As we approach the new year, we often find ourselves reflecting on the events of the last year. The new year also provides us an opportunity to start anew, often in the form of New Year’s resolutions. Whether it be starting a vegetable garden, growing more flowers for pollinators, composting...

I once heard a succinct description of natural process as “everything points towards winter”. As a Midwesterner not so fond of cold, my immediate response to this synopsis was denial but with time, I’ve come to adore this mentality.  Annual plants know they have one growing season to complete their life cycle, racing to reproduce before the frost arrives. The leaves of perennial plants produce the carbohydrates that are stored in root systems to be utilized the following spring. And animals...

“Clark, that’s the gift that keeps on giving.” No truer words have ever described a Jelly of the Month Club. Yet, upon my annual family viewing of National Lampoon’s Christmas Vacation, a thought occurred to me that had not in the decades I’ve watched this movie. The idea of a jelly for every month seems quite excessive. Right? After all the best jelly is certainly strawberry, but even that takes me months to eat a single jar. What deranged lunatic would need all that jelly? Perhaps I don’t...

Poinsettias, Amaryllis, holly, and...

Plants have played a major role in human development for as long as people have inhabited the earth. Human interaction with plants has been and continues to be a complex relationship. Many species have provided critical resources for sustaining life, while others threaten human harm if encountered or used without caution. The scientific field of ethnobotany studies how plants have influenced cultures around the world. Within the field of ethnobotany, species, people, and physical location...

For many Americans, the day after Thanksgiving is spent nursing indigestion from the copious amounts of food we have just eaten or dealing with the madness of Black Friday. As the demolition derby of shopping carts commences, you may be seeing all types of Black Friday deals on outdoor power tools of both gas and electric versions.  There are certainly pros and cons to both sides, but when it’s all said and done, which is better? Let’s look first at the operation of the tools and then dive...

With the arrival of winter-like weather, many of us will be firing up the fireplace. When bringing wood inside for the fire, we can sometimes bring some unexpected hitchhikers. Many insects and other critters will use firewood (or wood in general) as a food source or a place to overwinter. Fortunately, for the most part, they pose little to no threat to us or our homes. Wood-boring beetles Various beetles will inhabit and feed on wood, including long-horned beetles, metallic woodboring...

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. Although ordinary in appearance for most of the year, and not often planted today, this species has an extraordinary tale to tell. Historic Ties Native to the southern United States of Oklahoma,...

Grow your own tea Did you know, you can grow the most popular drink in the world right here in Illinois? If you’re wondering how to harvest Pepsi or Coke from a tree, I’m sorry, you have the wrong drink. Second to water, tea reigns supreme as the world's favorite drink, and it has been for centuries. Where does tea come from? We get tea from, you guessed it the tea plant! More specifically Camellia sinensis. For those botanically minded, you may have noticed the relation to the Camellia tree...

Most people are familiar with praying mantids. These large predatory insects are a common site in the fall, and we often encounter their egg cases (ootheca) this time of year too. But did you know that three different species of praying mantids, the native Carolina mantid and the introduced Chinese and European mantids, can be found in Illinois? While praying mantids are a welcome sight to some, others are concerned about the presence of the non-native species. Identifying praying mantids in...

As the growing season draws to an end, temperatures cool, woody plants prepare for dormancy, and we enjoy the last blooms of the season. For many of us, autumn also means sniffles and sneezes caused by seasonal allergies. Seasonal allergies are a reaction to airborne pollen entering the body and being misidentified as a threat. Itchy eyes, runny noses, sneezing, and congestion are frustrating symptoms, so many of us look around for the culprit and notice the bright yellow blooms of goldenrod....

Gnawing Rodents and Landscape Shrubs This past spring, I found myself at a friend’s house enjoying some barbeque on the back deck. He remarked on the issue they had with ground squirrels, burrowing all over their yard and landscape beds. Later in the year, a phone call came into the office of a landscaper confounded at what was happening to the trees and shrubs of a client’s yard. With an address that sounded familiar, I headed over to see if we could unravel this mystery. I found several...

As we transition from summer to fall and the temperatures start cooling off, many of us will be spending more time outdoors. While enjoying our time outdoors, we often encounter various insets we may not have seen or noticed earlier in the growing season. One such insect is the unusual, and to some scary, looking wheel bug. What do they look like? Adult wheel bugs (Arilus cristatus) are large (1 to 1-1/2 inches long) light gray to grayish-brown distinctive-looking insects. They get...

Growing up and working in my parent’s garden, I often remember the early spring when the tree buds are opening, the grass is greening up, and birds are singing. Suddenly, the roar of our massive Honda tiller broke through the serene spring day as it chewed and turned the earth and spewed exhaust into my parents' faces. At my young age, I didn’t have the mass to maneuver the behemoth machine. My mother assured me that turning the soil was better for the plants and kept the weeds down. I often...

As we approach fall, the days are getting shorter, and the temperatures are starting to cool off. As this happens, we can start seeing changes in the landscape. Many of our landscape plants are beginning to look a little ragged this time of year. While others, like goldenrod and asters, are in their full glory, and before we know it, trees and shrubs will start displaying their fall colors. While our plants are preparing themselves for winter, so are insects. Many insects will spend the winter...

Invite nature into your backyard A parent fed up with their child’s persistent use of technology (internet, video games, tablet, you name it!) has decided to pull the plug on their sedentary habits. They strip the devices from their child’s hands and throw them outside and say “Go play!” The child looks around. Before them lays their entire suburban property comprised of lawn. Looking left and right they see their neighbor’s yard, more lawn. To the back of the property where once ran a creek,...

As we draw nearer to fall, it's time to start thinking about bringing houseplants back indoors for the winter. Many houseplants are native to tropical and subtropical climates and, while they may do great outdoors during the summer, cannot tolerate our cold temperatures. When the thermometer starts to get below 55 °F consistently, it's time to start bringing houseplants back indoors. Inspect your plants before bringing them indoors Before bringing plants back indoors,...

A tale of two articles Have you read some of the headlines lately concerning monarch butterflies? “Monarch Butterflies are Thriving!” “Monarch Butterflies are Endangered!” Both these headlines (or something similar) recently saturated newsfeeds for Americans. Considering these stories came out about two weeks apart, what is a person to think? Are monarch butterflies okay? Or are they in peril? As you may have gathered with headlines like this, the answer lies somewhere in the middle. Let’s...

Spider mites are a common pest on many types of plants. The most commonly encountered species is the twospotted spider mite (Tetranychus urticae). While we often think of them attacking houseplants, particularly during the winter months, they can also be a problem on fruits, vegetables, and landscape plants, particularly during hot, dry weather. What do they look like?...

The Big Three Mowing Tips Each year I try to write a couple of articles about lawns. Each time I’ve written one of these, I have assumed you, the reader, care about your lawn. Turns out, there are a lot of people who have lawns, that don’t care about having a perfectly manicured turf. You just want to know enough to get by. After all, if it’s green then it’s good! This article is for you. Please note: this information is for cool-season lawns in Illinois. Lawncare takes time, and we’re all...