Moving to the countryside
The Knollwood family homestead began in the early 1930’s. Gary Aull’s Grandpa & Grandma Flosi (parents of Gary’s mother, Emily Flosi Aull) sold their grocery store in Chicago to become one of the first settlers in Knollwood. They purchased 9 acres and moved ‘out to the country’ where they established their homestead.
Built with gratitude
Adorno and Marian Flosi owned and operated a family store (~1912-1930) in Chicago that sold homemade ice cream and groceries. When the nation went into the great depression the Flosi family would lend food and store credit to those in need. When they started building the home in Knollwood, the carpenters, plumbers, and handymen that the Flosi family generously helped lent their skills and time to build the family a new home. The train, one block south of the property, made a special stop to deliver the Chicago-manufactured bricks and building supplies.
Life in the country
Back then life in Knollwood was very rustic. Grandpa Flosi enjoyed working on the land to feed his family. He raised chickens, grew fruit and vegetables, and made wine from the backyard grapes. He also planted trees and shrubs so his wife could ‘enjoy her birds’. To this day there are grapes, apples, and pears, and the trees continue to provide a habitat for birds and wildlife. Grandpa would experiment with grafting fruit trees, two of his experiments still stand today, (see photos) they may be a cross between an apple and mulberry trees. Grandma Flosi would spend hours canning the fresh produce and cooking all their meals from scratch, including handmade pasta. Surplus eggs and produce were sold from their farm cart on Waukegan Rd/Rt 43 which was a small country road.
Gary has many fond memories of spending time exploring and playing outside. He would spend all day climbing trees and ‘getting into mischief’. At the end of the day, Grandma would scrub him down in the basement laundry tub and fill his stomach with delicious homemade food. One fond memory is of a tree house his Uncle George & Grandpa built for him in the oak grove by Rt. 41. We recently found remnants of that tree house!
New generation
The Aull family (Henry, Emily, Jeff, and Gary) purchased the homestead (3 acres) in the spring of 1970 from Uncle George after Grandpa and Grandma passed away. Gary and Jeff raised their children on the property.
A new journey
In 1995 Gary and Janice started landscaping to support nature, creating Nature’s Haven. The motivation was to create a native landscape so birds and wildlife could thrive. The effort focused on creating a healthy ecosystem with the elements wildlife needs to flourish; food, shelter, water, and a place to raise their young. The plan worked! As biodiversity increased so did the variety of insects, birds, and other wildlife. It is amazing how nature will prosper when given a healthy ecosystem. Every summer the yard at Nature’s Haven is filled with hundreds of lightning bugs, numerous toads, frogs, and multitudes of birds! Screech owls, great horned owls, foxes, and many more have raised their families at Nature’s Haven.
Hydrology changes
Around 2010 drainage from the spring thaw started hanging out in the front and back yards longer and longer. In 2015 the water stayed all year. During some springs there would be 12” of water in the yard! Which turned out to be a blessing because the chorus frogs and crayfish showed up. This led to an interest in why there is more water in the community and what can be done to keep the water year-round, providing another level of habitat for nature. The increased water is due to development and climate change. Instead of creating rain gardens to capture water where it falls, people send it downstream to the next property. We all live downstream in a watershed. Sending water downstream is not a sustainable mindset or process. With a desire to support stormwater mitigation to help the community and wildlife, Gary and Janice implemented natural solutions to capture raindrops where they fall.
A bigger dream and the journey continues
With the success of creating a healthy natural ecosystem at Nature’s Haven. In January 2022 Gary and Janice expanded their efforts by purchasing 2.25 acres of wetlands two blocks from Nature’s Haven. In July 2023 the Aull Nature Preserve (ANP) was established as a non-profit 501(c)(3). The long-term plan is to create a healthy habitat for nature, encouraging our children to explore and learn about nature and gain the health benefits from being outdoors.
This dream requires teamwork and funding to become a reality. Your support matters!
Aull Nature Preserve 