Home and Garden – Page 5

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...

Children interact with bug puppets from The Puppet Zoo during Insect Fest on Thursday, July 16, at Cummings Square in River Forest. The event ended an hour early because of air quality concerns. (Cam'ron Hardy/Pioneer Press)

Not bugged by air quality, hundreds show up for Insect Fest in River Forest

By Cam'ron Hardy

July 17, 2026 at 12:27 p.m.

The Forest Preserves of Cook County annual Insect Fest in River Forest ended an hour...

Hostas are valuable not just as workhorse foliage plants for shade, but also as charming summer-flowering perennials. (Beth Botts/The Morton Arboretum)

Hostas are easy-care and long-lived — and they bloom

By Beth Botts

July 12, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Most gardeners choose hostas not for their flowers but for their foliage, a tidy tuft...

Dahlias grow best in full-sun sites. (RJ Carlson/Chicago Botanic Garden)

Show-stopping dahlias do have demands

By Tim Johnson

July 11, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Dahlias are fast-growing and require even moisture during the growing season.

Visitors admire a bicycle that has been turned into a planter in a yard on South Wood Street in 2021 during the Beverly Area Planning Association Garden Walk. This year's garden walk is July 12. (Susan DeGrane/Daily Southtown)

Around the Southland: Gardens of Beverly, Morgan Park and Midlothian on display July 12

By Melinda Moore

July 8, 2026 at 3:54 p.m.

News from around the Southland includes items from Beverly, Morgan Park, Oak Lawn, Glenwood, Palos...

Poison hemlock has fernlike leaves and develops tall stalks topped with clusters of white flowers. All parts of the plant are toxic to ingest. (Sharon Yiesla/The Morton Arboretum)

Watch out for poison plant with fernlike leaves

By Beth Botts

July 5, 2026 at 5:01 a.m.

Because poison hemlock spreads easily by seed, it’s important to remove or control it before...

Weeding grass out of beds will take patience and persistence.
(RJ Carlson/Chicago Botanic Garden)

How to get rid of grass in garden bed

By Tim Johnson

July 4, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Grass is difficult to eradicate once it gets established in the crowns of perennials and...

Planting can be done all summer long. (RJ Carlson/Chicago Botanic Garden)

Is it OK to plant at the end of June?

By Tim Johnson

June 28, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Chicago Botanic Garden staff continue to plant all summer long.

From left: Justin Corbett stands next to his father, Michael Corbett, seated, in their family's store, The Federalist Antiques on June 25, 2026. After 54 years of business, the antique store has plans to close June 27. (Claire Murphy/Pioneer Press)

Kenilworth’s Federalist Antiques closes after 54 years of business

By Claire Murphy

June 29, 2026 at 3:29 p.m.

The Federalist Antiques in Kenilworth will close its doors after 54 years of business on...

Japanese beetles, which spend most of the year as grubs in the soil of lawns, emerge in summer as adults that eat the tissue between the leaf veins of plants. (Sharon Yiesla/The Morton Arboretum)

To fight Japanese beetles, don’t overwater grass

By Beth Botts

June 27, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

Here are some tips from the Plant Clinic for coping with Japanese beetles and grubs.

The loss of a large shade tree will increase the amount of sun for your garden. (Jeff Carrion/Chicago Botanic Garden)

Try to wait until winter to remove dead trees

By Tim Johnson

June 21, 2026 at 5:00 a.m.

You may want to wait until winter or late fall to remove a dead tree...