Chicago Illinois Real Estate Blog

You are seeing a greener Chicago.

Windy! That’s the word that describes Chicago. You may never have thought of Chicago as a green city, but it is working at it aggressively. The city is also encouraging homeowners to join in.

Here are some of the things Chicago has done :

There are now over 4,800 trees planted in 60 miles of center medians. Each deciduous tree supplies enough oxygen for four people in the summer. Evergreens work year round.

in 2004 Chicago’s effective combination of creating environments within the city that provide enjoyable recreation sites and adopting environmentally sensitive practices secured first place in the international competition, Nations In Bloom. This competition evaluates cities on how well they balance the needs of the society with the need to create long term, sustainable communities that people can enjoy living in.

Chicago has expanded its parkland. The city added 100 acres of new parkland on Northerly Island and 17 acres to Soldier Field.

The green roof program is making an impact on stormwater runoff. More than 80 public and private green roof projects have added over a million square feet of oxygen producing capability in Chicago. The City Hall rooftop garden is a major contributor with 20,000 plants. Stormwater runoff from the building is now 50% less than before.

Here are some things you can do to join in:

You can plant trees to shade your house in the summer. Choose deciduous trees for the south side of the house so the winter sun can warm you house when the leaves fall.

Use the lawn as small accents in your landscape. Shrubs, ground covers and even vegetable gardens use less water.

Choose plantings that naturally need less water. Many of the plants that are native to Illinois are both hardy and attractive. After the first year of TLC, you won’t have to spend as much on watering and feeding your landscape.

Surround your plants with mulch. The clippings from your lawn are perfect for this. Gather up the leaves in the fall, and spread them around your plants. As they break down nutrients from deep in the earth will benefit your plantings.

You can be part of the green Chicago. You’ll be amazed at how much fun you will have.