Healthy soil is essential for healthy plants. Using cover crops in the home garden is one way to promote soil health.
Cover crops are non-harvested crops that add organic matter to the soil, transfer nitrogen by creating nitrogen compounds usable by plants, and break up heavy clay or...
What you need to know
Clovers are making a comeback in lawn seed mixes. Today many families want to attract more pollinators to their yards. They are searching for ecologically sound ways to grow grass, including adding white clover back to the turf seed mix. Clover adds diversity and...
By Laura Bradshaw, Extension Master Naturalist serving Fulton, Mason, Peoria and Tazewell counties
The topic of the importance of pollinators is becoming more and more common. People are realizing the importance and taking action such as providing pollinator friendly plants and habitat....
Just what are frankincense and myrrh? Certainly, they are part of many Christmas stories, but do you know what those products are and why they were so valuable? Here is more information on both of these plant-based products.
Frankincense and myrrh are both resins -- dried tree sap -- that come...
Sugar and spice make everything nice, especially Christmas cookies. But, do you know where your sugar and spice come from?Plants make the sugar glucose during photosynthesis. Certain plants can take excess glucose, create sucrose then stored it in either the stalk or root. This is the sugar we use...
North America has lost 3 billion birds since 1970, according to a study from the Cornell Lab of Ornithology. This is a 30% decrease.
This statistic may feel devastating and overwhelming, but you don’t have to feel...
Peat wetlands are delicate ecosystems that take thousands of years to form. Peat accumulates at a rate of about 1 millimeter per year. When the peat moss industry harvests 22 centimeters per year, it is easy to see why there is a concern for its sustainability.
Many rare plants and animals...
By Carla Rich Montez, Extension Master Naturalist serving Fulton, Mason, Peoria, and Tazewell counties“A thing is right when it tends to preserve the integrity, stability, and beauty of the biotic community. It is wrong when it tends otherwise.” Aldo Leopold, A Sand...
By Jeff and Nancy Staecker, Extension Master Naturalists serving Fulton, Mason, Peoria and Tazewell counties
Over the last 20 years we’ve lost billions of birds – birds that are both beautiful and play critical roles in the environment… such as eating pests. We do not know all the complex...
Flowers are a wonderful way to make any wedding day special. There are many ways to choose beautiful and sustainably grown and arranged flowers.
Choose a local source for your blooms.
Flowers that are locally grown have a much smaller carbon footprint than flowers flown thousands of...
