ILRiverHort 2026

By Bob Streitmatter, Botanical Garden Manager at Peoria Park DistrictSpring is a wonderful time to be in a garden, as it comes to life…bright foliage and flowers seem to be everywhere.  Walking through the garden almost becomes a celebration, as you spot Spring Beauty, Dutchman’s...

By Gayle Blodgett, Extension Master Gardener and Master Naturalist serving Fulton, Mason, Peoria, and Tazewell counties  Native plants are essential to healthy ecosystems because they support biodiversity, conserve resources, stabilize soils and waterways, sequester carbon,...

By Megan Todd, Extension Master Gardener, Serving Fulton, Mason, Peoria, and Tazewell countiesDriving up the street in a Morton subdivision searching for the home of new Conservation@Home members Gordon and Joyce Wassell, one needs no house number to know which place is theirs.  All...

By Ed Coleman, Extension Master Naturalist, serving Fulton, Mason, Peoria, and Tazewell countiesIn 2020, the family members of the John Elwood and Mary Elwood Trust donated a 75.5 acre tract of land in Peoria County to the Prairie Land Conservancy, a land trust. Five acres of this was...

By Sarah Smith, Master Gardener and Naturalist, serving Fulton, Mason, Peoria, and Tazewell countiesIn 2018, Lynda and her husband Jeff moved into their current home and set to work on taking care of their almost 2-acre property that sits on a small lake, surrounded by other homes. Encouraged by...

By Mike McGraw, Extension Master Naturalist serving Fulton, Mason, Peoria and Tazewell countiesSpring Creek Preserve, located in Tazewell County, is a park of the East Peoria Fondulac Park District. Of its 344 acres, 236 have been designated as an Illinois Land and Water Preserve....

By Jennifer Bass, Extension Master Gardener, Master Naturalist, and Conservation@Home member serving Fulton, Mason, Peoria, and Tazewell countiesOn Sundays, when the grand kids arrive, they often check whether the bird feeders are full and hurry to fill them with seed for our feathered...

Hot Chocolate Day is January 31, inviting us to appreciate the plants and traditions that make this beverage possible. While hot chocolate feels like a simple winter comfort, its story includes an array of flavorful plants starting with chocolate and adding herbs and spices.Hot cocoa and hot...

Popcorn is one of those simple joys that connects agriculture with snacking. In honor of National Popcorn Day on January 19, it's the perfect time to celebrate one of Illinois' tastiest agricultural products.Illinois: Home of the Nation's Top Popcorn CountyMason County, Illinois, has long been...