Host plants support insects, particularly caterpillars, by providing food in the form of leaves! For some species of butterflies, they only have one host plant that caterpillars can eat (think monarch caterpillars and milkweed). You absolutely want host plants in your garden! And if you see a chewed up leaf- hooray!! Wild Lupine: Hosts the […] Continue reading "Plant Sale Preview: Native Host Plants"
Let us help you keep track of your must-haves for the native plant sale! This two page document includes all of the plants that will be available, along with some helpful tips to consider when planning your garden. We will continue to feature and highlight various plants leading up to the sale. So- print out […] Continue reading "Plant Sale Planning Guide"
Who’s excited for the plant sale!? We will be highlighting different native plants in the weeks leading up to our spring plant sale, to help you come ready with a list of your must-haves! First up is for all you purple people out there! (I am one of them ) Anise hyssop: 3-4 ft tall, […] Continue reading "Plant Sale Preview: Native Purple Flowers"
written by Emma Harmon By now, you have probably heard to “leave the leaves” in the fall for overwintering insects. But what else can we do to create habitat in our gardens over winter? Here are some views of my garden right now, in late March. In the later spring, after overwintering insects and queen […] Continue reading "Must-Haves for your Winter & Early Spring Garden"
Our annual Symposium is coming up soon! Join us next month at Western Illinois campus in Moline for a panel discussion, breakout sessions, garden tour, therapy dogs, and of course- pizza! Here is the schedule of events for that evening. We look forward to seeing you there! Continue reading "WIU Symposium- schedule of events"
Have you noticed a few changes around here? It’s very exciting! The national Wild Ones organization has been working behind the scenes to develop updates to our branding and websites. Our chapter has also been working on adding more information to our website! Our web menu now has more options, including a Volunteer page which […] Continue reading "Navigating our Updated Website"
written by Paul Crosser Perhaps you have similar areas on your property that you have been ‘fixin’ to modify or remove one of these days. My daughter kept looking at the good old sandbox I built for my grandchildren about 10 years ago. They are hitting the teen years now and the old sandbox sadly […] Continue reading "Sandbox Conversion = Native Plants"
The Home Grown Native Plants workshop series is presented by Eleanor Schumacher, Illinois Project Wingspan State Coordinator. Project Wingspan is a volunteer-based native wildflower seed collection and redistribution initiative overseen by Pollinator Partnership. This webinar series consists of eight workshops taking place between January and September. Each is a casual, friendly, hour-long Zoom talk broadcasting […] Continue reading "Take a Look: Project Wingspan"
written by Emma Harmon One of the biggest surprises I experienced when I began gardening was how much I enjoy the garden in every season. Each change in weather brings a new way to view my plants: seeing the vibrant colors after a fresh spring rain, the grasses swaying on a breezy summer evening, the […] Continue reading "Winter in the Native Garden"
written by Jerry McConoughey In the spring of 2017 I was given the opportunity to start a new garden in Riverside Park dedicated to native plants. It was a small area, just 86 square feet, 20 feet long, five and a half feet wide at the east end, and three and a half feet wide […] Continue reading "Starting a Native Plant Garden"