If you are just dying to get into the garden these days, there is one essential practice that is best done during winter dormancy. Pruning is perhaps the most important landscape maintenance task performed in any space that hosts woody plants. There is a large list of benefits to plant health,...
By definition, a forest is a large area of land covered with trees and understory growth. Traditionally, these parcels of land are often imagined as plant-dense woodlands with a diverse mix of species layered from tall trees down to mosses on the woodland floor. These plants are growing where seeds...
Sometimes a tree becomes a hazard
This is the time of year I prefer to take down any trees that have died or become a hazard in the garden. I say “prefer” because sometimes you don’t have the luxury of waiting. I experienced this last year when a large tree lodged over as a result of heavy rains...
Lessons learned: Bald cypress is a tree to know
Don’t you wish you knew then what you know now? Speaking from experience, when I first began studying plants, people would ask me lots of gardening or landscaping questions. Did I as a first-year student know the answer? No. Did I pretend to? Yes. It...
Extreme winter cold is something that can keep gardeners up at night. Since plants are dormant, there is little we can do in the way of plant health care and that can be a real helpless feeling. The extremely cold weather back in December certainly raised concern and my office received...
This time of year, many folks have questions while searching for the perfect Christmas tree. In recent years, I have written several blog posts on this topic, covering various aspects of Christmas tree care, identification, selection, and sustainability. Take a look at our collection of...
While traveling through the Midwest on leaf peeping adventures, modern day explorers may find a rather nondescript tree with unique, distinct fruit. A medium-sized tree adorned with large, round, chartreuse colored fruit can be easily identified as Maclura pomifera, or Osage orange....
There are many oddities of the plant world that are hard to pass up without some questions. Based on the perspective of the beholder, some of these strange phenomena may lead to either wonder or concern.
One plant that has fueled both questions of marvel and worry is the popular...
The beauty of fall is upon us with splashes of exorbitant color all around the landscape. In the past week, red maples (Acer rubrum) have nearly reached their peak color for the season, displaying fire-red leaves that scream for attention. The brilliant yellows of shagbark (...
Many years ago, when emerald ash borer (EAB), had just arrived in northern Illinois, a colleague came across a flatbed trailer loaded with cut ash trees at a gas station. At that time Illinois counties confirmed with EAB had a quarantine that restricted moving ash wood outside of the county.
Most...
