ILRiverHort 2016

Written by Rhonda Ferree, retired horticulture educator Have you ever noticed how a pine tree changes shape as it ages? On my way to Springfield recently, several old pine trees caught my attention. Pine trees have distinctively different needle structure than other evergreens. Pine...

Written by Rhonda Ferree, retired horticulture educator If you are like me, your gardens did not develop exactly as you had planned in the spring. I have more weeds than I usually do in early fall. Parts of my lawn has too much crabgrass and some plants simply do not like their location...

Written by Rhonda Ferree, retired horticulture educator Believe it or not, there are actually a lot of gardening tasks you can do in January. Here are some to consider. For those of you who received poinsettias or other flowering holiday plants, be sure that they are near a bright window...

Written by Rhonda Ferree, retired horticulture educator Over the past decade, Americans have grown to love salsa, surpassing ketchup as a favorite condiment. While there are many variations, a basic salsa recipe includes tomatoes, peppers, onions, garlic, cilantro and tomatillos. I make...

Written by Rhonda Ferree, retired horticulture educator Vegetables are most commonly grown in traditional gardens in rows. Large gardens can seem overwhelming, especially during the heat of summer or after a vacation. If you don't have space for that or just want to try something...

Moles become active each spring, with tunnels appearing as raised areas of soil in lawns and garden beds. "Questions about mole control are probably the most common question I've received in my 27 years with University of Illinois Extension," says Rhonda Ferree, Extension Educator in Horticulture...

Written by Rhonda Ferree, retired horticulture educator Start next year's flower display this fall. Now is the time to set out the spring flowering bulbs. It seems like a lot of work now, but after the long winter, you will enjoy those blooms. In addition to the standards such as tulips...

Written by Rhonda Ferree, retired horticulture educator Last year I had a lot of browning on one of my evergreen yew plants. It is next to the house near the dryer vent. The vent's hot air caused my plant to dry out quickly, with some areas dying completely. This year I am prepared to...

Written by Rhonda Ferree, retired horticulture educator I continue to get calls about large, old trees that are in major decline. Many of these are just now showing symptoms from the severe drought of 2012. Major weather events have a detrimental long term effect on landscape plants....

Written by Rhonda Ferree, retired horticulture educator I am now producing videos on a wide variety of gardening topics and more. Videos are the latest social media trend, with predictions that 74% of all internet traffic in 2017 will be video. My plan is to produce short, informational...

Written by Rhonda Ferree, retired horticulture educator Potato ranks with wheat and rice as one of the most important staple crop sin the human diet around the world. Certainly potatoes are an important part of our diets as we eat French fries, potato chips, mashed potatoes, augratin...

Written by Rhonda Ferree, retired horticulture educator Are you searching for the "perfect" gift for a gardener in your family? As Black Friday and Cyber Monday approach, here are some tools and gadgets that every gardener needs. Gardening is therapeutic, but it can also be hard work....

Written by Rhonda Ferree, retired horticulture educator Eight trends are featured in this year's 2016 Garden Media Group garden trend report. I'll write about each trend sometime this year. The 2016 trend report is titled Syncing with Nature. I agree with the report's findings...

Written by Rhonda Ferree, retired horticulture educator Fall provides us with brilliant colors: orange pumpkins, yellow mums, purple asters, and bronze autumn joy sedums. The fall flower garden has a lot to offer and brings a change in flower color. Notice how the fall flowers offer...

Written by Rhonda Ferree, retired horticulture educator Oak trees are majestic, but some are in danger of a disease. One of the best ways to protect oak trees is to prune them at the proper time. You have probably heard that it is not wise to prune oak trees during the active growing...

Farm to School is more than a program – it is a people-powered movement that seeks to teach students where food comes from and how delicious it can taste when eaten in season. There are three basic elements to farm to school: Local food procurement School gardens Food and nutrition...

Written by Rhonda Ferree, retired horticulture educator Every year my Dad, Ron Simmons, starts many annual plants for our family in his backyard greenhouse. I get most of my flowering annuals, vegetables, and herbs from dad's greenhouse. His plants are amazingly healthy and grow better...

Once the Christmas holiday is over, the chore of taking down and disposing of the cut Christmas tree remains. Today, because of solid waste regulations, most communities will no longer permit the used Christmas trees to be hauled out with the garbage and sent to the sanitary landfill. However,...

Written by Rhonda Ferree, retired horticulture educator Have you had fresh strawberries yet this year? I love fresh strawberry shortcake, but I most enjoy eating them right in the garden. I usually also make strawberry jam and freeze some for winter treats. If you don't grow your own,...

Written by Rhonda Ferree, retired horticulture educator Although Christmas is still a couple of months away, it is time to begin preparing some of them to flower during the holiday season. This typically involves changing their environment in some way to force them into bloom....