Home Newsletters DeWitt, Macon, and Piatt County Newsletter

DeWitt, Macon, and Piatt County Newsletter

In this issue

Weathering stress in farming and your life

On Poison Ivy
Be an intentional family
Illinois Farm Cash Rent Trends in 2026
Popular native grasses for the home landscape

What the Hey!?!
Dimensions of Wellness
Weeds, Water, Pests, and Disease
Sourdough Made Simple
Cooking with Grandma
Sourdough Made Simple
Habitat at Home: Cacti & Succulents
Use Your Noodle: A Brain Education Day
Little Sprouts with 4-H and Master Gardeners
2026 DeWitt, Macon, and Piatt 4-H Horse Show

Group of people smiling and posing for a picture

In this issue

Celebrate Mental Health Month in May

The Courage to Collaborate: Building Psychologically Safe Teams
How to prepare a vegetable garden bed
What makes a pest "invasive?"

Master Gardener & Master Naturalist Plant Sale
Homegrown Harvest: Planting Warm Season Crops
What's the Difference? Heirloom, Native, Organic, Non-GMO, Hybrid, Nontreated
Grow Together
Little Sprouts with 4-H and Master Gardeners
Motivation Monday: Diabetes at the Y
Preserve at Home
Salty Puffy Paint Cloverbud Workshop
Willy's Garden Week

4 H members and their families after meal packing event

In this issue

4-H members package thousands of meal kits to fight local food insecuity

Top reasons it is important to plant natives
Corn Gluten Meal: Can it naturally prevent weeds and feed your lawn?
Plant a Small Fruits Garden and Increase Perennial Household Food Security
Tree topping is never a good option

Rise & Shine
Spring Birds & Blooms
4-H Archery Recruitment Shoot
4-H Horticulture Workshop - Let's Get Gardening!
Foods from the Home Kitchen: Illinois Cottage Food Law
Get Out of the House Now!
Homegrown Harvest: Soil Health and Planting Cool Season Crops
Little Sprouts with 4-H and Master Gardeners
Motivation Monday: Diabetes at the Y
Foods from the Home Kitchen: Illinois Cottage Food Law
Get Growing Bement with Piatt County Master Gardeners
Grow Together
Foods from the Home Kitchen: Illinois Cottage Food Law
Master Gardener & Master Naturalist Plant Sale

In this issue

Illinois 4-H horse judging contest crowns top youth competitors

Choose the right feeder and seed for birds in the winter
Bright blooms: How to care for flower bouquets
Skunk cabbage: Spring’s earliest and hottest native plant
What will a good bull cost me in 2026?

Dig In and Discover
To Seed or Not to Seed: What Is the Question?
Kitchen Safety Check-up
Houseplant Propagation
Cooking Under Pressure
Motivation Monday: Diabetes at the Y
Babysitting Workshop
Spring Birds & Blooms

In this issue

Exploding trees? A closer look at frost cracking

Are you feeding your bees this winter?
Answers to common questions about pesticide licensing, training, and testing
Growing without soil: Getting started with hydroponics at home

Backyard Book Art
Aerospace Workshop
Locally Led Conservation with Piatt County SWCD
Theatre & Public Speaking Workshop
Annie's Project Workshop
2026 Gardening Insights
Spring Birds & Blooms

Text that says New Year's Resolutions with sticky notes that have resolutions on them.

In this issue

New Year's resolutions for mental health

Flavorful venison recipes for winter
Tariffs, trade, and central Illinois: Inside a Supreme Court case
Farm Finance Series: The farm market value balance sheet

DeWitt, Macon, and Piatt Master Naturalist Training
Little Sprouts with 4-H and Master Gardeners
Basic Animal Track Identification
DeWitt, Macon, and Piatt Master Gardener Training
DeWitt, Macon, and Piatt Master Gardener Training
Annie's Project Workshop

Do you know someone who might be a good fit for the 4-H team?

blocks with the words stressful and stressfree

In this issue

Holiday stress: Tips for a healthier, happier season

Nuts need food safety too

Three local 4-H members place in top ten at State Livestock Skillathon

Heart Smart Eating
The Wonderful World of 3D Paper!
Paracord Knot Tying Workshop
Little Sprouts with 4-H and Master Gardeners
DeWitt, Macon, and Piatt Master Naturalist Training
DeWitt, Macon, and Piatt Master Gardener Training

In this issue

Holidays during stressful times: Finding joy in the middle of chaos

Don't Bag Your Fall Leaves, Use Them
Open-Pollinated vs. Hybrid: An important distinction when saving seeds

Lifelong leader becomes Illinois Extension’s new 4-H assistant dean and director

Pumpkin Smash at Fairview Park
Master Gardener Open House
Festive Flavors - Holiday Dips
Heart Smart Eating
What’s in Your Garden? Invasive, Nuisance Species, and Garden Health
Little Sprouts with 4-H and Master Gardeners
Paracord Knot Tying Workshop
Heart Smart Eating
Little Sprouts with 4-H and Master Gardeners
Paracord Knot Tying Workshop Part II

In this issue

Hunters Feeding Illinois returns

Pawpaw fruit ripening
Should you rescue that animal? Understanding injured wildlife

4-H Fall Building Block Challenge
Grow, Knead, Create
Where the Flavor's At
Fall Tree Crawl
Basics of Worm Composting
Camp Whitetail
Annie's Project Workshop

person planting spring bulbs during fall season

In this issue

Late Summer Gardening To-Dos

Stalled Green Tomatoes: Why won’t they turn red?
When children mourn
It ain't easy being cheesy

Pickle Magic at Weldon Library
Growing Bulbs
Heart Smart Eating
Preserve at Home

In this issue

How much money do you need to retire?

Fruit isn't too much sugar

Native Pollinators
Growing Cut Flowers Garden Open House
Spiders, Drought, and Weeds! Oh My!
Plants 101 with Main Street Botanicals
Pickle Magic at Maroa Library
Pollinators in the Park
Money and You
Edible Plant Walk
2025 DeWitt, Macon, and Piatt Master Gardener Training

In this issue

High impact University of Illinois Extension SNAP-Ed programs face elimination

Be on the lookout for squash bugs!

2025 DeWitt, Macon, and Piatt County 4-H Horse Show
What Do I Do with All These Zucchini
2025 DeWitt, Macon, and Piatt County 4-H General Projects and Livestock Show
Garden Walk 2025
Heart Smart Eating
Homegrown Harvest: Weeding and Watering Methods
Heart Smart Eating
Nature Journaling with Merry Lanker
Heart Smart Eating
Heart Smart Eating

Tiny aphid insects crawling along plant leaves and stems.

In this issue

Managing pests in the garden

Gardening with ease

Level Up with 4-H
Level Up with 4-H
Heart Smart Eating
Preserve at Home
What Do You Do with Your Herbs?
Level Up with 4-H
Level Up with 4-H
Preserve at Home
Beneficial Insects: Garden Warriors
Level Up with 4-H
Level Up with 4-H
Heart Smart Eating
Level Up with 4-H
Garden Walk 2025

An older woman performs a dumbbell bicep curl exercise

In this issue

A Game-Changer for Women’s Health: Discovering the benefits of strength training for aging women

Ensuring the survival of newly planted trees: Essential care tips for the first three years

Master Gardener Plant Sale
Homegrown Harvest: Warm Season Crops
Let's Talk about the Birds, the Bees, the Rabbits and the Groundhogs
Heart Smart Eating
Carolyn Mason Education Day
Willy's Garden Week
Beneficial Insects: Garden Warriors

a whitetailed deer running through grass in fall

In this issue

Hunters Feeding Illinois provides 97,000 meals to Illinois families

Farmland Owner Series: Farmland owners – Can I rent out an old pole barn machine shed?

Do I Really Need Native Pollinators?
Homegrown Harvest: Cool Season Crops
Gardening Made Easy
Spring Wildflowers
Container Gardens
Master Gardener Plant Sale
Unlock the Secrets of Sourdough
Windowsill Wonders: Herb Magic

In this issue

Learn how to attract ruby-throated hummingbirds to your backyard

Protect your customers and loved ones from Norovirus

Heart Smart Eating
What Do I Need to Start A Garden
Homegrown Harvest: Seed Starting
Indoor Edible Gardens
Master Naturalist Book Club

In this issue

Illinois 4-H expands shooting sports expertise with newly certified coordinators

What to know about avian flu in wild birds, poultry, and pets in Illinois
Chase away those winter blues with Four Seasons Gardening webinars

Heart Smart Eating
Fruit Tree Pruning
Fruit Tree Pruning
Your Garden Toolkit
2025 Gardening Insights
Hot and Fast: Cooking with an Air Fryer
Fruit Tree Pruning
Cloverbud Spring Breakers Workshop