Ginkgo Organic Gardens

08/28/2025

We can’t stop admiring the colors in our midweek harvest for Grocery Land Food Pantry. 😍😍😍 Follow us on instagram for more photos!

08/05/2025

Lori Cannon’s legacy feels immeasurable. We at Ginkgo are honored that we got to be part of it. We are heartbroken by her loss, but inspired by her life.

“Lori taught me that it’s not just about vegetables and nutrition. It’s about dignity and beauty,” said John Cahill about the following story.

One day, it was a Saturday work day, the day when we harvest all the produce and donate it to the food pantry, we had more volunteers than tasks. I asked a volunteer to make bouquets from whatever flowers she could find around the garden. I told her that I have no aesthetic eye and feel bad for the poor people who receive my bouquets. She went about the garden whipping together little bundles of daisies, ground cover, columbine, things I didn’t even know we grew. Single serving bunches just big enough to fit into a water glass all tied with a bow of baling twine.
I topped the boxes of kale, chard, collards, radishes, herbs, and such with her bouquets and took off for the pantry alone. When I got there, there weren’t many clients waiting out front, but I made haste to the back so I could spend time organizing the produce carefully into decorative baskets to entice the clients. Lori, who is not only the sweetest woman on earth, but also the big boss, came to offer me a bottle of water but was distracted by the flowers that I had nearly forgotten.
Her voice low she said, “John, there is a woman out there whose husband is on his last legs. It seems that he won’t be with us by next week, but she is keeping his spirit up. She is really doing an incredible job of supporting him to the end and encouraging him to fight, and I know how much she is hiding from him. Can I take these to her?” I nodded and almost collapsed in tears that I was able to fight off until the train ride back to the garden.
The woman was gone by the time I brought the carts loaded with the harvest out. I hawked the produce and the volunteers at the pantry told me that I was no Vanna White. I looked like a crazy person on the L ride back, with leaking eyes, a sunburn and a large straw hat. As I approached the garden gate, the volunteer who made the bouquets was leaving. I explained where they had gone and this first time volunteer, who was probably just there to spend some time outdoors, lost control of her facial muscles. My eyes welled again and we both tried to smile through twisted mouths and continued on in opposite directions.

Rest in Power, Lori. We will continue to work to help feed our neighbors at GroceryLand and make Chicago a better place in your honor.

05/12/2025

We all know some of these and you all make our community more special!

Happy Mother's Day to all the amazing moms out there-thank you for everything you do! 🌸💐

05/09/2025

We hope our radishes look this good when we harvest them in a few weeks! Come to Ginkgo tomorrow to help us water and maintain the garden. I don't have a picture of how amazing the flowers smell too.

University of Illinois Extension: When to Plant in Illinois https://bit.ly/49YWRbp

04/30/2025

Hoping these lovelies return this year! We will be planting more of them this May!!

Details: https://www.gfloutdoors.com/17-self-seeding-plants-to-create-a-effortless-and-naturally-flourishing-yard-gw/

04/15/2025

Exciting news for this lucky Chicago neighborhood. We hope this expands citywide! https://www.nbcchicago.com/news/local/rat-birth-control-this-neighborhood-in-chicago-will-soon-try-it/3710993/?

For the last 10 years, Chicago has earned the title of "rattiest" city. But a new pilot program in a popular neighborhoods could help to break the streak: Rat birth control.

04/09/2025

These are the flowers the bees need! We are working on bringing more of these to Ginkgo- new blueberry bush babies were just planted!

Plant these to save the North American bees!

Find species native to your region in these plant families:
🌿 Sunflowers (Helianthus sp.)
🌿 Aster (Symphyotrichum sp.)
🌿 Beardtongue (Penstemon sp.)
🌿 Black-eyed Susan (Rudbeckia sp.)
🌿 Bee balm (Monarda sp.)
🌿 Goldenrod (Solidago sp.)
🌿 Wild indigo (Baptisia sp.)
🌿 Blueberries (Vaccinium sp.)
🌿 Violets (Viola sp.)
🌿 Geraniums (Geranium sp.)
🌿 Coreopsis (Coreopsis sp.)

Here are some resources to find which specific species are native to your area:
🌻 Your state’s Native Plant Society
🌻 Your local Wild Ones chapter
🌻 The National Wildlife Federation’s Native Plant Finder tool
🌻 BONAP’s North American Plant Atlas
🌻 The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center’s website
🌻 iNaturalist
🌻 National Audubon Society’s native plant tool

🐝 Plant native to save the bees! 🐝

04/05/2025

Lovely spring flowers are just getting started! Come to Ginkgo's first spring workday on Saturday April 12 at 10am!

03/21/2025

Happy Spring! "Wake up flowers! There's work to do!"

02/23/2025

Sunday, March 9, 2025 12:00 PM - 2:00 PM CT
Garfield Park Conservatory, 300 N Central Park Ave, Chicago, IL 60624

Are you ready to celebrate Soil Health Week with us? You are invited to join AUA for our Coffee and soil talk on March 9th at 12pm.

Join AUA for a spring coffee+ soil talk community event. Join AUA as we gather and unite around a community round table to discuss our needs and challenges around soil fertility and soil health. We hope to invite as many growers, farmers, organizations who share interest in long term soil health to join us to talk about soil! Our goal is to unite community members for a soil and coffee meet up as AUA facilitates a round table conversation around soil health.

Please remember to register for the event, the link can be found in our bio.
Week

02/20/2025

We've been heartbroken all week due to the news that Heartland Alliance Health would be shutting down its health centers- including Vital Bridges Groceryland, the 35-year-old food pantry we serve. But today we are overjoyed that the closures will not happen thanks to a wonderful new grant. And we are so happy for the clients who will continue to be able to access the health centers, and the staff who will keep their jobs!

The nonprofit said on its website that all its health clinics, food pantries, and medical case management and outreach services will remain open and active.