University of Illinois Extension

Blog Posts (70)

Managing squash vine borer in the garden

Managing squash vine borer in the garden. Colorful adult vine borer moth laying egg on squash stem

Vegetable Gardening with Raised Beds

Vegetable Gardening with Raised Beds

What’s wrong with my seedlings? Troubleshooting seed starting problems

What’s wrong with my seedlings? Troubleshooting seed starting problems. Leggy plants reaching for light.

Four things to consider when deciding what vegetables to grow

Four things to consider when deciding what vegetables to grow. raised beds with lettuce and beets growing in them.

Finding local foods for your Thanksgiving feast

Locally raised turkeys make a wonderful addition to any Thanksgiving meal.

Fall Garlic Planting

Garlic is typically planted in fall by separating bulbs into individual cloves for planting.

Dealing with pumpkins after Halloween: Debunking social media advice

rotted pumpkin

Squash the rumors about zucchini!

Sliced zucchini on a cutting board with text

Focus on fiber this September with National Whole-Grain Month

Image of jars of whole grain pastas and grains

Building a Healthy Immune System

A bunch of citrus fruit cut in half

Fall Vegetable Gardening

August is a great time to start a fall garden including cool-season crops, like this lettuce, that will thrive in the milder temperatures of the late growing season.

Crafting the perfect BLT

A side view of a BLT sandwich with bread, mayonnaise, bacon, tomato, and lettuce. Text says 'crafting the perfect BLT'

When to pick your vegetables

How to use your heirloom tomatoes

A bunch of tomatoes of various shapes and colors in a wooden box. Text says 'How to use your heirloom tomatoes'

Iris for collecting and asparagus for eating

Reintroducing green beans

A tray of green beans set in front of an air fryer.

Flavor up with balsamic vinegar

A person's hand is shown pouring balsamic vinegar into a white bowl.

Want pumpkins for Halloween? Start them now

pumpkins

Pruning tomatoes and peppers for healthier plants and a stronger harvest

Get your fruits and vegetables in by sampling the seasons

Text says "Get your fruits and vegetables in by sampling the seasons" and image is of carrots.

5 Tips for a successful second year gardener

garden with fruit and veggies

How to successfully grow asparagus in your garden

How to successfully grow asparagus in your garden. purple-green asparagus spears emerging from soil.

CSA: What is it, and why should I care?

When you seed vegetable transplants matters

2021 Garden Planning

Delicious and sweet ‘Sungold’ tomatoes were hard to find in 2020 since an unusually large number of homebound gardeners bought up seeds and plants at unprecedented numbers.

Do you know when to plant in Illinois?

Seedlings growing in paper eggshell cartons

New plants for a new year - try growing something new in 2021

2021 All-American Selections winners

Get in-spiralized by zoodles

Spiralized zucchini and carrot noodles on a black plate, with a whole carrot and zucchini off to the side.

The versatility of cauliflower

Three slices of cauliflower on a cutting board.

Hornworm caterpillars on tomatoes

a large tobacco hornworm feeding on a tomato leaf

Tomato Care

Tomatoes are one of the most planted garden crops in the US, with several common problems here in central Illinois that can be managed through fairly simple cultural practices.

Start your fall garden

cool season crops

Harvesting garden vegetables

close up of a person holding freshly harvested onions

Handling your fresh-picked produce

Freshly harvested cucumbers, eggplant, beans, potatoes, pumpkins, squash, beets, & turnips.

Don’t believe everything you read, except this

healthy immune system from eating fruits and vegetables

Garlic: So easy even I can grow it!

Growing Garlic

Sub-Freezing Spring Temperatures and Crops

How cold is too cold for my crop?

The Many Different Types of Cucurbits

The Many Different Types of Cucurbits

How to Grow Cucurbits

bright yellow flower

New Vegetable Garden Maintenance – Weed and Watering

New Vegetable Garden Maintenance

How to Grow Tomatoes

How to Grow Tomatoes

How to Grow Lettuce

three lettuce varieties

How to Grow Sweet Potatoes

Sweet potato harvest

Selecting Plants for the Vegetable Garden

Beets are a cool-season vegetable that can be direct seeded into the garden now.

Starting a Garden: Irrigation

Sprinkler head

Analyzing Soils for New Vegetable Gardens

Raised garden beds are a great solution to a variety of common soil issues.

Save money by using the whole plant

Starting a Garden: Season Extension

Cold frame with vegetables growing inside in the fall.

Starting a Garden: Hardening Off Indoor Seedlings

basil seedlings in seedling flat

Starting a Garden: Weed Management

Weed free tomatoes

Starting a Garden: Warm Season Vegetables

basket with tomatoes, peppers and summer squash

Starting a Garden: Cool-Season Vegetables | And my top 5 cool-season crops to grow

Kale

Starting a Garden: Supplemental Lighting for Indoor Seed Starting

Lighting

Beyond 'Yukon Gold': Growing Purple/Blue Potatoes

Creating an Edible Landscape

Scarlet runner beans growing on a fence

Illinois Vegetable Planting - Dates, Spacing, and Seeds

Homegrown: DIY Hydroponics for All Gardeners

Green herbs growing out of plastic tub in home hydroponic system

New Garden Plants for 2020

pictures of the 2020 AAS Winners Cucumber Green Light F1, Pumpkin Blue Prince F1, Tomato Apple Yellow F1, Tomato Celano F1, Tomato Early Resilience F1 Watermelon Mambo F1, Coleus Main Street Beale Street, Echinacea Sombrero® Baja Burgundy, and Rudbeckia x American Gold Rush

What's the Difference Between Sweet Potatoes and Yams?

picture of sweet potatoes in a bucket and yams in metal bowls

Parsnips – An Underrated Vegetable

Parsnips

Spread Out the End of Season Work

How to grow garlic

purple garlic heads hanging to dry

Still Hope for the Vegetable Garden

Planting a Fall Vegetable Garden

broccoli plants in a mulched garden

Tomato Woes

Asparagus: A Spring Delicacy

Squash bugs

squash bugs

Blossom End Rot

Common Tomato Diseases

tomato plant

It's hard to beat a good beet

beet growing with title "it's hard to beat a good beet"

News Releases (22)

Say goodbye to your tomato troubles with free master gardener event

Plant seeds for success with beginner vegetable gardening workshop

Don’t dump Halloween pumpkins; donate or compost them

Falling into the Autumn Vegetable Garden

Preserve food safely; Extension workshop covers the basics

Learn how to grow great tomatoes and tour community garden

Eat more fruits and vegetables with the help of your local farmers market

McHenry County Extension Master Gardeners Grow Produce ‘for Good’

McHenry County Extension Master Gardeners Launch Seed Library

Refreshing raised bed soil generates exceptional results

The time is right to plant cool season vegetables

Southern Illinois growers rely on Extension's sound production advice

Stateline Fruit & Vegetable Conference: Pumpkin Varieties & Hard Cider Production

2021 Fruit & Vegetable VIRTUAL Conference

Become a U of I Extension Master Gardener

Small, but mighty microgreens are easy to grow indoors

Harvest abundant squash for food, decoration

Benefit your health and environment by growing your own vegetables

Get Growing webinar series announced for growing vegetables and fruit

Over 50 Fruit and Vegetable Growers Attend University of Illinois Extension’s Stateline Fruit and Vegetable Conference

‘Think Spring!’ Learning Series Underway with Kane County Master Gardeners

Requirements for Exempt Farms Under FSMA Produce Rule

Staff (4)

Doug Gucker staff photo

Douglas B. Gucker

Local Food Systems and Small Farms Educator

Andrew Holsinger

Andrew Holsinger

Horticulture Educator

Ken Johnson Staff Photo

Ken Johnson

Horticulture Educator

Elizabeth Wahle

Elizabeth Wahle

Commercial Agriculture Educator, Fruits & Vegetables