(upbeat instrumental music) - Will you "Consider This?"

You moved to the Peoria area, Central Illinois, 20 years ago.

You had a future and you had a career, and then you got interested in something else, like gardening, master gardening, and I have an award-winning master gardener with me right now, Laura Hertz, who was recently recognized as a master gardener.

But first, just tell me a little bit about how you got here, where'd you come from?

- I grew up south of Chicago in Kankakee, and I graduated from Kankakee High School, and then I was in the Air Force for four years, and then went to University of Illinois at Chicago to get my nursing degree.

After that, I moved to Peoria, got married, started working as a nurse, went back to grad school at UIC, and now I work as a nurse practitioner.

- Awesome.

Which is how I met you.

- Mm-hmm.

- It's very interesting.

Well, first of all, thank you for your service (Laura laughs) in the Air Force.

Good for you.

What were you in the Air Force, or you were in for four years?

- Mm-hmm, yes, so, I trained as a linguist, and so the main reason I chose that job was because the training room was in California, (Christine laughs) and then I'd never been to California as an 18-year-old.

And so then I served there, and in Texas, and in Georgia, and then I separated, and started going to school.

- All right, good for you.

Well, that was an exciting four years and then school, so you've been kind of just progressing all along.

- Mm-hmm.

- All right, great.

So, tell me about how did you get interested in gardening?

Did you always like... You said you mostly like flowers, but you're, you know, starting to - Mm-hmm.

- creep in, you're putting your toe in the water in other areas.

How did that happen?

- I kind of decided I wanted to get more training about plants, growing things.

I've always been a house plant enthusiast.

So, in 2018 I did the online curriculum for the Master Gardener program through the University of Illinois extension.

And they have typically one or two trainings a year.

Now it's kind of more hybrid, in-person and then there's online portion.

But at the time I did the whole thing online, and so I got certified after testing in the end of 2018.

And after that I started to volunteer as a master gardener at the Peoria Academy School Garden where they had an opening for a project lead.

There's a variety of projects in the area in the state, and that one had recently been vacated.

And so I said, "That's pretty close to where I live and yeah, let me give it a try."

- Good for you.

So, you work with the kids and you go there, - Mm-hmm.

- really during the entire school year, correct?

- Yes, so, it started out just working with a couple of classes, and now I am there teaching four classes a week.

So, second, third, fourth, and fifth grade.

And when it's in season, we'll be out in the garden.

We've got a really nice garden that's fenced in with 12 raised beds.

And through a grant I was able to refurbish, actually replace the irrigation.

So, watering is really key when you're trying to grow things, and, um... - And it's been so dry this year.

- It's been so dry, yeah.

- Yeah, so we, you know, harvest what we've been growing.

And then during the off season, I'll go into the classroom, and we'll talk about other topics.

So, for example, the history of Illinois, that it was prairie, and I think a lot of kids don't understand the influence that prairie development from the glaciers has had on what grows today.

- Mm-hmm.

- And- - [Christine] And why we have such rich soil here.

- Right, right.

But also, like yesterday, the second grade teacher requested that I come in and troubleshoot their worm bin.

We've had a Firma composting bin in the second grade classroom for several years, and it's a little wet right now.

So, we talked about why the worms were trying to escape the worm bin.

- Oh!

- It's a little too damp in there, and so adding some things that will absorb moisture.

And then- - Such as?

So, what did you add?

What did you learn?

Because I might need to know that someday.

(Laura laughs) (Christine chuckles) - So, I brought in some like craft paper - Mm-hmm.

- and also I had been, I cut up a old T-shirt that was a 100% cotton, and that'll degrade over time and also very absorbent.

- Mm-hmm.

- So, we had little pieces of that, and then the cardboard egg cartons.

- Oh right, yeah.

- So, then you give a chunk to the kids and then, okay, you need to make these really small.

And at that age it's, you know, good for their coordination and yeah.

So, then the U of I also has a, new to me program about worms, and worm anatomy, and how they breathe, and, yeah, so we talked about that.

- I remember having to dissect worms.

- Yeah, me too.

- Back in the day.

- Yeah, that was pretty nasty.

- Mm-hmm.

Yeah.

- But anyway, so the kids don't have to do that and sharp objects?

- No.

- All right, well, (Laura laughs) now, that's the garden.

And so you're growing both vegetables, - Mm-hmm.

- and fruits also, or not?

- We don't really have any fruits yet.

So, earlier this year we planted some raspberry canes and those typically take about two to three years to start producing fruit.

I've had raspberries at my home garden for hmm, probably 15 years, and just have a, you know, huge crop every year.

So, I'm hoping that that would be something the kids can harvest.

- That happens.

Right?

- No fruit trees.

- But then flowers, you have flowers a lot of different, - We- - and they're all native flowers, plants for Illinois.

- Most of them.

- Okay.

- Yeah, so we, one of the first things I did at the school was work with the boys in the scout program through the school.

So, we were smothering an area in front of the pavilion that's adjacent to the garden, and then put in native plants.

And so now that's a fully developed native plant bed.

And then I've helped expand that into two other areas near the first one.

And currently the school is actually working on really updating the landscaping to reflect more of our prairie past and put in some native trees, and more of a meadow in the front of the school as well.

So, I'm so excited to see the changes.

- I bet, I bet.

- Yeah.

- Well, and then, in your home where, we might be skipping around a little bit, at your home, you have a corner lot.

Okay, okay.

- No, no.

- But you have a lot of a lot.

- And you realized that you didn't need just the typical landscaping look, you wanted to return to what was meant to grow there.

- I was highly influenced by the work of Doug Tallamy.

He's a entomologist from Dartmouth and he's got several books out.

In fact, the Peoria Reads program for this year was his book, "Nature's Best Hope."

And his whole idea is that when you are choosing plants for your landscaping, or really anything, that it's fine that you want it to be aesthetically pleasing, but it's better if we also make it so that there's biodiversity and habitat for all of these creatures that we share the earth with.

- And for 365 days a year.

- We- Right, and they need native plants because when we use exotic plants, things that have been imported, kudzu is a great example.

You know, sometimes they don't behave the way we think they're going to, and then they start taking over.

- Mm-hmm.

- In this area, we have a major problem with invasive honeysuckle, and that was imported.

You know, it's beautiful, but the berries on that shrub are like junk food to the birds.

- Oh.

- And then they eat it and spread the seeds, and then it's very difficult, - And then it's everywhere.

- to get rid of.

- Mm-hmm.

- So, another one of my volunteer activities is working in various areas to try to get rid of that, and other invasives as much as possible.

But in my home yard I've been working for- - You also smothered part of your yard, correct?

- Yes.

- Okay.

- Yes.

And there's different ways to do it, and you can also use chemical herbicide to, you know, prepare the soil.

But if you're patient or cheap, like me, - Do it organically.

- Yeah, then just smothering it with either plastic.

I used also newspaper and mulch, but I've used plastic too.

You know, can create a space where then you can replace turf grass, which has unfortunately very little ecological value.

There's, um... You know, and it's great for, you know, families who need to have a place for kids to run around, but I think a lot of us just mow it, and look at it, and- - And get rid of the grubs.

- Right, right.

(Christine laughs) And, you know, those grubs, that's food for something larger than that.

- Mm-hmm.

- And so, if you want to have, if you want to, I guess, contribute to the natural world around us, you've gotta provide food and shelter and water, and you can do that with native plants.

- For the critters and the insects.

- Exactly.

- All right.

- Yep.

- Are there specific ones that they're drawn to?

Like I know that deer like just about everything.

- Uh-huh.

- And so if you live in a place where there are deer, you might as well kiss anything goodbye.

But not the native plants necessarily, or do they?

- I mean, I think deer, if they're hungry enough, they'll eat just about anything.

There are some that are more deer resistant.

Fortunately I live in the center of my subdivision, so, there's not a lot of deer pressure.

And people who live rurally absolutely have a much harder time, you know, keeping their plants safe, and sometimes it's just a matter of planting enough things where if the deer browse on it, then you've got other plants that can kind of compensate.

And sometimes it's, as they're growing initially keeping them protected so that they can get established.

- Right, so, that was when you did your smothering, and then you just put little plantings in, - Mm-hmm.

- and it looked pretty bare?

- It did.

- Okay.

- I think my neighbors might've thought I was crazy.

Like, what is this?

You know, it's a big field of mulch with, you know, little green leaves here and there.

And even within the first year that I put 'em in, it really filled in pretty well, and now it's quite dense.

- All right, fo you have to weed?

So, I know that there's Purple Coneflower in there.

- Mm-hmm.

- I identified that, but that's pretty much- - It's a beautiful one.

- That'd be my, yeah.

- Mm-hmm.

- What else do you have in their native?

And then how tall do these things grow, so that people would know if they're considering anything like this, that they're not blocking the view, the windows or anything?

- Yes, a lot of prairie plants can grow tall.

I mean, we lived here, Illinois was a tall grass prairie state, and so there's a lot of beautiful plants that are five or six feet tall.

So, when I was making a design for the yard, you know, I went through a lot of different information to try and put some shorter things in front, and then taller things in the back.

So, I have over 50 native species in my yard.

- Wow.

- I have a quarter acre lot.

And so I've got the Purple Coneflower, ironweed, blazing star, butterfly milkweed, common milkweed, anise hyssop, false indigo, cardinal flour.

- And you watch all of the little critters.

I mean I bet the hummingbirds love it and the butterflies love it.

- Mm-hmm, and the chipmunks.

- Oh, yeah.

(chuckles) - You know, we've got quite a few chipmunks in our yard and I was previously kind of opposed to them being there, but, you know, I can put a fence around the things I really don't want them to mess with, but they're out there too.

And I feel like if that is where they wanna call home, you know, they've know they've got a yard where there's a bird bath they can drink out of, and sunflower seed that falls from the bird feeder, and others- - And then plant themselves.

The sunflower seeds plant themselves don't they?

- Often they do.

(Christine chuckles) Yeah.

- Okay, so, you are teaching at Peoria Academy, - Mm-hmm.

- but you also help with some community gardens as well?

- I do.

- So, tell me about those.

- I do, so, I wanna put a plugin for the Garden of Hope.

There are two locations, and this is a venture through OSF, and Mike Brooks is the master gardener who's in charge of these two gardens.

So, there's one down by St. Anne's, and there's one out by the Center for Health on Route 91.

And the garden I go to is the one out north, and it has a beautiful greenhouse that Mike is growing crops year round.

And so on Fridays, I'm usually, during the growing season, I'm usually out there planting, or weeding, or harvesting, and all of that produce goes to the area food pantries.

- Mm-hmm.

- So, um... - Oh, fresh produce.

- Yeah.

- Yeah, pick today basically.

- Yeah, depending on when the pantry is open.

But right now we've got tomatoes, and okra, and peppers, and maybe still some cucumbers, some squash.

Last year we did Hubbard squash and watermelon.

He tries to rotate things.

So, sometimes what's growing at the North Garden is, you know, different than what's growing at the South Garden.

But at the St. Anne's Garden, residents can come and also pick their own produce.

- Mm-hmm.

- There's some beds that are separate from what's collected for the pantries that people can access, so.

- Is it pretty well accessible for them then the residents to go there, and they know when to harvest, or, and who's in charge of watering that, especially this year?

- Yeah, so Mike has volunteers at that garden as well, and there's watering going, I don't know all the details about how he manages things down there, but the North Garden we've got irrigation.

So, it's just kind of set on timers, and I think there's more hand watering down on the South end.

- What's been the most fun for you to have discovered with your master gardening?

All of a sudden that light bulb went on, and now here you are one.

- Mm, I really think it's the excitement of watching things grow.

It never gets old.

And even when something doesn't grow the way you think it's gonna grow, then you learn something.

And so it feels like sometimes the big experiment, and if you can harvest a few things out of it, even if not everything works, then you know, you know more.

One of my favorite crops that we've done at the school is cotton.

And- - Does it grow well here?

- Well, I don't know about well.

- Okay, but it grows - So cotton is a warm season crop that needs a very long growing season, which we don't have.

- Right.

- So, you would never grow cotton in Illinois?

Well, northern Illinois for a crop - For business.

Yeah.

(chuckles) - Right, because everything has to be started inside.

But I ordered some seeds online.

Also, I should mention that in the places where they do grow cotton commercially, there are major rules because of the risk of cross pollination.

Like you have to have separation of your fields and whatnot.

But, anyway.

- Yeah.

who knew?

- The cotton plant has a beautiful bloom on it.

- Mm-hmm.

- And then the bowl forms over the summer, and then in this part of the state, it matures around this time of year, - All right.

- you really have to wait a long time.

- So, you put it in the ground when?

Like in April or?

- Yeah, in April, but started in February.

Maybe even put it in in May because it really, - Oh, the greenhouse.

- it doesn't wanna get cold.

- After Mother's Day.

Isn't that the rule?

Okay.

- Mm-hmm.

- All right.

So, this we put in a, we did it a couple times at the school garden, and we used it to talk about our country's history, and how cotton was harvested by enslaved people.

And to talk about what I had read was that sometimes enslaved people were required to harvest 200 pounds of cotton a day.

- Oh my gosh.

- And so I had them, you know, hold a tuft of cotton, and, you know, weigh it on a digital scale and say, how long do you think it would take you, just- - And how long did it?

- Well, I mean, I can't imagine, - No.

- the effort that is required to do that.

And so just to kind of connect something that's hands on with our history.

Yeah, really, really fascinating, mm-hmm.

- What a lesson.

Yeah, yeah, because how much does a cotton ball weigh?

- Yeah, not much.

- Right.

- Yeah.

- Holy cow.

That's very interesting.

So, you're learning as you go still.

- Yes.

- Never too old to learn.

- Yes.

- All right, well, let's talk about just in the middle of September, you were recognized as a master gardener in the state of Illinois.

- Yes.

- And only one to 2% of all master gardeners in the state are recognized.

So, tell me about that honor.

- Yes, it was a surprise.

I've, you know, been a master gardener for a while and I spend a lot of time volunteering.

So, it's nice to be recognized, but I'm certainly not the only one, and not even the only one in Peoria.

And my fellow master gardener who helps at the school garden, Mike Savoy, he also won the State Outstanding Master Gardener.

So, and Mike Brooks, he was part of our award for the Teamwork Award with all of the volunteers that we have for his gardens.

So, there are people from each Master Gardener unit that can nominate people.

And I guess my unit thought highly enough of me to make that recommendation.

I was truly honored.

- And what a nice honor, definitely.

So, you really enjoy joy learning and continuing to grow.

- Mm-hmm.

- It's so much different than your day job.

- Absolutely.

- So, your day job is at Illinois Cancer Care?

- Mm-hmm.

- And you are an APN?

- Mm-hmm.

- And what does that mean that you do there that is so different from master gardening?

(Laura laughs) (Christine chuckles) - Yeah, it's like night and day.

So, I'm an advanced practice nurse.

I think nowadays they're adding advanced practice registered nurse on there.

But I have a master's in Nursing.

I'm certified as a nurse practitioner.

Not all APNs are nurse practitioners, but I work there, I've been there since 2009.

And so I see patients for toxicity evaluations, teaching, I do bone marrow biopsies, I do palliative care visits, and basically everything except what a board certified oncologist is needed for, - Right.

- which there's definitely times for that.

So, I enjoy that work a lot, and, um... - But gardening is your hobby, and it's probably a way to leave that behind, and it's therapeutic for you?

- It is, I think the other obvious difference is that I work with adults, and I don't have children of my own, and my niece and nephew don't live nearby, and so I don't have a lot of exposure to kids.

And so having this weekly teaching opportunity with the kids is so much fun because I was very nervous at first like, oh my gosh, you know, they're gonna think I'm really weird or whatever.

- Yeah.

Like you wouldn't be able to connect with them.

- Right.

- Right.

- And that hasn't been the case.

I enjoy watching them, and since I've been there several years now I can see them kind of just getting bigger and maturing, and yeah, it's a lot of fun.

- Well, so they made it from the, so, second, third, fourth, and fifth grade.

- Mm-hmm.

- 'cause kindergarten and first grade a little bit too young.

And then the older kids, they're into many, many other things.

- Mm-hmm.

- What do you hear from the kids?

What is the thing that most surprises them about a garden, about growing vegetables and things?

- That's a good question.

I don't know that I've specifically asked them that, but I think as far as them being in the garden, they are most interested in anything that they can eat immediately.

And we're constantly having (Christine laughs) a discussion about, okay, we wanna know how much we're growing, and so we need to harvest, and then we need to weigh it, wash it, and then we can eat it.

And they're always wanted to, - You can't just take it all, they just... - they always wanna sneak stuff, especially the strawberries.

Everybody wants to fight over the strawberries.

- Well, I can't blame them, they're- - They're very good.

but so they get to watch 'em grow.

It's really frustrating in the beginning for them, isn't it?

Because they're just little plants that you put in the ground, - Mm-hmm, mm-hmm, - and then, okay, a week's gone by, how come nothing's happening?

- Right, yeah.

When are we gonna get the tomatoes or whatever.

So, we start some plants inside.

I have learned that kids are not very keen on planting the seeds.

- Okay.

- They'd much rather put a plant in the ground.

And so now we're doing seedlings more than just direct selling.

- [Christine] In the classroom?

- Mm-hmm, yeah.

- All right, good.

- So, for these four classes, I've got little grow stations with just a strip light and a heat mat, and, you know, growing medium, and each class can kind of start different plants.

And then they're responsible for watering them and making sure the timer for the light is set, and that the heat's on when it should be on, and off, when it should be off.

And for the most part they do a good job.

- Do they do that then together or just in one classroom?

So, the third, fourth, fifth, second, third, fourth, they're together, or is it?

- No, no.

I- - They're individual classrooms?

- Mm-hmm.

Yeah, mm-hmm.

- Oh, interesting, okay.

So, then they really need - Yeah.

- to pay attention.

- Mm-hmm.

Yeah.

- They can't lean on the older kids who've been there and done that.

- Right.

- Okay, well, great.

Okay, so what's on your bucket list next, real quickly?

- My bucket list?

- Yeah.

- Oh gosh.

- What else do you wanna do?

- So, I am sponsoring a plant swap at work, and I'm really excited about that because I love house plants, and I thought it would be fun to, I mean there's a lot of plant people out there, and so I'm excited to see what people bring, and then like share the plants, and, you know?

- Like a cookie exchange?

- Like a cookie exchange.

- During the holidays.

Yes.

Fewer calories.

- All right.

- (chuckles) Much fewer calories.

Well, that's gonna be exciting.

We'll have to check back with you to see how that goes.

- Mm-hmm.

- Well, thanks for being here, sharing your story.

Thank you for letting us know about being the master gardener.

I mean a State Outstanding Master Gardener.

Congratulations on that.

And again, thanks for your service in the Air Force.

Even though your main reason was to go to California.

(Laura laughs) It's okay.

- Mm-hmm.

- [Christine] It is what it is.

- That's right.

- And you served us well.

All right, thanks so much.

I hope you enjoyed hearing about Laura Hertz's story, and I hope you'll join us again sometime, be well.

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