Science

Plant Information Service

Master gardeners and horticulture specialists provide the following services:

Plant Info
  • Recommendations on care of trees, shrubs, annuals, perennials, vegetables, fruits, and houseplants
  • Diagnosis and treatment options for control of insects, diseases, and cultural disorders
  • General gardening information on soils, composting, pruning, mulching, and more
  • Plant and insect identification
  • Recommendations on plant selections for northern Illinois
  • Assistance with locating purchasing sources for particular plants
 

Please be sure to read our guidelines for specimen collection and submission if you will be bringing in a sample for diagnosis. If you will be sending images through the online forms above, please send files in one of the requested formats.

Remember! Our diagnosis is only as good as your sample. Please follow our guidelines for collecting and submitting samples in order for us to provide you with accurate answers to your questions.

Plant information Service routinely asks visitors to submit plant samples for accurate diagnoses and identifications. However, we will no longer allow samples of boxwood (Buxus), pachysandra (Pachysandra), and sweet box (Sarcococca) to be brought to the Garden, in order to prevent the spread of boxwood blight, a devastating fungal disease that affects these plants. Please feel free to contact us with questions about boxwood blight without bringing plant samples to the Garden. You can also click here for more information about boxwood blight.

 

Plant Information Service Staff

Leora Siegel
Director, Lenhardt Library and Plant Information Service

Kathie Hayden
Manager, Plant Information Service

The Plant Information Service is also staffed by approximately one hundred University of Illinois Extension Master Gardeners.

 

View Hours

Contact Us

Phone
Call the Plant Information Hotline
(847) 835-0972

 

Online
General Questions
Plant Diagnosis
Plant or Insect Identification

 

Email
Send a message to
Click here to show mail address

 

Social
Visit us on Facebook

 

The Plant Information Service is made possible with the generous support of

Bartlett Tree Experts