesome for you to...

2011-05-18T15:42:47.532-07:00

What wonderful stories! And how awesome for you to get to share them. It's true, we can learn so much by listening to other people's stories.

Adrian: The editors of the reading anthology we us...

2011-05-18T11:06:40.768-07:00

Adrian:
The editors of the reading anthology we use for our comp classes put an essay by Wendell Berry in the latest edition. You can guess that I latched onto it right away as a reading assignment!

In fact, a fascinating thing happened in one of my classes Winter term. After reading Berry's essay, I asked the class to write an answer to the question whether we could feed our

Thank you for this great article! I grew up in Fra...

2011-05-18T09:32:44.950-07:00

Thank you for this great article! I grew up in Franklin Park and worked for a while at Triton. I began gardening when I was 10 due in part from encouragement from my father but also from watching all of the old Italian guys in the neighborhood garden. They would give advice and seeds as well! I have been gardening ever since and now live in Downstate Illinois on a 22 acre farm. My wife and I grow

hi Don, I was thinking of you a little when I wrot...

2011-05-17T17:39:24.940-07:00

hi Don,
I was thinking of you a little when I wrote this.

I agree that many students do make those connections--I've been noticing this in the last couple of years in particular--but our curriculum hasn't changed as much as one would like to see.

A beautiful story, Adrian! I too teach at a very m...

2011-05-17T11:46:53.094-07:00

A beautiful story, Adrian! I too teach at a very multicultural community college, and I too have often been surprised about the things my students know about and know how to do. I've never had someone like Matteo in my classes, though. I would really love to find one, though!

I too try to connect teaching to gardening, preserving the land, and ecology. They read essays along that