Are you ready to take your butterfly gardening status to the next level and allow some of your beautiful plants to be eaten by caterpillars?
Choosing the right plants, some care and voila caterpillars. I am not only altering the habitat of my backyard for the greater good, I will have some more...
Originally published by Kelly Allsup on July 3, 2020.
Last week's high temperatures and our limited amount of rain is making gardeners' number one job watering.
Even though we have gotten some much-needed rain for the flowers and the trees, consistent watering throughout the season is...
URBANA, Ill. – Every garden needs water, but with a container garden’s limited soil volume, proper watering is crucial for plants to stay productive.
“Proper drainage is just as important as the amount of water added to the container,” says Andrew Holsinger,...
Bagworms hang off of trees like little diabolical ornaments, eating the needles and leaves. If you didn’t have them on your trees last year, you likely saw them elsewhere.
When the Japanese tree lilacs are in bloom, it is time to scout and control bagworms. This species flowers later than other...
Females can start laying eggs as soon as you see adults. Once the adult flies are discovered, management decisions should be made. Adult flies are tan with red eyes and a tiny 2-3mm-long (up to a one-eighth of an inch). Males have characteristic dark spots on their wings that can easily...
If you are spending more time out in your backyard this week, you may have noticed some of our central Illinois trees are super ugly this spring. Maple leaves have black splotches, sycamore branches are falling to the ground and ginkgoes leaves are sparse and crinkled. All these symptoms are tree...
In this time of social distancing and limited activities, enjoying nature should be made a priority for all who need a bit of stress release. Have you bathed in the forest lately, hugged a tree or had a therapy session with an oak?
Forest bathing is Japanese practice of immersing yourself in the...
This week’s gardening task includes planting sweet potatoes. Sweet potatoes may be a long crop (4-5 months) but with a gardener’s care, one can have poundage of storable food.
Sweet potatoes, a tropical plant, usually need four to five months of warm day and night temperatures for optimal growth....
Tomato plants are warm-season vegetables that should be planted after the danger of frost. For our area that means early to mid-May. Hopefully no one planted theirs before last weekend’s cold snap! Here are some steps to remember when growing your newly planted crop.
1. The first question you...
Nothing says summer like enjoying the freshly harvested vegetables and herbs from your garden. “One of the easiest, most prolific, and flavorful herbs to grow is basil (Ocimum basilicum),” states Brittnay Haag, University of Illinois Extension Horticulture Educator. While there are many cultivars...
