If you’re looking for a plant that will make your garden stand out, consider the seven-son flower, an unusual shrub that makes a splash twice each year.
Seven son will bring eyes to your garden
Category: Home and Garden
While scary, cicada killer wasps serve an important purpose
If this insect truly is a nuisance for you, then use mulch, plant groundcovers or install sod to cover bare soil areas.
What’s eating my tomato plants?
The leaves of my tomato plant are being eaten by something. Some of the stems are completely bare of leaves. Is there anything I can do to protect my plants? — Steve Goldman, Skokie I suspect you have a tomato hornworm or tobacco hornworm caterpillar that is eating your tomato. Small tomato hornworms are yellow […]
Beetle battle in your yard? Here’s what to do.
What is less lovely than a summer blossom? The sight of a Japanese beetle on that blossom, shiny as an oil slick. “We’re hearing quite a few reports about the beetles this year,” according to Sharon Yiesla, plant knowledge specialist in the Plant Clinic at The Morton Arboretum in Lisle. The iridescent bugs feed on […]
Landmarks: ‘Globally rare’ habitat in Lockport gets an $8 million boost, Army Corps attention
Landmarks: Lockport Prairie Nature Preserve, a habitat virtually untouched since the ice age, gets an $8 million Army Corps boost.
Trees come and go, but you can help keep heritage trees alive
A big old tree speaks of history. Somehow, as cities rise, roads are paved and widened, buildings are torn down and replaced, as the very atmosphere of the earth is changing, a few majestic green giants survive. Kris Bachtell loves big old trees and he knows many of them. As vice president for collections and horticulture […]
Plants need help to survive summer heat
When summer heat waves hit, most people can seek out air conditioning. Plants can’t. “They’re rooted in place, so they have to deal with whatever comes along,” said Sharon Yiesla, plant knowledge specialist in the Plant Clinic at The Morton Arboretum in Lisle. “Stretches of severe heat can be hard on them.” How well a plant handles hot weather depends largely on the climate in the place it originally came from. Many of the annual flowers we use in gardens and containers, such as petunias, zinnias and begonias, as well as vegetables such as tomatoes, peppers and cucumbers, come from […]
Hungry rabbits ruining your yard? Here’s the fix.
It looks like an animal is eating my perennial plants this spring, and some plants seem to be completely gone. What could this be and how can I protect my plants? — Beth Jackson, Evanston I understand the desire to protect your plants, but as with any pest problem in the garden, it is important […]
Tree chlorosis may go unnoticed
We planted a river birch tree in our backyard three years ago and I noticed that the leaves have a strange looking yellow cast to them. When we looked more closely, there were some leaves turning brown too. What can we do to help our tree? — Burt Davison, North Chicago From your description, it’s […]
A wet spring encourages fungal disease
If you have a peach tree, this may not be your year for peach ice cream. After an especially wet spring, many trees are afflicted with peach leaf curl, a fungal disease. “It’s mostly a leaf disease, but it can also affect fruit production,” said Spencer Campbell, Plant Clinic manager at The Morton Arboretum near […]