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Good Growing 2018

Salt in the Landscape

As we've already experienced this year, winter in Illinois commonly means snow and ice. Though plowing and shoveling are the primary means of removing snow and ice where they aren't wanted, deicing salts also help prevent slick, hazardous conditions. While salt is great in its place, it's not so...
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Tips for Repotting Houseplants

Night yields to day in the late winter and spring, which seems to reenergize me. Already I've found time to get in the yard to do a bit of cleaning. Near the house, daffodils push their way through the leaf mulch beginning their march skyward, racing to beat the shade thrown by the trees. Magnolia...
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A Primer to Supplemental Lighting for Indoor Seed Starting

Perhaps my least favorite part of winter is waking up to darkness in the morning. This morning, as I led my half-asleep six-year-old down the steps into the living room, we were greeted with streams of light coming through the windows. After the short days of winter and several days of cloudy, wet...
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Dealing with Pests in the Garden

If you're a gardener (even someone just getting their feet wet), you know what it's like trying to manage insects, diseases, and weeds in the garden. Once the seasons really starts going we always have some insect pest that decides it wants to use our plants as dinner. We try to find more effective...
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Does Sand Improve Clay Soil Drainage?

My childhood home sat atop a bluff overlooking the Mill Creek Valley near Quincy. The view over bucolic farm fields and pastures likely was the kicker for why my parents purchased the property. It is a view that still holds me in a trance whenever I'm visiting my folks. However, the bluff upon...
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Keep an Eye Out for These Winter-Blooming Plants

You have to hand it to those Olympic athletes; they sure do make it look easy. Watching the 2018 Olympics with my family has inspired us to take to the slopes, that is, our small sledding hill. We took advantage of a snowy weekend and got in some much overdue sled riding. In the joyful moments of...
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Winter Bird Feeding with Suet

To say our weather has turned cold is an understatement. Last week, while sledding with my children my pants froze! We did not last long on the sledding hill that day. When I open the door to let out our dog Murphy, he looks up at me with what I can only describe as a "You've got to be kidding me"...
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The Dangers of Tree Topping

"Would you look at that?" I exclaim almost routinely as we drive around town. A horticulturalist does not make for the most enjoyable company in a car. Especially, if like my wife, you could care less about the health of a wayward tree or circling back to check out a random flowerbed. "Was that a...
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Give Your Soil a Check-up This Fall

As you begin your fall garden cleanup think about adding a soil test to your list of things to do. Soil testing is a quick and easy task that has many benefits. By conducting a soil test, it will allow you to see what the pH of your soil is, as well as what the nutrient levels in your soils are...
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Understanding Climate Change in Illinois

This past week I was honored to be invited to the Western Illinois University Agriculture Banquet, where faculty and students celebrated another year of education, research, and community outreach. Most graduating students will be filling vital roles in the agriculture, green industry, natural...
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orange and black monarch butterfly perched on milkweed plant

Mowing for Monarchs

There is something about mowing that is so satisfying. What is it? The smell of cut grass? Taming an unruly landscape? To me, it is measurable progress. It seems so often that modern jobs give few tangible results. So much of our work is in the digital ether. After a full day's work, I leave the...
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Houseplants and Indoor Lighting

If you've been following the Good Growing column, you know the rabbit hole that I went down when I jumped on the succulent bandwagon. That hasn't stopped, I've got 48 little Mother of Thousands plantlets in a tray rooting out. Still not sure what I'm going to do with them all, but guilt prevents me...
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Picking Pumpkins

Even though the weather seems to think it's still summer, fall has arrived. This means leaves changing color, apple cider, and pumpkin spice everywhere. It also means many of us will be taking a visit to a pumpkin patch....
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Spring Soil Preparation

In the last month, I've received calls and emails asking about what should be done to prepare the garden soil in the spring once the grounds is no longer frozen and ready to be worked for the new gardening season. Questions such as – what fertilizer should I apply, can I apply manure to my garden,...
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bush honeysuckle leaves and fruit

Identify and Manage Invasive Bush Honeysuckle

The problem with learning about invasive plants species is once you know about them, you start to see them everywhere. It can be a little depressing. How joyous it was when I began my life in horticulture. Learning about amazing plant processes and all the wonderful plants used in the ornamental...
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