Free resources to help get your garden growing

Did you notice what happened over the weekend?  The sun was out, the temperatures were up, and people came out of their caves.  I even heard a lawn mower fire up!

All of this spring activity has me super excited to start my garden this year, and I’ve already decided what I’m going to grow: tomatoes, potatoes, zucchini, yellow squash, basil, thyme, lettuce, and peppers.  I discovered gardening during the pandemic, and I’m so glad I did.  It’s become one of my favorite hobbies.  There’s nothing better than going outside and cutting fresh veggies for an instant salad at lunch.

If you’re considering giving gardening a try, I have a great resource for you.  It’s the University of Illinois Extension.  Here are my favorites:

The Vegetable Gardening section.
You can learn the very basics of starting a garden if you’re new to it.  But if you’re more experienced you’ll still find information and tips to help your garden flourish.

When to plant guide.
This is probably my favorite and most-used document.  This handy document tells you when to plant based on where you live in Illinois.  I can never remember when it’s okay to plant my tomatoes, but this guide tells me that in Central Illinois I can get those babies in the ground as soon as May 10th.