Quote of the week: “Every once in awhile there’d be an explosion upstairs when the wine blew up.”

Ty Kovach reminisces about growing up on a farm in Minnesota. He now grows heirloom peppers in his Gurnee home — handed down for two centuries. Read more here.

Quote of the week: “This is a real win for all of us. It’s such a reward – this is why we do this – creating and restoring habitat to support these important animals.”

Quote from Kelly Schultz of the Lake County Forest Preserves about finding the federally endangered rusty patched bumble bee at Greenbelt Forest Preserve.  Read more here.

Photo below courtesy of Kelly Schultz, taken at Greenbelt Forest Preserve.

 

Quote of the week: “It really was a quick decision and there were a lot of moving pieces that had to happen to give those birds a chance.”

Reena Bowman of the USFWS talks about why five piping  plovers were transferred from Wisconsin to Lake County, Illinois. Piping plovers are federally endangered. Read more here.

Photo copyright Dawn Fronk. This juvenile plover was discovered at Waukegan Beach after it flew south from Illinois Beach State Park.

Quote of the week: Comet Neowise appeared like “a long brush stroke of white paint on a dark canvas.”

Gary R. Soper, wildlife photographer describes Comet Neowise in a story I wrote about the comet everyone is rushing to see in the night sky. Read more here. 

Quote of the week: “I grew up at a time when eagles almost went extinct, so to be able to see any of that wildlife – eagles and osprey – at the park is amazing,”

Ted Wollert, who has been watching osprey raise chicks at Moraine Hills State Park. Read story here    Photo below taken by Doug Reitz..

Quote of the week: The fair is the Super Bowl of the 4-H.

Dr. Michelle Cox talks about how the cancellation of the Lake County Fair is affecting 4-hers and the virtual competition planned for this season. Photo below of Lake County Fair by Sheryl DeVore. Read more.

Quote of the week: Iris is the Greek word for rainbow, and Iris is the name of the Greek goddess of rainbows. Mythology says that wherever Iris walks, flowers representing every color in the rainbow emerge from the ground.

From my column on irises and summer solstice.  Photo below of blue flag iris by Steven D. Bailey.Read here.

Quote of the week: It is my hope that many will attend and remember this extraordinary woman (Barbara Reed-Turner), and that the future caretakers of the Reed-Turner Woodland will continue her work to maintain it as a rare and wonderful hidden gem.

Read my outdoor column for more on the Reed-Turner Woodland and Baltimore orioles. Photo of Baltimore oriole by John Heneghan. All rights reserved.

Quote of the week: Knowing our history helps us understand ourselves and our ability to survive difficult times — whether during the Civil War of 1861-1865 or the current pandemic — both events give us perspective to help us understand and to have hope.

Quote from Lake County historian Diana Dretske about creating a historical account of the current COVID-19 pandemic. Read the story here.

Quote of the week: The birds are coming. The blooms are opening. And that makes for a grand colorful sight in May.

Read my outdoor column on the merry month of May. The photo below is of great white trillium taken by the author at Wright Woods in Vernon Hills.