Kane County Wild Plants Field Guide Available for Sale (again)

We have re-stocked on our inventory of Wild Plants and Natural Areas of Kane County by Dick Young. This wonderful field guide described every species of plant found in the wild in Kane County Illinois. EVERY SPECIES! This level of detail makes it the ultimate field guide for the Chicago Region, and is among the best available from southern Wisconsin on down to Central Illinois, and even eastern Iowa and northern Indiana.

The guide contains approximately 1400 species of plants with incisive and often charming descriptions of each species and simple though detailed hand drawing. The book is organized in a manner that is easy to use, with plants divided by major types (ferns, trees, shrubs, wildflower, etc) and then further divided by flower color and family.

Regular price for this book is $18. However, if you contact Frank by Friday, November 6th, you will get a special discount price of $16.

In the News: Its Garlic mustard "Whacking" season

As this article on Channel3000.com points out, now is a great time of year to get a leg-up on garlic mustard. Garlic mustard is certainly the most destructive herbaceous weed in our midwestern woodlands. It can form dense colonies which virtually wipe out all other plant life. We have a window of opportunity for the next month-and-a-half or so while they are still green and active and it is warm enough to deal with them. So now is the time to take action! Take a look at our recently updated Garlic Mustard Weed ID Sheet for more information on how to control it. If you need help tackling your infestation, feel free to contact us. Now is also a good time of year to begin or start planning for prescribed burns and exotic brush clearing.


Recent research has shown that garlic mustard releases harmful chemicals into the soil that kill soil fungi and other organisms that native plants rely on to help them take up nutrients from the soil. This means that a garlic mustard infestation can have long-term impacts on the ecology of a woodland, yet another reason to control populations while they are small. The good news is that there may be help on the way; a single weevil species has been identified as a potential bio-control agent. The introduction of this weevil is still a few years off, and will not eliminate the garlic mustard threat all on its own, but it will be a big help for land managers who struggle to keep this noxious invasive species in check.

Super Native Plant Sale!

We have a few left over plants as we near the end of the growing season that we would like to get out of our driveway and into a new home. So we are offering these plants for sale at 75% off of retail prices! That's just $1 per plant for these 2.5" plugs! Offer available only while supplies last, so contact Frank right away if you are interested so we can set up a pick-up time or low-cost delivery.

The sale is pretty-much over, all we have left is one black oak seedling for $2.

"Gentian Safari" at the UW Arboretum, this Saturday!

We'll be having our "Gentian Safari" wildflower walk at the Greene Prairie at the UW Arboretum this coming Saturday at 1pm. Meet at the gravel Grady Tract parking lot, at the southeast corner of the Beltline frontage road and Seminole Hwy in Madison.

Gentians are some of the most rare and beautiful wildflowers in our region. Come join us to enjoy their beauty and learn more about this unique plants. Long sleeves and long pants are recommended, and insect repellent may be necessary.

Look for our ad in the Abode

Hi all:

Just a heads-up to take a look for our beautiful full-color ad in this fall's edition of The Abode, the Isthmus' home and landscape guide for the fall. Its coming out Thursday Sept. 17th at all the places where you usually find The Isthmus.