Written by Rhonda Ferree, retired horticulture educator
Most plants have a very strict dress code, donning the same colors and style every year. When colors vary, the plant is simply named something else, or it indicates that there is a problem.
Botanically, plant colors are fascinating...
Written by Rhonda Ferree, retired horticulture educator
No plants do not have legs, but they do move. Although I don't see it happen, each week my African violet leaves lean toward the light requiring me to straighten them with a quarter turn. I also don't see the prayer plants fold their...
Written by Rhonda Ferree, retired horticulture educator
Do you use a lot of garlic in your cooking? If so you might try growing your own. Fall is the best time to plant garlic in your garden.
Garlic is a hardy bulb, and thus is best planted in the fall when other bulbs, such as tulips...
Written by Rhonda Ferree, retired horticulture educator
I am seeing more butterflies this summer than I have in recent years. As I walk my property, I see monarchs, swallowtails, buckeyes, hackberry, painted ladies, cabbage whites, and more. This year I even saw a viceroy while mowing!...
Written by Rhonda Ferree, retired horticulture educator
What is the best way to water plants? Community watering restrictions, rural water shortages, and high water costs sometimes require homeowners to make some tough decisions about outdoor water use. Here are ten wise watering tips for...
Written by Rhonda Ferree, retired horticulture educator
A walk in the park or a scroll through Facebook quickly show how many people have cats and dogs. The American Pet Products Association estimated that approximately 44% of all households in the United States had a dog, and 35% had a...
Written by Rhonda Ferree, retired horticulture educator
Hundreds of minute, barbed bristles poked out of the bottom of my foot as Dad gently plucked each one away from my throbbing flesh. Our family was camping in Spring Lake State Park near Havana, Illinois one summer when I was about 10...
Written by Rhonda Ferree, retired horticulture educator
If you love butterflies, you could also put in a butterfly garden habitat in your own yard. You don't need a lot of space to attract our native butterflies.
There are two different types of plants you can grow for butterflies:...
Written by Rhonda Ferree, retired horticulture educatorRabbit, Rabbit, Rabbit!
Elmer Fudd from The Looney Tunes said it right, "Bugs Bunny?! You're a pesky wabbit!" I have replanted my tomato plants three times this spring. The first two times the plants were gone by...
Originally published in Home, Yard, and Garden Newsletter on 8-15-17 Japanese beetles and masked chafer adults are attracted to moist soils and, apparently, to green grass to lay their eggs. In years when rainfall is abundant,...
