2 juin 2015 mardi
62 degrees, Cloudy
4 mph, ENE wind
“Happy Spring!” This recent salutation from a friend is a fitting seasonal greeting and one to be shared with all. It is indeed spring in the Illinois country, running ahead in our garden paths with summer nipping at its heels. The mid-spring season bounty in the jardin potager has been fast and furious. The mostly cooler temperatures and rains have allowed a continuous harvest of our heirloom Monstrueux de Viroflay spinach, Long Scarlet radishes, Tom Thumb and Forellenschluss 
lettuces, and asparagus. It has been a challenge to keep abreast of the harvest and ripening produce. Within in the past two weeks, the flowering and podding of Tom Thumb and Purple Podded peas and the maturing of Early Wonder beets are the new crops in our jardin. Hope lingers for a continued good harvest as we enter June and the inevitable warmer weather approaches. It is only natural to wish for a delay in the onslaught of heat about to overcome our region as is the norm. Those of us in the Illinois country often feel as if the season swings from early spring to mid-summer in the course of a day. For now, the spring garden can be enjoyed as it is thriving and full, demanding our full attention. The garden bed layout page on this blog has recently been updated so those interested can view the types and locations of heirloom varieties planted in the 2015 jardin potager.
But wait, the arrival of late spring in the Illinois country must also mean that it time for 
the Annual Fort de Chartres June Rendezvous held this weekend, Saturday and Sunday, June 6 and 7. This year marks the 45th anniversary of this amazing celebration. Each day features opening and closing ceremonies, parades of military units, music, vendors, and food-truly a feast for the senses as one experiences the gamut of the reenactment community. Please don’t forget to visit the FdC Heirloom Jardin Potager throughout the June Rendezvous weekend with a tour of our heirloom garden on the hour, heirloom plant sale, along with free sample heirloom summer seed sample packets and flyers under the garden tent canopy. At our table in the jardin will be Jennifer Pressler with information on the Prairie du Rocher Garden Tour and Farmer’s Market to be held that weekend. The FdC Heritage Jardin Potager is part of this tour and we appreciate the invitation. And with the additional presence of the Master Gardeners of Randoph County to answer your garden questions also present under the garden canopy, we promise a gardener’s haven. We welcome you to the jardin potager and come celebrate the approach of summer with us and experience the June Rendezvous garden style!
A quick note and plea: as this spectacular event highlights the importance of the history of 
southern Illinois, please note-sonnez l’alarme, sound the alarm! The Illinois State historic sites are under fire and we ask that you please consider taking a moment to voice your support of Fort de Chatres and other Illinois historic sites to the politicians and departments within the state of Illinois responsible for its operation and of the many worthy sites within state borders. One can understand the severity of the budget shortfalls in the state of Illinois, but at the same time, the investment of time and money that has created and preserved these sites should not be allowed to be in vain. Allowing sites such as these to shutter and close in a
IL State Contacts
short-sighted attempt to solve a long term problem, would waste valuable resources and place in jeopardy the preservation of the history that once gone is not easily recovered. So all of us, whether staff, volunteer, or reenactor, who love and breathe life into these sites, sharing the history and lore of our shared past, request your help by asking you to contact the Illinois state legislators to voice your support. Let’s find a way to keep Illinois’s vibrant and significant history alive!
Leave a Reply