Waste not, want not

As a Depression baby, David Lyons developed strong feelings about letting anything go to waste.

On the other hand, he has a big garden. A really big garden. And it's packed with fresh fruits and vegetables.

Luckily for the Barrington Township Food Pantry, Lyons has become a sort of benefactor to them.

"It seems like this year we've been feeding ourselves, half a dozen neighbors and we still have some left over for the food pantry," he said.

In fact, the Barrington Hills man delivers fresh food to the pantry on almost a weekly basis. This summer, he's already up around the 100-pound mark.

That's nothing compared to three years ago.

"We were closer to 600 to 700 pounds," Lyons said.

Surprisingly, it's not the drought that's affected his garden's yield.

"There's more neighbors involved this year," he said, chuckling.

That's OK, he's got plenty to share. This year alone, Lyons grew onions, kohlrabi, cucumbers, tomatoes, cabbages, peppers, Brussels sprouts, okra, beets, beans, asparagus, raspberries and multiple varieties of squash.

Even after decades of gardening, he's still excited when the seed catalogs arrive because they might offer a new variety to grow.

"There's always nifty things," he said.

And that inevitability means expanding his two garden beds - one is 60 by 80 feet, the other 100 feet square.

"We get rid of a little more grass, make a little more space," Lyons said. "I say, 'Let's plant some of this, I'll make some more room.' "

This year's experiment included several varieties of heirloom tomatoes, including "ugly" purple ones with outstanding flavor.

"I live every year for my first fresh tomato," he said.

That's part of the reason why he enjoys sharing so much of what he grows with the food pantry, where it's distributed to clients. He knows just how great that fresh food tastes - and he loves spreading the word.

In the days before he was able to bring the food to the food pantry via the Giving Garden program, previously called Plant a Row for the Hungry, Lyons did what many gardeners do: compost.

"What was left over just rotted on the vine," he said.

And then it wound up in the soil as part of the next season's nutrients.

Donating it, he said, is a much better plan.

"We were taught not to waste," Lyons said. "It's nice to know there's a home for it."