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Community Corner

Libertyville Resident Gives New Life to Sunken Garden

Libertyville resident Valerie Carlson rescued a sunken garden near Butler Lake and helped unveil another gem within the village.

Just outside Valerie Carlson’s backyard in Libertyville is a scene filled with colorful floral displays, but there also was a garden that Carlson felt needed some tender loving care – the sunken garden along Lake Street.

Carlson first came out to the garden in 2008 and noticed that it had become overgrown with weeds and thistles. She decided to pull one, then grabbed more. She then decided to come back an hour a day for 28 days.

“I envisioned the weeds out and the garden looking better,” Carlson said.

Her work, which continues to be weeding but also includes adding new plants to the garden, has transformed the space into a social spot and backdrop for graduation and wedding photos.

Carlson, 54, has lived in her current residence in Libertyville for 32 years. According to her, the garden first was planted after the Great Depression in the early 1930s. Once maintained by garden clubs, she says the garden was left to roam wild when garden club membership dropped and there was not enough manpower to continue the effort.

An Unlikely Garden Hero

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Carlson admits she hated gardening as a child because she had to weed the vegetable garden for her parents. But when she saw that the garden near Butler Lake needed care, she went to work.

“I could not bear to see it going wild,” Carlson said.

Now every year, Carlson comes out to pull weeds and searches for sales before buying perennials such as sedum, lilies, daisies, hibiscus and rose bushes to surround the garden. Last year, she also bought stepping stones that lead to two stone benches which once were covered by weeds.

“It is wonderful. I love it,” she said. “When I drive past it, I always look at it and I say that really looks really nice now.”

Maintaining the garden, however, has its challenges. Carlson typically plants in September, but come winter, the fate of the garden is at the hands of Mother Nature – the garden typically is flooded January through March because the garden and a drain both sit lower than the lake.

“Usually by April, I can see if anything is coming up or not. I lost a lot last year because they just don’t survive three months under a foot of water and it’s always been like that,” she said.

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Village Staff Grateful to Carlson

Carlson works closely with the Parks and Recreation Department to maintain the garden and says she could not have rescued the garden without its help.

Like previous garden clubs, the Parks and Recreation Department does not have enough manpower to maintain the garden, says David Thornborough, the department’s grounds supervisor.

Thornborough says the garden looks better thanks to Carlson, who took the initiative to spruce it up with her own money and time. The department helps by laying mulch and disposing of the weeds Carlson pulls.

“It’s a huge commitment,” Thornborough said. “It’s a shame more people don’t take it upon themselves to spruce up the village.”

Making Visions a Reality

Thanks to Carlson’s work, the garden has become the spot for graduation and wedding photos. Carlson said she envisioned one day a bride and groom sitting on the bench within the garden.

“A couple of weeks ago, I walked past with my dog and there was a bride sitting on the bench with the groom behind her. I said to the photographer, ‘At last,’ ” she said.

Carlson hopes that when she is no longer able to care for it, a group might continue to maintain this space. Until then, Carlson said she is happy to do what she can to help beautify Libertyville.

“We care about the town. We have something here that we don’t use to our best advantage,” she said. “It could look better.”

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