General

Synthyris reniformis

In Search of Signs of Spring

By Gary Swick, President Resilience and Hope In nature, winter is a time of conserving resources, relying upon storage, and enduring scarcity and hardship. Surviving winter requires physical resilience and hope. We have just emerged from a natural and cultural winter like none of us have ever experienced. As we travel the long crossover from … Read more

Lilium bulb iferum flower top

Spring and Friends of the Fox River Are Ready to Bloom

By Gary Swick, FOFR President Spring emergence During a Midwestern winter, nature is not dead but merely conserving energy. It is challenging for humans experiencing frigid temperatures and deep snow cover to understand that soon signs of life will vigorously emerge from the roots of plants and the insect eggs lying in the soil. Likewise, … Read more

1024px-Snapper2 By Rob Duval Own work CC BY-SA 40

Meet Your Submerged Neighbor

By Snappin’ Jack MacRae It’s not too difficult to find a few big old snapping turtles in January and February if you know where to look (under the ice), and have an adventurous streak. Warm clothes are a bonus. During the winter, when local ectothermic animals (e.g., amphibians and reptiles) are undergoing hibernation (or, brumation if you want … Read more

Nitrogen_Cycle

Together, We Can Rebuild the Fox River Ecosystem

By Gary Swick, President Restoring the Systems Working with unified efforts and a sense of collaboration, we can move forward together while we navigate a global pandemic, overcome our national social injustices, and address climate change on all levels. We have challenges ahead but our own successes with the Fox River watershed’s protection and restoration … Read more

Northern Cardinal

Meet Your Bright Red Neighbors

By Jack MacRae Everyone should be able to identify the northern cardinal. The boys are bright, bright red.  Their faces are black.  The girls are a fetching tawny brown with red highlights.  Both sexes are crested and have thick red beaks. But cardinals are much more than just another pretty bird. Dumpster Diving Bird History During the early … Read more

The Resilience of Rivers

By Gary Swick, President 2020 has been a spectrum of angst ranging from a dumpster fire, to a period of darkness, to great hope bestowed upon 2021 as the light. The holiday season is a festival of light from many different cultures’ traditions. All these traditions symbolize getting through the tough time of short days, … Read more

vote-with-your-wallet

Voting With Your Wallet

By Pat Brady, DivvyBack Tired of talking about voting?  You betcha.  However, I’m talking about the powerful vote each of us has to make environmental change in the world.  If you don’t like the Earth warming up or our waters polluted, you can “vote” for change through your purchasing behavior.  The emotionless marketing engine of … Read more

witch hazel flowers

Meet Your Witchy Neighbor

By Jack MacRae Witch Hazel might sound like a cousin of Samantha Stevens.  But botanically, it is really an attractive understory shrub found in naturally wooded areas.  Their attractive, rounded-oval form makes them popular around the globe. Illinois is home to the Virginia variety, Hamamelis virginiana.  It can grow to 10-15 feet in our area and has roundish, toothed … Read more

fish washing machine

In Search of the Perfect Earth-Friendly Laundry Detergent

By Pat Brady, DivvyBack Managing Partner We all know that nothing in life is perfect, except maybe Manny’s Reuben sandwich with chicken noodle soup. Outside of that, and particularly in the area of laundry detergent, there just isn’t anything that I can describe as perfect. Why Is That? Well, first, let’s define what a perfect … Read more