Good Growing

Welcome to the Good Growing podcast! In this episode, horticulture educators Chris Enroth and Ken Johnson from the University of Illinois Extension delve into the 2025 Perennial Plant of the Year: Clustered Mountain Mint (Pycnanthemum muticum). Join us as we explore the unique characteristics, growing tips, and ecological benefits of this native plant. Skip to what you want to know: 00:35    Hey K...

In this episode, horticulture educators Chris Enroth, Ken Johnson, and Emily Swihart dive deep into the fascinating world of dogwoods (genus Cornus ). Whether you're a seasoned gardener or just starting out, you'll discover the diverse beauty and versatility of dogwoods, from majestic trees to charming shrubs and even groundcovers. Watch us on YouTube https://youtu.be/_eCVKqEyFm8 Skip to what you...

This week on the Good Growing Podcast Ken and Chris reminisce about 2024. We look at you favorite episodes and share our favorite moments. From cicadas to using dynamite to blow up your landscape, you will enjoy this trip down memory lane. Skip to what you want to know:  00:39 Hey Ken! How was winter break? 02:01 How we assembled our year-in-review highlights. Top three YouTube podcast episodes 03...

Illinois Extension's core mission is to be a source of research-based knowledge that helps community members solve challenges and improve their lives. On this week’s Good Growing podcast, Chris and Emily are joined by horticulture educators Sarah Vogel and Ryan Pankau to discuss the upcoming Community Tree Care series. This only learning opportunity is open to anyone who cares about trees or does...

Welcome to the Good Growing podcast! In this special gardenbite episode, horticulture educator Chris Enroth from the University of Illinois Extension revisits a fascinating 2021 webinar where the team delved into the world of tree nuts. This episode focuses on the beloved chestnut, featuring insights from horticulture educator Ken Johnson. Highlights: History and Significance: Discover the rich hi...

When most people think of poinsettias, they think of red, but they can be found in a variety of colors and forms. On this week’s Good Growing Podcast, we discuss our trip to the N.G. Heimos Poinsettia Trial. Learn about the wide variety of colors and forms of poinsettias that were on display, some of our favorite varieties, and more!      Watch us on YouTube: https://youtu.be/sPrESNYNOzk     Skip...

This week on the Good Growing Podcast, Emily Swihart joins Ken and Chris to discuss our favorite gardening and landscaping books. We discuss reference books, fiction and nonfiction, and even children's books. Beyond our favorites, we also interviewed our fellow horticulture educators to get their recommendations. This is a longer episode, so be sure to use the timestamps in the episode description...

The holiday season is here, which means evergreens, poinsettias, amaryllis, and other holiday plants have arrived in stores. Plants are often at the center of our holiday decorations and traditions and are frequently given as gifts. Whether you’re buying them as gifts or for yourself, learn about what to look for when selecting your holiday plants and how to transport them to avoid cold weather da...

This week, we have a Gardenbite excerpt from our webinar, in which we discussed wildlife damage in the home landscape. In this clip, Chris details two common rodents in Illinois that tend to pop up in the winter months around the outside and inside of our homes: the vole and the mouse. While the vole is an active pest outside during the winter, many Illinoisians also deal with mice in the home thi...

When cold weather arrives, it brings the end of the vegetable gardening season for many of us. That doesn’t have to be the case though. On this week’s Good Growing Podcast, we discuss how we can expand our growing season beyond what's normal by using season extension. Learn about what season extension is, why we would want to use it, the different techniques you can use, and more!    Watch us on Y...

This week on the Good Growing podcast Ken and Chris marvel at all the stuff they are still harvesting in their gardens. A touch of frost hasn't seemed to stop the tomatoes and peppers. When will the gardening season end!? Plus we look at the NOAA predictions for the coming month and answer your horticultural questions on black cherry aphid, lawn grub explosions across northern Illinois, and more....

Windbreaks, also known as shelter belts, play a crucial role in protecting the land from powerful Midwestern winds. Traditionally used on rural lands, windbreaks are living barriers that intercept wind, thereby reducing velocity and impact. During this week’s Gardenbite, Horticulture Educator Emily Swihart looks back at the history of Roosevelt’s ‘tree army’ and planting efforts in response to the...

It’s time for another Good Growing Halloween Spooktacular! We’re all dressed up again this year to talk about some creepy crawlies that have had or are still having an impact on humans or have a lot of lore behind them, including black widow and brown recluse spiders, stinging caterpillars, oriental rat fleas, lice, and more!     Watch us on YouTube: https://youtu.be/DGbFkgEs2ZE   Skip to what you...

Now that the garden season is starting to wind down, it’s a good time to start thinking about getting our tools ready for winter. This week on the Good Growing Podcast, we discuss some things we do to get our garden tools ready for winter, including cleaning, sharpening, winterizing, organizing, and more!    Watch us on YouTube: https://youtu.be/o5VuG7Au7ng     Skip to what you want to know:     0...

This week on the Good Growing podcast Ken and Chris discuss why we clean up our gardens in the fall. Cutting down perennials, raking leaves, and pulling out spent vegetable plants is a common job for the gardener in the fall. As the autumn days get shorter our time is precious outdoors. What needs to be done now and what can wait until next year? Watch us on YouTube https://youtu.be/scU_YKv_gFE Sk...

It’s time for our last Grow Along check-in for 2024. Each year we at Good Growing decide to try growing some new (to us) vegetables. This year we invited you to grow along with us. This video is for those who signed up to receive seed for our Grow Along. In this video, we are trying the fruits of our labor. We share some of the different ways we have prepared the produce we grew as part of the Gro...

October has arrived, and while it may not feel like it at times, so has fall. This week on the Good Growing Podcast, we discuss some of the different things on our fall gardening to-do list, including caring for mums, moving houseplants indoors, planting garlic and woody plants, soil testing, and more!   Watch us on YouTube: https://youtu.be/VbB2p-EyjDY   Skip to what you want to know:     00:35 –...

This week on the Good Growing Podcast, Chris compares the essential fall flavors of apple and pumpkin. If you had to choose, what side would you fall on? Team Apple? Or Team Pumpkin? Contact us!  Chris Enroth: cenroth@illinois.edu Ken Johnson: kjohnso@illinois.edu  Check out the Good Growing Blog: https://go.illinois.edu/goodgrowing Subscribe to the weekly Good Growing email: https://go.illinois.e...

This week on the Good Growing Podcast, we’re trying something new: toothache plant. Learn more about this interesting plant, what happens when you eat it, and how you can grow it yourself!    Watch us on YouTube: https://youtu.be/Z7ywlxrKWTM     Skip to what you want to know:     00:40 – Introduction to toothache plant   05:50 – Eating toothache plant reactions   10:20 – How to grow toothache plan...

Have you ever wondered what causes the reds, yellows, oranges, and maroons of autumn? There are lots of different plant pigments beyond the green color of chloroplast. In this episode horticulture educator Chris Enroth peers inside the processes of a leaf in the fall and how we get those spectacular autumn leaf displays. Watch on YouTube: https://youtu.be/2puA2uMoXEg Skip to what you want to know:...

Have the weeds been popping up all over the place in your landscape? You’re in luck, fall is a great time to manage weeds. On this week’s Good Growing Podcast, we discuss why fall is a good time to manage weeds, types of weeds, and different ways we can manage them. We also discuss some herbicide updates on Roundup and glyphosate as well as Dacthal.   Watch us on YouTube: https://youtu.be/R8N_ANQk...

This week on the Good Growing podcast Ken and Chris talk about hazelnuts. Chris remembers hazelnut shrubs growing in the woods from his childhood, we compare European and American hazelnut species, talk about pests, what you might find if you go looking to buy hazelnut plants, and more!  Watch us on YouTube https://youtu.be/tWgbcfiYIKg Skip to what you want to know: 00:32 Hey Ken! The messy consum...

This week on the Good Growing Podcast: Join Ken and Chris as they delve into the fascinating world of cover crops! More and more home gardeners are discovering the benefits of using cover crops to enhance their gardens. Are you curious about how cover crops can transform your garden or landscape? Tune in to this week’s episode to uncover Ken and Chris’s top tips and insights on incorporating cover...

There are a lot of garden remedies that have been used throughout the years, and some of them are still recommended today. Do they work? Should we still be using them? On this week’s Good Growing Podcast, we discuss some of these old-time remedies like vinegar, pruning paint, dynamite, pesticide concoctions, and more.    Watch us on YouTube: https://youtu.be/v64wU2PINS8     Skip to what you want t...

In this episode, we dive into the latest challenges facing gardeners and landscapers. From toppling trees to the potential for itchy mites dropping from the sky, Ken and Chris have a list of things that might be bugging your garden and landscape! Watch us on YouTube https://youtu.be/r3od_YL19_s Skip to what you want to know: 00:38 Hey Ken! 01:57 Chris found a pretty bug! A dog-day cicada. 03:47 Up...