Posted in Barrington High School, Going green on May 5, 2026| Leave a Comment »
Support BHS Horticulture and FFA students by participating in their Spring and Mother’s Day plant sale after school on Wednesday, May 6th!
They will be selling a variety of petunias and geraniums in hanging baskets that make great decor and gifts! Find them in front of BHS near the Main Street parking lot.
Posted in BACT, Going green, Press Release, Topics Of Interest on April 18, 2026| Leave a Comment »
Barrington Hills, IL – Located adjacent to Flint Creek at the southwest corner of Lake Cook and Hart Roads, these preserves serve as a vital link between prairies, wetlands, and other conserved lands. They are also valued outdoor classrooms for Barrington High School students and reflect the community’s ongoing commitment to environmental stewardship.
Event Highlights:
Participants are welcome to join at any time throughout the day to assist with planting native species grown by District 220 students. Community volunteers, local officials, D220 faculty and the Barrington Area Conservation Trust will be on site to support the effort.
Melissa Kinast, Executive Director of BACT, shares, “Over the past decade, we’ve watched these preserves come back to life through thoughtful restoration. Today, that work is visible in the return of wildlife, improving water quality in the vernal pools, and the remarkable presence of lightning bugs that light up the landscape on summer evenings. Earth Day is an opportunity to share that progress with the community and continue building on it together.”
All are welcome to participate and experience the impact of conservation at the local level.
For more information, please email bactrust1@gmail.com. (Website under construction; visit our social media for up-to-date information.)
About Barrington Area Conservation Trust:
The Barrington Area Conservation Trust is committed to preserving open land, natural beauty, and biodiversity in the Barrington area, fostering a connection between people and the environment through conservation, education, and stewardship.
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Posted in Chicago Botanic Garden, Chicago Tribune, Going green, Letters to the Editor, Topics Of Interest on April 5, 2026| Leave a Comment »
A goldfinch feeding on coneflowers. (RJ Carlson/Chicago Botanic Garden)
By Tim Johnson | For the Chicago Tribune
I have developed an interest in bird-watching and would like some advice on how to attract more birds to my garden.
— Maria Alvarez, Grayslake
I was also motivated to start bird-watching after a fun vacation sighting of a pink flamingo on St. John, U.S. Virgin Islands, last December. Another highlight this winter was seeing eight mourning doves feeding on the ground outside my home at one time. Winter is a good time to plan to enhance your garden with plants that will attract birds all year long. It takes more than feeders, birdhouses and a bird bath, along with some flowers for a truly bird-friendly garden. Birds need a complete habitat that includes food, shelter, nesting areas and perching spots. A good garden for birds tends to have more of a natural look. Design your garden so that there are different vertical levels, each attracting and providing something important to different bird species. Some birds prefer the canopy of tall trees, while other birds perch in the understory trees and shrubs. Different species of birds have varying requirements and preferences for nesting, eating and shelter. Try to create as many of these levels as possible in your backyard garden to attract a larger variety of birds. Birds use a stand of hemlocks in my garden for shelter while using the feeders. Even open areas of soil can be beneficial by providing an area for birds to take a dust bath.
Select plants to provide food for birds at different times of year. Fruits of different plants ripen in different seasons. For example, serviceberries provide spring-ripening fruit, red-twig dogwoods provide summer fruit, while hawthorns and crabapples provide fruit in fall and winter. I just replaced some invasive Callery pear trees with serviceberries in my garden. Perennials such as purple coneflower and grasses such as a prairie dropseed provide seed for a food source. Sunflowers are quick-growing annual flowers that produce seeds that are attractive to birds. Nectar-producing plants such as penstemon, bee balm, and columbine appeal to hummingbirds. Include a mix of evergreens in your planting to provide year-round shelter for birds. When feasible, leave some dead branches on living trees to provide something for the birds to perch on. Prune any dead branches that are safety hazards though.
Leave the leaf litter in your garden beds next fall as an easy and environmentally friendly method to recycle material and help meet some of a bird’s basic needs. Other organic materials such as small twigs, fallen seeds, fruits and berries should be left in the litter too. Many insects thrive in leaf litter and insect-eating birds will be attracted.
There are many kinds of seeds and feeders to choose from if you decide to start a feeding program. Squirrels can be a nuisance and eat more seed than birds do, so choose a squirrel-resistant feeder. We have had good luck with a cylindrical, squirrel-resistant feeder. Take time to research options, as different species of birds prefer different types of seeds and feeders, and no one type is preferred by all birds. Avoid buying bags of mixed birdseed as they tend to contain a lot of filler such as red millet, which most birds won’t eat. The filler ends up on the ground where it rots. Place your feeder in an open area where it is easy to see, 10 feet or so away from protective cover and convenient to refill. If feeders are too close to large plants, squirrels will have easy access to them. Be consistent feeding birds and they will become accustomed to your feeder. Stamp the snow down under the feeder to accommodate ground-feeding birds such as doves and dark-eyed juncos. To maximize the number of species that visit your feeders, offer a variety of food at different heights above ground.
Black oil sunflower seeds attract a wide variety of birds including cardinals, woodpeckers, blue jays, goldfinches, purple finches, chickadees, titmice, and nuthatches. Safflower seeds also attract a wide variety of birds, with the advantage that squirrels, blue jays, starlings, and grackles do not like this seed. Nyjer is a good seed to attract goldfinches. Nyjer is a very small, black seed best used in a feeder designed for it, which can be hung close to a viewing window under an eave. White millet seed can be spread on the ground to attract ground-feeding birds. Suet is another option for feeding birds. Suet is rendered animal fat that is usually mixed with seeds and dried fruit and sold in small cakes. It is best to place it in a cool, shaded area in amounts that the birds can eat in a few days to keep it from spoiling, so it works well for winter feeding.
For more plant advice, contact the Plant Information Service at the Chicago Botanic Garden at plantinfo@chicagobotanic.org. Tim Johnson is senior director of horticulture at the Chicago Botanic Garden.
Posted in BACT, FPDCC, Going green, Topics Of Interest on March 15, 2026| Leave a Comment »
Photo provided by Kathy Thalji.
A monarch butterfly dips low over a patch of purple coneflowers. A goldfinch clings to a seedhead in late fall. Beneath the surface, roots stretch deep into the soil, catching rain before it rushes into storm drains. These could be descriptions of land in the Forest Preserves. But they also can be about one of the more than 150 backyards, schoolyards or community gardens in Cook County that have been certified through the Forest Preserves’ Conservation@Home program.
Launched in Cook County in 2016 in partnership with University of Illinois Extension, the program offers residents, schools and businesses a roadmap for turning everyday landscapes into critical habitat. A yard, a parkway or a planter box all have an impact.
“We were looking for ways to connect and engage with more people. Home and community gardeners have real potential to create habitats our native species need to thrive. And participants can see and understand the importance of their home as part of a larger ecosystem,” says Jacqui Ulrich, director of Conservation & Experiential Programming.
Native plants are the foundation. “When you have native plants in your yard, these plants have already adapted to our climate conditions and soil,” says Lorrie Ward, a naturalist at Sagawau Environmental Learning Center. That means fewer chemicals are needed and less watering once the plants are established. With deeper roots, often several inches longer than common ornamentals, native plants help absorb rainwater and reduce runoff into sewer systems.
Just as important, native plants feed wildlife, providing pollen, nectar and seeds that support butterflies, moths, bees and birds. “When you include plants like purple coneflower in your garden, you’re going to start seeing butterflies in the spring and summer, as well as American goldfinches in the fall. You’re providing them food throughout the seasons,” Ward says.
Collectively, these gardens create corridors. They form small but meaningful microhabitats that enable animals to move through neighborhoods, stopping to rest, forage or nest on their way to larger natural areas. In heavily urban locales like Cook County, that patchwork matters.
Ready to get started?
If you’re ready to turn your yard, school garden, or business landscape into a thriving habitat, Conservation@Home makes it simple to begin with a few straightforward steps. First, explore the program criteria and application online. You can find guidance for residential, school and community sites on the University of Illinois-Extension Conservation@Home page.
From there, fill out the application for your property type. For homes, it asks basic information about your landscape and what native plants or conservation features you’ve already added.
Once your application is submitted, staff review it and offer resources if your yard isn’t quite ready yet. If it looks good, you’ll be invited to schedule a property evaluation with a trained Master Gardener or Master Naturalist who evaluate sites, offer consultations and help with garden design. They’ll look for key elements like native flowers, grasses, shrubs and trees, efforts to manage invasive species, water conservation practices like rain gardens or barrels, and wildlife-friendly features.
Importantly, native does not mean unruly. The program’s checklist includes maintenance standards, so gardens remain intentional and cared for. Participants do not have to give up favorite tulips or peonies. Native species can be blended with beloved ornamentals. The goal is progress, not perfection. If your yard meets the criteria, you’ll earn a Conservtion@Home certification and sign you can proudly display.
Native plant sales each spring, offered in partnership with West Cook Wild Ones, make it easier to get started, with curated kits for sunny yards, shady corners and even parkways. The 2026 online sale is scheduled for March 15 through May 15. And if the $50 certification fee is a barrier, don’t hesitate to take advantage of free workshops and design resources offered by the program and partners. For those unsure where to begin, Ulrich offers simple advice: “Start small,” she says. Ward adds, “Pay attention to how much sun and moisture your space receives. Choose one native plant you love and build from there.”
Conservation@Home is a program of The Conservation Foundation and coordinated in partnership with University of Illinois Extension. Conservation@Home is available in the Barrington area through a partnership with the Barrington Area Conservation Trust.
Posted in Clown Car, Goat Rodeo, Going green, Public Safety, Road construction, Topics Of Interest, Traffic on February 26, 2026| 1 Comment »
By Elyssa Kaufman | CBS Chicago
Waymo is coming to Chicago, and some of those vehicles were already spotted in the city.
The driverless car company based in Silicon Valley said it will start “laying the early groundwork” for operations in Chicago.
The vehicles are already in the city, each had drivers and were not picking up any customers. They were surveying the roads in preparation for if and when it goes live.
At least two rows of the Waymo vehicles were found inside a parking garage downtown.
“We are coordinating closely with community leaders and policymakers and believe autonomous technology can strongly support Chicago’s goals for road safety and enhanced accessibility for all communities,” Waymo officials said in a written release.
It is not clear when Waymo service will be available in Chicago, but the service is already live in other cities like Los Angeles and Phoenix.
Mayor Brandon Johnson confirmed the city was notified about operations and said, ” It was stated to the City that the company would not be presently deploying any autonomous vehicles within Chicago.” The mayor’s office released the following statement in part:
“There is no law or regulatory framework which prohibits any licensed individual from driving in Chicago. As of now, autonomous vehicles have not been authorized within the City of Chicago or the State of Illinois.
The City looks forward to engaging with commuters, workers, transit advocates and industry leaders as we pursue constructive dialogue with our partners in Springfield and pursue an equitable path forward.”
The mayor’s office said Waymo will be operating in Chicago to map streets and record data on driving conditions.
Not everyone was thrilled by the idea of a driverless car, expressing concerns over safety, especially with Chicago’s specific traffic patterns and in the case of snowy roads.
Article continues here.
Posted in Chicago Botanic Garden, Going green, Topics Of Interest on November 9, 2025| Leave a Comment »
Oak leaves on a lawn. | RJ Carlson /Chicago Botanic Garden
By Tim Johnson | Published in the Chicago Tribune
Will it be okay if I leave leaves in my garden beds at home? My work schedule is heavy this fall and I need some time to relax on weekends versus spending hours picking up leaves.
— Alfredo Alvarez, Highwood
My time for gardening at home is very limited, too, so I look for ways to make my gardening time more efficient. I also prefer a more natural look to my garden, which, fortunately, is easier to maintain, so I adjust my maintenance routines accordingly.
Leaves are now falling and starting to pile up in my garden. The usual fall routine for many gardeners is to remove all the leaves and either bag them up or pile them at the curb for transportation to a landscape waste facility, where they are turned into compost. I have left leaves in my garden beds at home for more than 25 years with good results, which saves time on cleanup while benefiting the environment. This also saves money and time as I do not have to purchase mulch for my garden beds. The only exception is when I plant in the fall, in which case I add mulch to help the new plants through their first winter.
In addition, I do not cut back perennials in fall but wait until spring to trim them to about six inches above the ground. The fallen leaves create a natural mulch, which helps suppress weeds and improves the soil with organic matter as they decompose. The perennial foliage and fallen leaves in the beds create a natural look with lots of winter interest, as well as habitat for insects and wildlife. We all need to do more to support pollinators, and we can help by leaving perennial foliage standing through the winter and keeping leaves in our garden beds year-round. Cut perennials back in late spring to six to eight inches above the ground for maximum benefit for insects.
There are several mature oak trees in my garden, so the leaves tend to pile up too deeply here and there in the borders or blow into dense piles that must be reduced to avoid smothering perennials, groundcovers, and bulbs. Excess leaves can be piled in a corner to decompose, creating compost to use for future soil improvement. Removing leaves from the edges of your garden beds will give you a clean boundary between the lawn and the beds, adding a sense of order to the garden’s appearance. You do not need to grind them up to use as mulch — simply let them fall and blow into the beds naturally.
You can use a mulching mower on the lawn to mulch the leaves and grass clippings to save time while returning nutrients to the lawn. I prefer the look of some leaves left on the lawn in fall versus a clean look and have lowered my mower cutting height to about 2 inches. Change the direction of mowing each time you mow. You should be able to easily see the blades of grass after you are finished mowing for the season. A thick layer of leaves covering the grass will likely smother the lawn if left on it over the winter. A medium to dense layer of leaves can damage any areas of the lawn that have been seeded earlier in the fall and are just getting established. You will need to carefully rake or blow some of the leaves off the new grass if the ground is too soft to push a mower over. If the mower leaves ruts as you are mowing, then the area should not be mowed.
For more plant advice, contact the Plant Information Service at the Chicago Botanic Garden at plantinfo@chicagobotanic.org. Tim Johnson is senior director of horticulture at the Chicago Botanic Garden.
Posted in Barrington High School, Going green on November 5, 2025| Leave a Comment »
“Have fun smashing your pumpkins for composting at the Village of Barrington’s Pumpkin Smash event being held on Saturday, Nov. 8 from 9 to 11 AM at Barrington High School’s upper Field of Dreams parking lot adjacent to Hart Road lot.
This is a free event that is open to the public.”
Posted in Going green, Organizations, The Morton Arboretum, Topics Of Interest on November 1, 2025| Leave a Comment »
Dead trees and trees with holes in them may look ominous, but they provide valuable habitat for wildlife. | Beth Botts/The Morton Arboretum
By Beth Botts | Posted to the Chicago Tribune
Dark against the autumn sky, its branches broken and twisted, with mysterious black holes and cracks in its bark, a dead tree might seem spooky. But to many animals, it’s home.
Bats, screech owls, woodpeckers, bluebirds, squirrels and many other animals live in holes in dead or living trees, or overwinter nestled deep in the furrows of their bark. “It’s almost like an apartment building for wildlife,” said Spencer Campbell, Plant Clinic manager at The Morton Arboretum in Lisle.
Holes, or cavities, occur in living trees where the trunk or branches have cracked, or where decay has created a soft spot that a woodpecker or other animals can excavate and enlarge. Once a tree has died, its gradual deterioration creates many more cavities, and expands the opportunities for animal apartment hunting.
Of course, a tree that has died or one with conspicuous holes or cracks can be a cause for concern near a home, sidewalk or roadway. “If you see cavities in a tree in your yard, you should have it inspected by a certified arborist to determine whether it poses any risk,” Campbell said. “Sometimes, a decayed branch or tree may need to be removed.”
But as long as the tree isn’t a threat to people, its cavities are one of the big ways it contributes to the ecosystem of which it is a part.
A tree doesn’t have to be dead to be housing. A hole that doesn’t undermine a living tree’s structure is usually not a problem and may even be a benefit, according to Lyn Myers, lead education program guide in the Arboretum’s school field trip program. “If woodpeckers and other animals have a cavity to live in, they may be helping it by eating the insect larvae that would be eating the wood,” she said.
Many holes have a whole succession of tenants, Myers said. First, a woodpecker may find a soft spot and use its jackhammer beak to dig out a hole large enough for nesting. Then a squirrel or bat may move in. “The mammals are opportunists,” she said. “They take advantage of a cavity that’s already there.”
Some animals don’t even need a hole; craggy bark will do. Butterflies such as the mourning cloak overwinter in the deep bark furrows of bur oak or the peeling bark of shagbark hickory. They find a spot high enough to be safe from foraging predators such as raccoons and opossums, Myers said. Bark can even shelter bats, swaddled snugly in their folded wings and hanging upside down on the sunny, warm south side of the trunk. “It’s amazing how small they are when they’re folded up,” she said.
Once a tree dies, “it keeps giving back in a different way,” Campbell said, as it gradually decomposes over years or decades. Decay is actually a process of feeding, as fungi, insects and other organisms gradually consume the wood and recycle the nutrients that were stored in it during the tree’s lifetime.
In time, the tree weakens enough to fall. As the wood continues to break down and the trunk hollows out, its decay creates more nooks where animals such as raccoons and chipmunks can shelter. Eventually, the tree’s wood dissolves to become part of healthier, richer soil that supports a wide range of life, including other plants.
That’s why many dead trees are not removed from the Arboretum’s East Woods and other natural areas, such as forest preserves. “A dead tree that isn’t at risk of falling on people or property can actually be more valuable left standing,” Campbell said.
When you spot a dead tree, take a moment to wonder: Who lives there?
For tree and plant advice, contact the Plant Clinic at The Morton Arboretum (630-719-2424, mortonarb.org/plant-clinic, or plantclinic@mortonarb.org). Beth Botts is a staff writer at the Arboretum.
Posted in Community Alerts, Going green, Public Safety, Resident Spotlights on September 11, 2025| Leave a Comment »
In conjunction with the Lake County Sheriff’s Office, we are pleased to provide this opportunity for our 52nd District residents to safely and responsibly dispose of expired, unwanted or unused prescription drugs. Please place the medications in a sealed plastic bag. Please note that we CANNOT accept liquids, syringes or needles.
We are also accepting up to 2 bankers boxes of paper per household for secured document shredding.
Date & Time: Saturday, September 13 from 9:30-11:30 AM
Location: 28662 W Northwest Hwy, Lake Barrington
Posted in Chicago Botanic Garden, Going green, Topics Of Interest on August 24, 2025| Leave a Comment »
Proper watering of plants before and after planting is critical during the hot summer season. | RJ Carlson/Chicago Botanic Garden
By Tim Johnson | Posted in the Chicago Tribune
Spring got away from me this year, and I missed out on installing a large new garden in my backyard. A friend gave me the impression that I should wait until next spring to do the planting. Do you think that was good advice? I suspect there is still plenty of hot weather to come and wonder how a new planting will fare if I go ahead and plant now.
— Hal Peterman, Elgin
I think it is fine to continue planting all summer long and do so myself. My springs tend to be very busy, so I often do not get around to planting until mid- to late summer. Some gardeners agree with your friend that planting is best done in the spring and fall. But in my opinion, there is no reason to stop planting during the summer. In fact, I have always had good results with my summer plantings.
Chicago Botanic Garden staff continues to plant all summer long. There is not enough time to get all the planting done only in spring and fall. The garden centers that I have visited recently all still have a great selection of plants grown in containers as well as trees and shrubs that are ready for planting, with their root balls burlapped for protection. The new trees and shrubs are typically dug in late winter or early spring, while they are dormant and held above ground in the garden centers. Production nurseries are limited in which plants can be dug during the summer season. Bare root plant material (with no soil around the roots) is generally planted in very early spring before growth has begun. Bare root plants can be held by suppliers in coolers to extend the planting window in spring, but summer is not a good time for installing bare root plants.
Proper watering of plants before and after planting is much more critical during the hot summer season. Plants can be quickly damaged during hot and dry spells if they are not watered enough and can quickly dry out while sitting above ground before installation. It is important to keep plants moist before planting to minimize stress on the new plant material. The growing medium of containerized plants can sometimes be difficult to moisten if they are planted in your beds when dry. It is best to water them before planting if the pots have dried out. Plants that are grown in containers have a lighter growing medium that generally dries more quickly than garden soil and thus need more frequent, light watering until the roots grow out into the surrounding soil. This may mean watering a couple times a week during very hot periods for the first few weeks.
Newly installed balled and burlapped plants need about 1 inch of water a week — be sure the root ball is getting watered. Watering by hand with a garden hose at the base of the tree or shrub works best and will likely need to be done occasionally, even if you have a sprinkler system. Evergreen trees can shed water away from the root ball when a sprinkler is used. The garden bed will then be moist while the root ball of the tree is dry. In time, the roots will grow out into the bed, but you need to focus on moistening the root ball throughout the summer. The amount and frequency of watering will vary depending on the soil conditions in your garden and weather conditions. Sandy, very well-drained soils dry out more quickly than heavier clay loam soils.
Go ahead and plant this summer. There is no need to wait until next spring. Then mulch the new plants to improve the appearance, prevent weeds and help conserve soil moisture.
For more plant advice, contact the Plant Information Service at the Chicago Botanic Garden at plantinfo@chicagobotanic.org. Tim Johnson is senior director of horticulture at the Chicago Botanic Garden.
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