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ILRiverHort

Helping new and experienced gardeners develop their skills and knowledge while encouraging everyone to enjoy the outdoors.

Latest Posts

Start saving your seeds today!

Getting Started with Seed Saving If you find the perfect tasting tomato, harvesting and saving the seed will ensure you can have that tomato again next season. The seed stores the genetic information for a new plant. With a bit of practice and patience, you can have the seeds of your favorite...
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The Poinsettia: How to enjoy it longer than a season

The colorful poinsettia is a beautiful addition to end-of-the-year holiday festivities. One of the most common questions about poinsettias is how to keep them and get them to rebloom the following season.  The first step to reblooming is to keep the plant healthy and growing throughout the year....
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Colorful amaryllis to brighten up your colorless winter days

The large, colorful blooms of the Amaryllis can brighten dreary winter days. This South American native has showy flowers in a range of colors from white to pink to red. Amaryllis is a beautiful addition to holiday or winter décor. Getting Started Often you will find Amaryllis sold as a bulb in a...
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Paperwhites: A hint of spring in the darkest winter

The delicate paperwhites, Narcissus tazetta, are a lovely way to brighten winter days.  These relatives of the daffodil are an excellent choice for winter blooms as they don’t require a chilling period as other bulbs do. Paperwhites have a cluster of small blooms at the end of a flower stalk (...
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Sharing and caring for the Poinsettia

The beautiful Poinsettia is a colorful plant that brightens dark winter days. Whether you use it to decorate for the holiday season or it was given to you as a gift, giving the plant the care it needs can keep it colorful for six to eight weeks in the home. The showy-colored parts of the...
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Find the ideal Poinsettia

The festive poinsettia, Euphorbia pulcherrima, is a lovely addition to holiday décor. The bright, cheery plant, a native to Mexico, comes in many colors and sizes making it a good choice to brighten up the long, dark days of winter. The showy colored parts of the poinsettia are colored...
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Make your plants part of your family: Indoor kitchen gardens

Growing food is not limited to outdoors in the summer. With some planning, you can grow food indoors throughout the year. Make a plan Before starting your indoor kitchen garden, it is essential to think about what you want to gain by growing food indoors. You might wish to have herbs to give...
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The ABC of seed saving

At first: Why save seeds?  Saving seeds is a great way to save money and be prepared for the following year, but it is also a way to pick out the best of what you have grown and save seeds from that specimen (flower, vegetable, etc.). With each successive year, you will...
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Cover crops to the rescue

Healthy soil is essential for healthy plants.  Using cover crops in the home garden is one way to promote soil health.  Cover crops are non-harvested crops that add organic matter to the soil, transfer nitrogen by creating nitrogen compounds usable by plants, and break up heavy clay or compacted...
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Microclovers making a comeback as lawns become more diverse

What you need to know Clovers are making a comeback in lawn seed mixes. Today many families want to attract more pollinators to their yards. They are searching for ecologically sound ways to grow grass, including adding white clover back to the turf seed mix. Clover adds diversity and durability...
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