Home and Garden – Page 3

By simply raking fallen leaves onto your garden beds, you can provide your plants with a healthy, protective, soil-building layer of free mulch. (Beth Botts/The Morton Arboretum)

Don’t let fallen leaves go to waste

By Beth Botts

October 25, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Nature never wastes a leaf.

Fall tree color at the Chicago Botanic Garden. (Jeff Carrion/Chicago Botanic Garden)

Peak fall color in Chicago area now on display

By Tim Johnson

October 24, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

When you understand the basics of fall color and monitor the weather, you will be...

Rats walk through an alley on the 1900 block of North Halsted Street Tuesday Aug. 12, 2025, in Chicago. The village of Franklin Park is seeking input from residents via an advisory referendum on if it should ban fruit trees in residential neighborhoods to help reduce rodent populations that might feed on fallen fruit. (Armando L. Sanchez/baiduhai)

Franklin Park seeks voter input on potential fruit tree ban to combat rodents

By Alicia Fabbre

October 23, 2026 at 2:13 p.m.

Franklin Park voters are being asked in an advisory referendum if the village should ban...

Veronica is one of the spring- and early summer-blooming perennials that are best divided in fall. (Beth Botts/The Morton Arboretum)

Divide perennials while soil is warm

By Beth Botts

September 5, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

As a general rule, fall dividing is best for plants that bloom in spring or...

Use your fingers to squeeze the pulp and seeds from the inside of the fruit into a glass container. (RJ Carlson/Chicago Botanic Garden)

It’s easy to save seeds from your favorite plant

By Tim Johnson

September 5, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Seeds that are properly stored can remain viable for several years.

Elizabeth and Hunter Case stand in their backyard in Old Town as they look at the Wacker House next door on Aug. 21, 2026. The owner stripped lead paint from the exterior of the historic home, exposing the Cases’ young daughter to the substance. (Eileen T. Meslar/baiduhai)

Lead exposure, lost history and a runaround: How changes to the Wacker House go beyond a preservation fight

By Tess Kenny

September 2, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

For years, an Old Town homeowner has been making unlawful alterations to his property —...

Wes Sanders makes an adjustment on his O scale model railroad in the basement of his Palos Park home. The railroad was the hook for a recent fundraiser Sanders and his wife hosted for the McCord Gallery and Cultural Center. (Jim Dudlicek/Daily Southtown)

Art imitates life in massive Palos Park model train display

By Jim Dudlicek

September 1, 2026 at 5:02 a.m.

A model train display that fills a Palos Park basement was the subject of a...

A lawn takes on an off-green to brownish color as it goes dormant during dry periods. (RJ Carlson/Chicago Botanic Garden)

When’s the best time to water the lawn?

By Tim Johnson

August 30, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Watering at night can extend the period that the grass is wet.

When planting a tree in early fall, make sure that you don’t bury the root flare — the place where the trunk flares out into the roots. (The Morton Arboretum)

Plant a tree in early fall

By Beth Botts

August 29, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Fall is nearly here. That makes it a good time to plant a tree.

Butterfly milkweed (Asceplias tuberosa), shown here growing companionably with a non-native geranium, is one of the pollinator-friendly prairie plants that do well in gardens.

Prairie flowers can charm in gardens

By Beth Botts

August 23, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Tips for which prairie flowers to use in your garden.

The Drake Oak Brook Hotel owner Jim Nagle, from left, gathers with staff landscapers John Pascente and Mauricio Cruz, at The Drake Gardens, which recently earned arboretum status in a program administered by the Morton Arboretum. (The Drake Oak Brook)

The Drake Oak Brook hotel earns arboretum status for its grounds

By Chuck Fieldman

August 21, 2026 at 11:48 a.m.

The Drake Gardens at Drake Oak Brook hotel recently earned arboretum status in a program...

Suckers — stems that grow from the base of a tree — often are a response to stress. Consider the reason for them when you prune them out. (Beth Botts/The Morton Arboretum)

Tree suckers may be signs of stress

By Beth Botts

August 16, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Before you prune out the suckers to tidy up the tree, it’s always a good...

Yellow jackets are considered beneficial insects that pollinate flowers. They prefer sugary foods and nectar from flowers, but will eat your picnic food that’s left outside. (RJ Carlson / Chicago Botanic Garden)

Late summer is the time of year for yellow jackets

By Tim Johnson

August 15, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Yellow jackets can be annoying when you are trying to eat outside in late summer,...