Beth Botts

As our gardens begin to come into their full beauty, let's think for a minute about one of their hidden costs: invasive plants.

Don’t forget to plant for nectar, the food reward that entices animals to provide the service of fertilizing plants.

The gardening season is also the composting season. Making your own compost — the dark brown, crumbly remains of decayed plants — is a great way to

When a northern catalpa tree blooms in early summer, it’s a lovely sight. Impressive clusters of big, white, trumpet-shaped flowers with purple throats appear on a tall tree with huge, heart-shaped leaves.“It can be a great tree, if you…

Early summer, when plants are still green from spring rains, is the time to think ahead to the hot, dry days of July and August.

These shrubs are tough, adaptable and hardy, so it’s no surprise they’re popular with gardeners.

Now is the time to look out for one of our most conspicuous garden pests: the Japanese beetle. “In recent years they have been showing up in the

Have you spotted an unfamiliar fernlike plant in an unexpected place in your yard? Check it out: It might be poison hemlock.

Now is the time to look out for one of our most conspicuous garden pests: the Japanese beetle. “In recent years they have been showing up in the third week of June,” said Sharon Yiesla, plant know...

Do you notice when your hostas bloom? “Hostas often don't get credit for being flowering perennials, but that's what they are,” said Sharon Yiesla, plant knowledge specialist in the Plant Clinic at The Morton Arboretum in Lisle.