Lindberg Park

Lindberg Park. Native Plant Trial and Demonstration Gardens. , Welcome to the Lindberg Park Native Plant Trial and Demonstration Gardens, a showcase of the usefulness, aesthetic beauty, and impact that native perennial plants can have when used in a landscape. Designed in the 1930's by Gustav A. Lindberg, the first Superintendent of Parks at the Park District of Oak Park, the gardens originally featured water gardens and roses transplanted from garden exhibits at the 1934 World's Fair "A Century of Progress," held in Chicago. The gardens were restored decades later to their original layout through a joint effort between the Garden Club of Oak Park and River Forest and the Park District of Oak Park with funding from the Illinois Department of Natural Resources., As open space disappears in our urban society, it becomes increasingly necessary to look at our native landscapes as a refuge for biodiversity. All plants in these gardens are native to Illinois and locally adapted for the Oak Park environment. In addition to producing beautiful flowers, this plant life supports pollinators from bees to butterflies, provides a home to area wildlife, and supports a diverse soil community of fungi and insects. Native organisms including plants, birds, mammals and insects create an intricate web of biodiversity, crafting a wonderful orchestration of life cycles that depend on each other for survival., Management of these native plant demonstration gardens is conducted using ecologically-based techniques that include prescribed fire, hand removal of undesirable plants, and biological monitoring. The use of these management techniques represents a scientifically-based and ecologically-sound approach to natural areas management. Using prescribed fire in these gardens helps to regenerate plant growth, restore nutrient reserves in the soil, and minimize the impact of weedy and aggressive plant species.