Takilma gardens two-wheel tour totally tasty
ORGANIC GARDENS in Takilma were visited during a special bicycle tour organized by Spiral Living Center. Story on page 7. (Photo provided)
Once in a great while you have an experience that is so unexpectedly wonderful and so full of beauty and joy that you want to share it with as many people as possible.
That happened to me and a small group of other lucky people on Saturday, Aug. 4 during the first bicycle tour of Takilma’s organic gardens. It was sponsored by Spiral Living Center, a new Illinois Valley-based nonprofit organization.
We assembled with our bikes at 9 a.m. on the parking lot of Dome School, a baker’s dozen of us of very assorted ages, from Na’amah, who rode in a basket behind her mom, to people in their 50s and 60s. Sarah Kuhn, a young mother and gardener at Magic Forest Farm, organized the tour and led the group with Barry Snitkin, publicity director for Spiral Living Center.
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Throughout the day, Barry, much like a friendly border collie, would ride back and forth on his bike, making sure that none of us were left behind or went astray. From start to finish, a palpable feeling of lightheartedness and adventure infused our band.
It was a perfect day, with the temperature in the mid-80s, and our spirits were high.
From Dome School we headed south on Takilma Road a couple of miles to our first stop at the home of Rachel Goodman & Ron Raven. Their lovely garden is bordered by towering mature forest, giving it an almost fairytale atmosphere.
The trees made the garden somewhat shadier than is considered ideal, but the plants hadn’t heard about that. They were all growing like gangbusters, including sun lovers like tomatoes, corn, and beans.
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Rachel was modest to a fault, but it was clear that she has a brilliantly green thumb. We plied her with questions, and she happily shared her knowledge with us. She urged us to take “anything that was ripe” from the garden as a snack, and then joined us as we continued our journey.
This scenario was repeated with variations at each of the gardens. All the gardens and their keepers exuded a spirit of generosity and abundance. We were invited to pick and eat anything we wanted, and happily munched our way through tender green beans, sugar-sweet cherry tomatoes, broccoli florets, nasturtium flowers, and handsful of blueberries.
All the gardeners welcomed us with such unaffected friendliness and openness that we felt completely at home everywhere we went.
Our second stop was Doug & Alyce Kendall’s garden. Like Rachel and Ron, and most of the other gardeners, the Kendalls came to Takilma in the early 1970s. Their land was the site of the original Dome School, and they shared a photo of a class from those early days with Alyce as a young teacher.
The Kendalls’ garden is divided into three areas for rotation, with vegetables and flowers in one, cover crop in the next, and the third lying fallow. Flowers mingle with vegetables, berries, and herbs, lending an informal charm to the garden.
Our third stop was “The Meadows,” a huge garden in an exceptionally beautiful forest setting, surrounded entirely by BLM and U.S. Forest Service land. Mark Kelz, Beth Meadows, Romain Cooper and Christy Dunn have lived in this piece of paradise for more than 30 years and grow 100 percent of their produce.
Mark described in detail some of the growing techniques they’ve evolved. The lushness of the garden bore mute testimony to their success. Then he too joined the caravan as we continued down to Illinois River for a renewing dip before resuming our tour.
The fourth garden, owned by Joya Feltzin & Bill Gray is a smaller, more intimate setting. A spring-fed pond with blooming lotus lilies supplied water, as well as a Japanese-like tranquility, while flowers bloomed in happy profusion alongside the food crops.
The fifth garden, owned by Eric, another pioneer Takilma settler, consisted entirely of raised beds bursting with produce, showing how much food can be raised in a small space. When asked what he did with the excess, Eric said that he gives it away, much preferring that to selling it.
We then proceeded to our final stop, the Magic Forest Farm, a small commune which will celebrate its 40th birthday next year.
Currently some seven gardeners and their families live and work there. Lunch had been prepared for us, and we gorged on zucchini fritters, beets in garlic vinaigrette, salad, and other delicacies fresh from the garden. Afterwards we strolled about the farm, admiring the acres of lush produce.
We biked back to Dome School, our minds full of vivid impressions of the day. We had been granted a privileged glimpse into a world of magical beauty, a world created by gentle, hardworking people dedicated to living in harmony with their land and each other. It was altogether an inspiring, unforgettable experience.
Additional information about Spiral Living Center can be obtained by visiting spiralliving.org or by phoning 592-2693.
