… Q. Is there anything that I can do to prepare my trees and shrubs for winter? A. The best thing that … winter is to make sure they enter the cold winter months with plenty of moisture. It is easy and quite common to forget about woody plant maintenance as we clean up spent annuals and …
Type: Plant Info
… love to help out in the kitchen? Bring your little chef to the Garden for stories, songs, and games followed by a cooking activity. This one-hour caregiver-and-child program is designed for children ages 4 – 5. It is the perfect way to encourage children to eat their …
Type: Item Detail
… If every home garden had fertile soil, a gentle once-a-week rainfall and the right amount of sunlight and humidity, gardening would be a breeze. But gardeners know that’s wishful thinking. Poor … and definitely more satisfying. Here are some ideas for demanding sites. Clay Soil Clay is made of minuscule particles that trap water around delicate plant roots, leaving little space …
Type: Plant Info
… ( Tilia ), maple ( Acer ), oak ( Quercus ), redbud ( Cercis ), tuliptree ( Liriodendron ) and many others. Description & Symptoms Verticillium wilt is a soil-borne fungal disease that plugs the vascular system of woody plants. Symptoms include wilting leaves, often along a single branch. In acute cases, leaves curl and wilt, and the branch dies. Scattered dieback of branches may occur over several years. In …
Type: Plant Info
… are daylilies, hostas, ornamental grasses, Joe-pye weeds (Eutrochium), barrenwort (Epimedium), and ferns. Because they form ever-expanding clumps, the plants benefit from being dug out of the ground, divided, and replanted. Voilá! More plants! Although several perennials can be divided in late summer, spring is a good time for this task. That’s because temperatures are cool and the soil is usually moist. …
Type: Plant Info
… There are many good reasons to choose native shrubs for your garden. They’ve evolved and adapted over thousands of years to the ever-changing Illinois climate and the soils. They … in height and width. Often seen in local forest preserves, woodlands or roadsides, elderberry is sometimes overlooked as a good shrub for the home garden. Give it a spot with full to part … and once it’s established it can withstand drought conditions and works well in a hot, dry site. With age, lead plant becomes increasingly woody. (If deer are an issue, the plant will need …
Type: Plant Info
… short-season snap beans, broccoli, cabbages, cauliflower, carrots, mustard greens, spinach, and radishes for fall harvesting. Cool-season lettuces, mesclun mixes, and unusual greens that were planted in early spring can be planted again this month. If weather is unusually hot, plant these greens in partial shade. The best quality and best tasting salad …
Type: Plant Info
… March April May June July August September October Continue to harvest herbs to use fresh, and dry or freeze them in small batches in an ice cube tray. Pinch off developing flowers to retain essential oils and flavor in the plants’ foliage. Monitor tomatoes during hot weather. Tomatoes appreciate an even supply of moisture rather than a heavy soaking and then a drought. Straw mulch is helpful in these beds. Many hot-weather-loving veggies, such as peppers, tomatoes, eggplants, …
Type: Plant Info
… Discover how to use three basic elements—color, texture, and form—to create a garden setting that is visually engaging. Discover colorful foliage and flowers from a wide palette of annuals, perennials, and shrubs that can light up a shade …
Type: Item Detail
… New! The “moon illusion” makes the moon look larger at the horizon than when it is higher in the sky. Why does this happen and why are our eyes so easily fooled? You will learn the science behind this phenomenon and gain a deeper understanding of the night sky. Dale Dellutri, Skokie Valley Astronomers …
Type: Item Detail
