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Headshot for Beth Botts - Original Credit: John Weinstein

Beth Botts

Beth Botts is a staff writer for The Morton Arboretum, a 1,700-acre outdoor museum and garden of trees near Lisle. She works with the Arboretum’s horticultural and scientific staff to provide practical, reliable garden advice in her weekly column. The author of two books, she writes and speaks widely about trees, gardening and nature. She was an editor and reporter at the baiduhai for more than two decades.

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To renew a crowded shrub, prune out the thickest, oldest stems to favor newer ones. Be sure not to remove more than a third of the shrub in one year.

Pruning depends on your purpose

There you stand, pruners at the ready, facing a dormant shrub on a winter's day. Where exactly are you going to cut? "It depends on what you're trying to accomplish,"...
As you plan to start seeds, read seed packets carefully for important information about how many plants you will need and how and when to sow the seeds.

Tips for successfully starting seeds at home

Starting plants from seed can make vegetable gardening both less expensive and more interesting. "You can buy seeds for a much wider range of plant varieties than garden centers sell...
Winter, when dormant trees have bare branches, offers a good opportunity to have them pruned if they need it.

Take advantage of winter to have trees pruned

The bare branches of trees are starkly beautiful against the winter sky. They also make it easier to have the trees pruned. Without leaves, it is easier for a trained...
The winter solstice is worth celebrating because it marks the beginning of increasing sunlight that will bring springtime to plants and people.

On the darkest day, look toward light

The deepest darkness of the year is a sign of the coming light, for plants as well as people. The winter solstice, which occurs in Chicago this year on Dec....
Young trees' bark can be severely damaged in fall when male deer rub against them to scratch itchy antlers.

Tree bark can suffer when deer scratch an itch

In fall or winter, homeowners often discover young trees whose thin bark has been damaged by deer rub. Some trees may have patches where bark hangs in shreds, exposing the...
When pruning a shrub branch, make the cut close to the main stem to preserve special tissue around the branch's base that can seal over the wound.

Winter prime time for pruning

Winter is a fine time to prune most trees and shrubs. Without leaves, the structure of their stems and branches is easy to see. "You can spot problems that would...
To prepare for next year's garden, think back on the past growing season and note down anything that was especially pretty, such as these dahlias, as well as anything that went wrong.

Take time to reflect on your garden this year

Now that it's puffy-coat time, assess the past growing season in the garden so you'll be better prepared next spring. "Before you forget, make some notes," said Spencer Campbell, Plant...
An October warm spell tricked some spring-blooming shrubs such as forsythia into opening a few flower buds. The autumn reblooming won't prevent the shrubs from flowering in spring.

Repeat blooms common after warm spells

Did you see plants blooming this fall when you didn't expect it? "Some of them were bred to do that," said Sharon Yiesla, plant knowledge specialist in the Plant Clinic...