URBANA, Ill. – Many Americans only know chestnuts from the famous line, "chestnuts roasting on an open fire," from the 1945 song, "Merry Christmas to You," by Bob Wells and Mel Tormé. Prior to its demise in the first half of the 20th century, the American chestnut (Castanea dentata) was one of the largest and most important timber- and nut-producing trees in the eastern United States. In less than a lifetime, the native American chestnut population that spanned the entire Appalachian Mountain...
URBANA, Ill. – Love it or hate it, broccoli is touted as a superfood, offering an array of health benefits. And it's about to get even more super. University of Illinois researchers have identified candidate genes controlling the accumulation of phenolic compounds in broccoli. Consumption of phenolic compounds, including certain flavonoids, is associated with a lower risk of coronary heart disease, type II diabetes, asthma, and several types of cancer." Phenolic compounds have good...
Square Foot Gardening Have you ever attempted to grow vegetables with grand visons of fresh produce that would litter your kitchen counter? Instead your broccoli went to the worms, your tomatoes were riddled with disease, or your garden was overrun with weeds. Then square foot gardening is the answer for you! "Even though there is snow on the ground, it is time to start putting together a realistic plan," states University of Illinois Extension Horticulture...
Companion Planting Workshop Please join University of Illinois Extension Horticulture program in Livingston, McLean and Woodford Counties for a series of workshops designed to teach the community how to grow. The workshops teach both novice and avid gardener's skills to grow flowers and vegetables fruitfully. Please visit the local Extension website for a full schedule of topics, dates and locations of upcoming classes – web....
Originally published by Kelly Allsup on June 21, 2016.
Did you know that with minimal investment, you can open a hotel? Insect hotels offer places for beneficial insects and pollinators to survive winter's chill and to nest in spring and summer. You can use them to employ garden warriors in any flower bed, vegetable garden, or fruit orchard.
Insect hotels can be all sizes, from a small box filled with materials to an elaborate structure ready for many residents. Most insect hotels...
The University of Illinois Extension would like to congratulate Livingston County Master Gardener, Cathy Montgomery, for being recognized as a 2016 Outstanding Illinois Master Gardener. Retired school teacher turned Master Gardener volunteer; she has continued her life's work of making a difference in the community and touching the lives of our area youth through horticulture education. In her short tenure as a Master Gardener, her volunteer services and contributions to the Master Gardener...
Originally published by Kelly Allsup on December 3, 2016.
Start your gardening endeavors this fall by using plant materials (organic matter) that you would normally put on the curb for pick-up. Whether you use the trench, keyhole, mound (also known as Hugelkultur) gardening methods, you will be creating a growing environment that requires no fertilizer, little irrigation and ideal for root growth.
From a fertility standpoint, 10 percent organic matter is preferred for vegetables and...
Large numbers of syrphid, or flower, flies are being seen. They are small flies, usually 1/4 inch or shorter, with yellow and black or brown bands on the abdomen. They hover around your arms when you have been perspiring and land to lap up the sweat. This hovering also gives them the name of hover flies. They are called flower flies because they are commonly found on flowers, pollinating as they move from flower to flower. They are called syrphid flies because they are in the fly family...
Spring Sweetness: StrawberriesStrawberry Facts 1. It takes 15-60 visits from pollinators for one plump strawberries. Adding pollinators to the garden can increase yield by over 500%. 2. Strawberry plants decline in quality and production after a few years so are typically replanted. 3. Strawberries are picked with part of the stem still attached. 4. Seventy per cent of a strawberry's roots are located in the top three inches of soil. 5. On average,...
One of the most prolific birds of prey seen in Illinois is the Red -tailed Hawk. They are frequently seen along roadsides perched in trees, on light poles, and fence poles. When you see a hawk, you are most likely seeing a Red -tailed Hawk. Red-tailed Hawks are large hawks with rounded wings and short tails. There are several "morphs" of the Red-tailed Hawk, but they are most commonly brown above and pale beneath. The belly and chest often have some brown streaking. When in flight, a dark...
Woolly aphids typically feed on two hosts during a 1-year period, with most species apparently having to switch hosts. This host-switching occurs in various species from late June to late July, and fuzzy adult females that look like flying lint seemingly drifting on the wind are their means of getting to the other host. Once reaching their summer host, they feed and give birth to additional wingless generations of females, producing winged individuals that fly back to the other host in...
Top Tree Diseases & Insects Workshop Please join University of Illinois Extension Horticulture- Livingston, McLean and Woodford County for a series of workshops designed to teach the community how to grow. The workshops will be sure to teach both novice and avid gardener's skills to grow flowers and vegetables fruitfully. Please visit the local Extension website for a full schedule of topics, dates and locations of upcoming classes –...
EUREKA, Ill. – Please join University of Illinois Extension Woodford County Master Gardeners at the Eureka Public Library on September 12 from 4:30 to 6 p.m. Whether you want to sit and talk about gardening or ask about a specific issue that you would like them to research, please visit the Woodford County Master Gardeners at their monthly help desk. In August they identified trees and weeds, talked about fruit trees and answered questions about the infamous tomato hornworm.University of...
Join the McLean County Master Gardeners to celebrate the 2016 Herb of the Year BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – And the 2016 Herb of the Year is – peppers! The University of Illinois Extension McLean County Master Gardeners are ready to celebrate! Join them 9:30 a.m. on July 16 at the Illinois State University Horticulture Center, where the Master Gardeners will utilize their recently planted herb garden to demonstrate what the pepper (Capsicum spp.) has to offer. To be chosen as Herb of the Year, an herb...
One thing I constantly get asked when assisting with the Master Gardener help desks, is "How do I grow grass under a tree?" The answer usually is, "You don't grow grass under trees." It can be very difficult to create a nice-looking stand because most grasses need sun to grow and the roots of trees (especially if they are shallow) will steal the water and nutrients. The solutions can be to create a mulch ring around the base of the tree or grow a ground cover. Growing a ground cover can be...
Kokedama String Ball Garden WorkshopEL PASO, Ill. – Due to its recent successes at the Eureka Library, the Kokedama String Ball Garden Workshop is back by popular demand. This exceptional make-and-take workshop, presented by the Woodford County Master Gardeners, will be offered again at 6:30 p.m. Thursday, December 8 at the El Paso Library. No registration fee is required to hear University of Illinois Extension Master Gardeners, Karel Kaufman and Karen...
Few people like 90+ degree temperatures. Plants aren't far behind. On hot days, plants can lose water faster than roots absorb it, even if sufficient soil moisture is available. In these conditions, you can watch the plants wilt, leaves droop, and stems seem to flop. If the soil is moist, the plants start to recover as the sun sets. By morning, they look turgid, only to begin the cycle again when the sun shines hard. This is what we are currently seeing in Illinois. It's only when the plants...
Two gardening tasks for autumn BLOOMINGTON, Ill. – University of Illinois Extension Horticulture Educator Kelly Allsup recommends two essential gardening tasks to do this fall: fertilize your trees and refrain from cleaning up your perennial garden. Fall is a great time to fertilize trees; roots remain active in absorbing nutrients and water despite the leaves falling off of the tree. Fertilizing trees is a great way to reduce the environmental stresses of the growing season...
Peas, leafy greens, potatoes, Swiss chard, tomatoes and numerous herbs have thus far been harvested from my straw bale garden this year, states University of Illinois Extension Horticulture Educator, Kelly Allsup. The bales are lined up in pairs standing just east of her driveway, close to a water source. Every now and then, Allsup spies a 4-year-old grazing on onion greens and Swiss chard. The tomato plants can only be described as lush and fruitful. The mint, basil, oregano, rosemary and...
Four Seasons Gardening Program Offers Spring Series The spring series of University of Illinois Extension's Four Seasons Gardening program, which focuses on environmental stewardship, home gardening, and backyard food production gets underway this month. The first session of the series is titled, WaterSmart Gardening. The program is offered at 1:30 p.m. on Tuesday, April 26 at University of Illinois Extension McLean County office, 1615 Commerce Parkway, Bloomington...