PLACE: Vegetable Crops Research Farm at Champaign, IL DATE:  August 17, 2017 TIME: 1:30 – 3:00 P.M. PRESENTATIONS: All at Research Plots of Pumpkins                Squash Cucumber                Basil Tomato...

It is one thing to see food in the produce isle, it is altogether different to see that same edible portion growing on the plant. I have worked with specialty crops much of my adult life, but I have never lost my fascination of plants that produce food. Who can't stare in awe at a tree full of...

June begins the season of green, when the trees and shrubs are fully leaved and spring blooms have faded. My Jungle is primarily an iris garden, but it would be boring right now if made up of only green swords of foliage. Not to worry though, numerous late spring and early-summer blooming plants...

Birds are arriving from their winter home to add their beauty and song to my landscape. I hope that I have created a suitable environment for them to complete a successful breeding season. A ruby throated hummingbird alerted me to his presence very recently, so I dropped everything to put out...

Sticker shock, but definitely worth it! Some plants like lady slippers, a.k.a. hardy terrestrial orchids, can be relatively pricy in the world of herbaceous perennials (think ITOH and herbaceous yellow peony prices), and when combined with some very exacting growing conditions, most gardeners aren'...

Dwarfing rootstocks have always fascinated me, and the sweet cherry trees in my jungle really demonstrate their useful versatility. I have three sweet cherry trees and they are all similar in age, but they are all on different rootstocks, making them extremely different in size. My largest sweet...

Dear Small Fruit & Vegetable Growers:I hope you will mark your calendars for the upcoming 2017 Gateway Small Fruit and Vegetable Conference. This year, as in past years, we bring you an informative, practical, and up-to-date educational program to address the challenges of...

Winter is still with us but a number of winter interest plants are already brightening an otherwise sleeping garden. Winter blooming plants like witch hazel (Hamamelis), hellebore (Helleborus), mahonia (Mahonia), Japanese pieris (Pieris), and paperbush (...

URBANA, Ill. - Boxwood blight, a serious fungal disease, has been confirmed in Illinois. According to a University Diagnostic Outreach Extension Specialist, two boxwood samples were submitted to the University of Illinois Plant Clinic in late 2016. The samples came from Lake and Cook Counties in...

An Illinois and Missouri local grains centered day of round-table discussions, networking and inspiration with farmers, brewers, distillers, and bakers. Brought to you by Food Works of Southern Illinois and Regenerate Illinois. Co-Sponsors: Prairie Rivers Network, Fresh Taste, Hewn Bread Bakery,...