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Landscape Design Blogs

spring flowers in a flower bed with mulch

Select the best mulch for your garden

ILRiverHort
There are many types of mulch that can be used in landscapes and gardens. Here are some things to consider as you choose the mulch that works best for your space. Benefits of mulch Even though there are different types of mulch, they do have some important things in common.  One of the big...
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Low-water use landscapes

ILRiverHort
Written by Rhonda Ferree, retired horticulture educator My son Derek just moved to Monterey California to attend graduate school at the Middlebury Institute for International Studies. California has been in a drought for a very long time, and so water conservation is a real concern there...
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Chicago Landscape Design Styles

ILRiverHort
Written by Rhonda Ferree, retired horticulture educator Recently I helped lead a bus trip to Chicago for Bradley's OLLI (Osher Lifelong Learning Institute) program. On the way to Chicago I spoke on the bus about the history of landscaping in Chicago. Although we are far from Chicago, some...
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Annual herbs as landscape plants

ILRiverHort
Written by Rhonda Ferree, retired horticulture educator Herbs taste great, but they also make great landscape plants. I think that herbs are some of the easiest plants to grow. They have very few pest problems and grow in many types of gardens, from formal herb gardens to small patio...
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Twisty Curvy Plants

ILRiverHort
Written by Rhonda Ferree, retired horticulture educator Twisty curvy and weeping plants are fun to look at, but hard to use in the landscape. They are so unique and special that they must have a special spot to really work. Most should be used as a planned focal point, since they...
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