Commercial Fruit and Vegetable Growers

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Welcome to the new Assistant Professor of Horticulture

James Santiago is the latest addition to the faculty roster of the Crop Science Department at the University of Illinois Urbana-Champaign. James earned his Bachelor’s degree in Agriculture (bitter gourd tissue culture) at the University of the Philippines, a Master’s degree in Horticulture (lowbush...
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From Central Illinois (Bloomington): Weather update

Overall, the last month has featured typical spring conditions in Central Illinois, with moderate temperatures and average precipitation. However, there were multiple severe weather events on April 2 and April 20 in the area during this period, including one confirmed tornado in Tazewell County,...
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peach tree branch with small leaves and busted part of bark from hail

From St. Louis Metro East: Fruit crop looking good

Since the last newsletter, several cold fronts have come through the region; not enough to take the fruit crop, but enough to slow development and do some damage to blackberry canes in the northern part of the region. Several reported hail damage to buildings and fruit trees after severe weather,...
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main trunk of young apple tree

Special focus: Notching for improved apple branching

A growing concern observed last year was the lack of lateral branches—or “feathers”—on young apple trees, especially in high-density training systems like tall spindle. This can lead to "blind wood"—sections of trunk without productive branches—which can limit yield and canopy development.One...
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person rubbing soapy hands together

Construct your portable handwashing station this season

Handwashing is one of the key hygienic practices that can reduce the spread of diseases and foodborne illnesses along the farm to fork continuum. We use hands to complete several tasks throughout the day and in so doing, we touch many different surfaces, some of which may contain organisms that may...
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Spring has sprung

From Trent Ford, Illinois State Climatologist. Spring temperatures have been very typically variable so far across the Midwest. Average temperatures since mid-March have been 1 to 3 degrees above normal statewide (Figure 1). Despite the warmer conditions, we had a few frost and freeze events in the...
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different lettuces growing in a garden plot

Lettuce varieties for spring

I am sharing some observational results from 5 lettuce varieties I grew this spring.  Five lettuce varieties were set out as transplants 2/28/2025 at my home near Waterloo, IL.  Since I don’t have a high tunnel but I wanted to afford some protection for the plants, they were covered with...
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Blog Authors
Elizabeth Wahle

Elizabeth Wahle

Extension Specialist, Agriculture and Agribusiness (Commercial Agriculture)
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