Gardening Materials are in Season at the Library

This week’s column was submitted by Gwen LaCosse of the .

Think s-e-e-d-s.

Many years ago a conservation biologist mentioned to me that plants can sprout in unexpected places. Why? I wanted to know. Because, she replied, seeds blow.

The library is someplace you might not think of immediately for gardening, but our collection is seeded with information and inspiration for everyone, from seasoned green thumbs to first-timers.

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Maybe it’s our lukewarm winter. Maybe it’s the time change this weekend, you know, the “spring” forward, pun intended.

It’s time to move beyond the brown look and start contemplating seeds. It’s time to think about breaking ground, actually digging into the earth and getting our fingers dirty, perhaps starting plants indoors, including flowers, annuals and perennials, and vegetables. Can’t you just imagine tomato plants reaching for the sun some months down the road?

Regardless of context, the word “seed” signals growth; it represents starting anew.

Come to the fourth floor of the library to browse our delightfully bright and varied collection of gardening books, which includes titles about seeds. We even carry one about growing trees from seed.

On the third floor are the more recent issues of magazines, also bursting with ideas about seeds, about plants, and about growth. I invite you to check some out, literally.

If a book or magazine issue you are interested in is not available (on order or checked out, for example), feel free to put it on hold or reserve. Library staff can help you with that.

I don’t know about you, but if nothing else, going through the gardening books and periodicals lifts my spirits and makes me feel hopeful.

Please call the reference desk at (847) 376-2841 if you have questions, or, email: ReferenceServicesDesk@dppl.org. You can also text us at (847) 220-8398.

Spring forward; like Des Plaines Patch on Facebook.