University of Illinois Extension
MACOMB, Ill. — We often spend more time inside looking outside during the Illinois winter. Perhaps one of the most popular activities for many of us is watching the birds. Gazing across my backyard this past winter, I learned something fascinating about the relationship between blue jays and oak trees. My journey of observation began…
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JACKSONVILLE, Ill. — Sunflowers are a great addition to the home garden. Not only do they provide colorful flowers, but they also can be a potential food source for people and wildlife. With various shapes, sizes, and bloom colors, sunflowers are an easy plant to incorporate into your landscape. Despite typically being grown as ornamental…
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URBANA, Ill. – The University of Illinois Extension recently welcomed Amy Lefringhouse to serve as a natural resources, environment and energy educator in Adams, Brown, Hancock, Pike, and Schuyler counties in Western Illinois. County Director Shelby Crow says this position involves a partnership with John Wood Community College. “We are proud to serve local residents with expertise and education in specialized areas…
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MACOMB, Ill. — Winter may be an odd time to read about an insect only seen during the warmer months. Yet, I can’t help but marvel at the architecture of the baldfaced hornet’s nest, which has been revealed in the canopy of trees after leaf drop. This winter, I have seen several baldfaced hornet nests…
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QUINCY — The 26th annual Gardener’s Palette all-day conference, offered by the University of Illinois Extension Master Gardeners, offers educational sessions for all levels of gardening interest and experience. It will be held from 9 a.m. to 3:15 p.m. March 5 at the Quincy Senior & Family Resource Center, 639 York. Check-in will begin at…
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JACKSONVILLE, Ill. — Garden and seed catalogs have been arriving for a while now. When flipping through catalogs, it’s easy to get overwhelmed with all the choices. Unfortunately, you probably don’t have room (or time) to grow everything you see, no matter how amazing it seems. So how should you go about choosing what vegetables…
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JACKSONVILLE, Ill. — We don’t often think much about insect pests outside of the occasional pantry pest or accidental invader during the winter months. That doesn’t mean our plants won’t have insect problems. This is particularly true for houseplants, where insect pests often seem to arrive out of nowhere. Common houseplant pests Spider mites are…
Read Full Article MACOMB, Ill. — “Act as if what you do makes a difference. It does.” This quote, which has likely made it onto posters in classrooms and by the coffee pot in the breakroom, is from philosopher William James. A new year is often heralded with a renewed sense of hope. A restart! However, the older…
Read Full Article MACOMB, Ill. — From a horticultural perspective, the term “habit” is not what you think. There are certainly bad habits in gardening, like not cleaning soil off tools or buying plants with no feasible location to plant them. When you hear a horticulturist say the term “habit,” what that person is referring to is the…
Read Full Article URBANA, Ill. — For 46 years, University of Illinois Extension Master Gardeners have measured success by gardens planted, insects identified, produce harvested, and the millions of hours volunteers have logged by helping others learn to grow. From farms and small-town to suburbs and the inner city, more than 2,600 volunteers statewide put their mission of “helping others…
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JACKSONVILLE, Ill. — Once you’ve picked the last of your fruits this season, you may think your work with your fruit plants is over until spring. However, a few tasks can be done in the fall to set yourself up for a successful growing season next year. Tree Fruit One of the most important things…
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JACKSONVILLE, Ill. — As the gardening season winds down, many of us will begin cleaning up our landscapes for the winter. While cutting back dead plants and raking leaves can make for a clean-looking yard, it may not be the best thing for pollinators and other wildlife that inhabit our landscapes. How should we approach…
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MACOMB, Ill. — When the calendar turns from October to November, our toothy Jack-o’-lanterns start to look like deflated basketballs. This means millions of Americans need to dispose of billions of pumpkins. When many people toss these festive yet mushy winter squash into the trash, it adds an immense amount of organic material into the…
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JACKSONVILLE, Ill. — The days are getting shorter, and the temperatures are finally getting cooler, meaning fall has arrived. While many of our gardening activities are starting to wind down, it’s time to start thinking about planting our spring-blooming bulbs. Bulbs such as crocus, tulips, daffodils, as well as a host of others, can provide…
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JACKSONVILLE, Ill. — Irises are some of the most popular flowers in gardens. They are easy to grow, long-lived and relatively carefree perennials. They also can be found in a variety of colors — pink, purple, yellow, peach, green, white, tan, bronze, almost black and bi-color. If you grow bearded irises, you may have noticed that…
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December 19, 2024
FRANKIE SAY: MACY FERGUSON-SMITH
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