Signup to receive email updates
Authors

John Fulton
Former County Extension Director
Recent Posts
Blog Archives
- March 2017 (7)
- February 2017 (2)
- December 2016 (1)
- October 2016 (4)
- September 2016 (7)
- August 2016 (12)
- July 2016 (9)
- June 2016 (11)
- May 2016 (5)
- April 2016 (8)
- March 2016 (11)
- February 2016 (2)
- December 2015 (1)
- November 2015 (2)
- October 2015 (6)
- September 2015 (8)
- August 2015 (9)
- July 2015 (10)
- June 2015 (7)
- May 2015 (6)
- April 2015 (8)
- March 2015 (5)
- October 2014 (3)
- September 2014 (5)
- August 2014 (7)
- July 2014 (10)
- June 2014 (10)
- May 2014 (10)
- April 2014 (8)
- March 2014 (3)
- December 2013 (2)
- October 2013 (6)
- September 2013 (2)
- August 2013 (4)
- July 2013 (4)
- June 2013 (7)
- May 2013 (11)
- April 2013 (8)
- March 2013 (3)
- February 2013 (2)
- November 2012 (1)
- October 2012 (3)
- September 2012 (2)
- August 2012 (1)
- July 2012 (9)
- June 2012 (3)
- May 2012 (6)
- April 2012 (4)
- March 2012 (5)
- January 2012 (1)
- December 2011 (1)
- November 2011 (2)
- October 2011 (7)
- September 2011 (6)
- August 2011 (9)
- July 2011 (11)
- June 2011 (10)
- May 2011 (7)
- April 2011 (10)
- March 2011 (11)
- January 2011 (1)
- November 2010 (1)
- October 2010 (10)
- September 2010 (6)
- August 2010 (6)
- July 2010 (12)
- June 2010 (12)
- May 2010 (12)
- April 2010 (12)
- March 2010 (10)
- February 2010 (3)
- January 2010 (2)
- December 2009 (3)
- November 2009 (4)
- October 2009 (6)
- September 2009 (8)
- August 2009 (10)
- July 2009 (10)
- June 2009 (16)
- May 2009 (9)
- April 2009 (16)
- March 2009 (7)
- February 2009 (1)
- January 2009 (4)
- December 2008 (7)
- November 2008 (2)
- October 2008 (8)
- September 2008 (8)
- August 2008 (10)
- July 2008 (4)
- June 2008 (13)
- May 2008 (10)
- April 2008 (12)
- March 2008 (5)
- February 2008 (2)
- January 2008 (5)
- December 2007 (4)
- November 2007 (4)
- October 2007 (11)
- September 2007 (11)
- August 2007 (12)
- July 2007 (8)
- June 2007 (11)
- May 2007 (18)
- April 2007 (17)
- March 2007 (11)
- February 2007 (3)
732 Total Posts
follow our RSS feed

Wednesday, June 25, 2014
Pruning Evergreens
This is the time of year to wrap up pruning chores on evergreens. This includes both needle-type and broadleaf evergreens. If you're wondering what a broadleaf evergreen is, that includes holly, rhododendron, and azalea. The logic behind pruning your yews at this time is to allow sufficient time for regrowth to become hardened off before winter, and to keep new growth from becoming too rank bef...
Wednesday, June 25, 2014
Japanese Beetles
The Japanese beetle emergence is underway. I caught the first beetles on June 17 in a pheromone trap north of Lincoln. Favored plants include Japanese maple, Norway maple, Horse chestnut, Hollyhock, Flowering crabapple, Apple, Cherry, Peach, Rose, Mountain ash, Linden, and Grape. There are other plants that are seldom attacked such as Red maple, Silver maple, Boxwood, Flowering dogwood, Euonymu...
Friday, June 20, 2014
First Japanese Beetles of 2014
The first Japanese beetles of 2014 have emerged in the Lincoln, Illinois area. I caught four of them in my pheromone trap located just north of Lincoln on June 19th. Remember, these beetles will attract others to places where they begin feeding by giving off pheromones to attract others....
Friday, June 20, 2014
What Looks Like a Lightening Bug without the light? - Soldier or Leatherwing Beetle
Leatherwing beetles, or soldier beetles, have been with us a short while – they seem to gather particularly where linden trees are shedding pollen. They look like pale lightning bugs, but don't have the light. These beetles are elongate, soft-bodied and about 1/2 inch long. Colors of soldier beetles vary from yellow to red with brown or black wings or trim. A common and easily-spotted species i...
Friday, June 20, 2014
Potato Leafhopper
Potato leafhopper populations have exploded in the last week. These are the small, pale green, wedge-shaped insects we often see around lights at night. The main garden crop they affect is, guess this one, the potato. The leafhoppers may also infect green beans, alfalfa, and a large number of perennials. They suck sap, and inject a toxin back into the plant. The first sign is a yellow "v" at th...
Friday, June 20, 2014
Tomato Blossom End Rot
Blossom end rot is a non-pathogenic disease that is very common during extended dry periods. It also seems to be worse on tomatoes grown in containers. It begins as light tan water-soaked lesion on the blossom end of the fruit. The lesions enlarge and turn black and leathery. This can drastically lower the yield and lower marketability of the fruits. Fluctuating soil moisture supply during the...
Friday, June 13, 2014
Bagworms
After some very severe infestations of bagworms the past few years, the calls have been coming in all year on the correct treatment times for bagworms this year.Year-in and year-out, the correct treatment time for bagworms is June 15. You can mark this date on your calendar for next year and be within a few days of the correct treatment time. With a very cool spring, a week later may be a possi...
Friday, June 13, 2014
Iron Chorosis - light colored leaves with darker veins
It's that time of year when iron chlorosis has started to show up again as the yellowing of leaves with a darker green color immediately around the veins in a leaf. This usually shows up on the younger leaves first. This yellowing is particularly noticeable on pin oaks and sweet gums, but may be seen on other species. The cause is the lack of available iron for the plant. There can be...
Monday, June 9, 2014
Herbicide Injury
As if trees didn’t have enough leaf problems with the diseases, herbicide drift has shown up in a big way this past week or so. Particularly noticeable is drift damage on tomatoes and grapes. All cases I have seen, the herbicides involved have been members of the growth regulator group. This group includes products such as 2,4-D and dicamba (Banvel.) Both products are used in agricultural produ...
Monday, June 9, 2014
Planting Pumpkins
If you haven’t sown pumpkins for fall decoration, usually around Father’s Day is the correct timing. Vining pumpkins need at least 50 – 100 square feet per hill, with the larger pumpkins requiring the larger area. Hills should be five to six feet apart and rows of hills should be 10 – 15 feet apart. Each hill should have about four seeds per hill, planted about an inch deep. The miniature varie...