Someone has been helping themselves to produce at Carol Stream's community garden plots, and the park district wants it to stop.

Carolyn Mondlock, writing for the Carol Stream Park District, posted a notice on the district's website Monday, Aug. 31, after the district received reports of fruits and vegetables being taken from rented plots at Community Park and Slepicka Homestead Park. Each plot is rented and maintained by an individual gardener, and everything grown in it belongs to that renter, the district said.

Visitors are welcome to walk through and admire the gardens but should leave the produce alone, the notice said. The district asked residents to respect gardeners' work by looking but not picking.

Slepicka Homestead Park offers 16 ground-level plots and six raised garden beds, available to rent from April 15 through Oct. 31, according to the district's rental page. Rentals open each February, with priority for residents and returning gardeners.

Residents with questions can contact the Carol Stream Park District at (630) 784-6100 or [email protected].