by Erin Harper, University of Illinois Extension American Hazelnut (Corylus americana) are native eastern United States and Canada, from Manitoba south to Oklahoma and east to the coast (excluding only Florida). Corylus Americana prefers well-drained loam soils in full sun. However, like many of the native trees and shrubs, are tolerant of a wide range […]
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Illinois’ Favorite Farm-to-Table Restaurant Awards | 2020
Now is your chance to show your favorite farm-to-table restaurants some love in the Illinois’ Favorite Farm-to-Table Restaurant Awards presented by Buy Fresh Buy Local Illinois. Voting opens on September 14 and closes on September 30. Farm-to-table dining experiences help us, as consumers, learn about the food we eat while engaging with the chefs who […]
Edible (Native) Landscaping – Persimmon
by Erin Harper, University of Illinois Extension Persimmon (Diospyros virginia) are Native to most of the eastern United States, from Connecticut south Florida and west to mid-Kansas. There is a non-native species (Diospyros kaki), native to Asia, which has been widely used in breeding and production in the United States. D. kaki has larger sweeter […]
C-U Restaurants and COVID
by Terri Reifsteck, Visit Champaign County As COVID-19 began to spread in the United States, the local restaurants in the greater Champaign County area stepped up their already rigorous cleaning routines. Our inboxes and Facebook feeds were flooded with new procedures ensuring the safety of guests. But overnight, it all shut down. Illinois’ stay-at-home order […]
Tomato Care Basics
by Ryan Pankau, University of Illinois Extension Nothing beats a homegrown tomato! Even when in season, the store-bought varieties just cannot compare to a fully ripe tomato harvested at its peak from your own garden. So many gardeners across American choose tomato plants for their vegetable patch each year for this reason, making it the […]
Sustaining a Pivot in Real Time: Imagining Resilient Local Food Systems
by Carol Hays, The Strategic Collaboration Group, LLC As we all are acutely aware, the COVID-19 pandemic has laid bare the frayed fabric of our nation’s food system. Since the outbreak, news of system breakdown seems to be everywhere we look. Over-reliance on repeated monocropping of largely non-food crops is leaving farmers financially underwater while […]
