Here is a short 15-minute episode with reminders about what to pay attention to in our gardens in July.

July has arrived and gardening season is in full swing. There are approximately 105 days left in the typical growing season. Of course, if you take some steps to extend the season you may be able to grow crops such as collard greens, kale, etc. in early winter.

Here are some crops you may want to consider growing in July that will provide a yield before the frost returns. Stony Acres Gardening and The Gardening Channel offer options for growing in the USDA Hardiness Zones 5, 6, and 7 before the first frost date. Zone 5 may have a shorter window and zone 7 a longer window but we are looking at a range between 80 to 110 days, with climate change being the wild card.

It does not hurt to reiterate the importance of water for your garden. We often discuss watering and the proper technique, but this video happens to be the best I have ever seen on the topic. Please watch it.

You may want to take a deeper dive into research, but here's a reminder that fertilizing your garden, especially a container or grow bag garden, is essential. Proper watering and fertilization are necessary for maintaining and producing healthy plants. Healthy plants are a deterrent for pest problems as pests are nature's way of dealing with weak and dying plants.

I am closely watching the supply chain issues we may experience nationally as farm workers are not showing up to harvest and prepare produce for distribution to market. Stay tuned for more on that coming up but it is also a reason to vastly and quickly increase home and community gardens as well as urban and peri-urban farms. How we do that is something we need to discuss as vulnerable communities. The recent Congressional action on taxes, along with the attacks on Medicaid, will find millions of people uninsured and unable to access food. Alas, here is another reason to invest in and engage in practices to expand our gardening sector. The need for a care and self-care economy is growing rapidly.

Best herbs for container gardening:

Momzone

Medicinal Backyard

Garden Answer

Please, please remember we do not offer any medical advice, so please consult with your primary care physician and/or the health care team of your choice before proceeding with any herbal or personal health care journey...

I am going to stop here until the next episode when I will update you on the state of the food supply chain...

Produced by Orrin Williams orrinw@uic.edu

The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed are the speaker’s own and do not represent the views, thoughts, and opinions of the University of Illinois at Chicago, the OCEAN-HP, the CPHP, the CUT, or the RWH podcast series. The material and information presented here are for general information purposes only. While the podcast is about food literacy, we offer no medical or health advice and encourage our listeners to seek guidance from their healthcare providers.

Tune in for some general observations about June gardening and seasonal shopping. Also, remember to get some Vitamin N—the N stands for nature. Get outside, get moving, and eat real, whole seasonal fruits and vegetables as the main part of your diet.

The summer solstice is almost here in the northern hemisphere, and it is time for one of my favorite foods- watermelon. Make sure you know how to select a great melon.

This summer, seasonal produce will be abundant in addition to watermelon. See what to expect in Illinois.

See this link for June gardening tips in our June 2023 Food Literacy podcast episode. Check out the Chicago Grows Food website, especially for information about grow bag container gardening.

Register here for the first Narratives and Nourishment project's first event on June 28th at Burst Into Books in the Roseland community area. Stay tuned for upcoming Narratives and Nourishment events, including the Back to School event at Da Book Joint, another vital partner on the project. Thank you to Jurema Gorham of Burst Into Books and Courtney Woods of Da Book Joint for their awesome support!

Contact: orrinw@uic.edu

The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed are the speaker’s own and do not represent the views, thoughts, and opinions of the University of Illinois at Chicago, the OCEAN-HP, the CPHP, the CUT, or the RWH podcast series. The material and information presented here are for general information purposes only. While the podcast is about food literacy, we offer no health advice and encourage our listeners to seek guidance from their healthcare providers.

May 2025 Food Literacy Podcast Notes

May is here in Chicago with the typical temperature swings. We had temperatures ranging between 80 and 90 degrees for a couple of days last week, and now, as I write and put the podcast together on May 20th, it is 53 degrees with a blustery wind. The keyword in this era of climate instability is unpredictable.

Rather than being redundant, I invite you to visit the Roots Watering Hole and Chicago Grows Food websites for more information. The Collard Project inspired our African Diaspora Crop project, which has distributed hundreds of seeds to local urban farmers, as well as home and community gardeners. The seeds are various collard, kale, okra, beans, peas, and peppers from the Diaspora. Seed companies we have sourced from include Sistah Seeds, Truelove Seeds, Ujamaa Seeds, Southern Exposure, and The Seedstead. Here is some recently discovered information about seeds and crops from the African Diaspora, Oro House, The Local Palate, and Yisrael Family Farms.

Also see: The Heirloom Collard Project, and the NPR report on collard seed saving.

More in the upcoming months on the dangers of ultraprocessed foods and nutrition and wellness information.

Contact: orrinw@uic.edu

The views, thoughts, and opinions expressed are the speaker’s own and do not represent the views, thoughts, and opinions of the University of Illinois at Chicago, the OCEAN-HP, the CPHP, the CUT, or the RWH podcast series. The material and information presented here are for general information purposes only. While the podcast is about food literacy, we offer no health advice and encourage our listeners to seek guidance from their healthcare providers.