Time is running out for Bell Bowl Prairie at Chicago Rockford International Airport. Kerry Leigh from the Natural Land Institute, landscape designer Domenico D'Alessandro, and Jen Kuroda from Sinnissippi Audubon talk about how--and if--the prairie can be saved. Kim Hankins previews the McHenry County College Green Living Expo on November 6.
Mike and Peggy welcome gardeners representing three gardens that were recognized by the Chicago Excellence in Gardening Awards' 2021 60-Second Garden Video Challenge. They also update the #SaveBellBowlPrairie situation. Meteorologist Rick DiMaio previews a La Nina-influence winter.
Nina Kraus, PhD, is director of the Brainvolts Lab at Northwestern University. She joins us today to discuss her decades of work exploring hearing and the brain. That research has led to her new book, "Of Sound Mind: How Our Brain Constructs a Meaningful Sonic World."
An expansion at Chicago Rockford International Airport threatens a valued prairie remnant. Thanks to the sighting of an endangered rusty patched bumble bee, the construction is on hold...for the moment. We talk to Kerry Leigh from the Natural Land Institute and naturalist/artist Robb Telfer about what this means for natural areas across the state. Bob Benenson from Local Food Forum returns to preview the remainder of the farmers market season.
Katie Parker from Tamerlaine Sanctuary and Preserve in New Jersey, and Erin Yanz of Erin's Farm in Hobart, Indiana give virtual tours of the lands on which they give abused and neglected farm animals a chance for a future.
Mike and Peggy travel Illinois to talk about farming, pumpkins, chickens, music festivals and beer. Guests are Jeff Hake from FarmFED Co-op, Jennifer Murtoff of the 11th Annual Windy City Coop Tour, and Katie Troccoli, Christina Eltrevoog and Tom Gaffney from the WRWO 94.5 FM "Fresh from the Midwest" music festival.
Who could have known that autumn would follow summer? Gardening expert Melinda Myers, that's who! She brings a wealth of fall gardening tips to the show. Katherine Tellock is launching the Guerrilla Recycling Project and she needs volunteers. Rev. Brian Sauder from Faith in Place previews their annual Green Team Summit.
The Illinois General Assembly is scheduled to return to Springfield this week for a special session. Will they finally pass a clean energy bill for the state? Or will there be more roadblocks? J.C. Kibbey from the NRDC, Lisa Albrecht from All Bright Solar, and Dave Kraft from the Nuclear Energy Information Service discuss the prospects for real energy progress in our state.
It was a bad week for the Chicago Park District and transparency in government. Juanita Irizarry, executive director of Friends of the Parks, reports on several pressing issues that affect the future of Chicago's Parks. Marianne Willburn talks about her new book, "Tropical Plants and How to Love Them."
The Mike Nowak Show with Peggy Malecki is on the road (again) after two years. Today we're streaming live from The Growing Place in Aurora, Illinois. We'll talk hydrangeas with Michael Massat, and Skeet from Bartlett Tree Experts will look at the trees on site and offer tree care advice.
In a victory for clean water, Dynegy recently agreed to remove toxic coal ash from the floodplain of the Middle Fork of the Vermillion River in east central Illinois. Pam Richart from Eco-Justice Collaborative, Jenny Cassel of Earthjustice, and Andrew Rehn from Prairie Rivers Network explain how that happened only after years of work from a broad coalition of concerned groups and citizens.
Where local food is concerned, it was a good spring session in the Illinois General Assembly in 2021. Molly Gleason from the Illinois Stewardship Alliance talks about the various local food and conservation programs that were passed by the Illinois General Assembly. Bob Benenson joins the conversation and promotes National Farmers Market Week. Edith Makra and Geneva, Illinois Mayor Kevin Burns from the Metropolitan Mayors Council discuss the roll out of the Climate Action Plan for the Chicago Re...
Commissioner Debra Shore of the Metropolitan Water Reclamation District of Greater Chicago explains the connections involving climate change, extreme weather events and clean water. She and science and policy advisor Justin Hart talk about the ongoing battle to keep the water supply in Chicago safe as well as its historical back and forth battles with Lake Michigan and the swamp land on which it was established.
Doug Taron is a PhD, Chief Curator of the Chicago Academy of Sciences at the Peggy Notebaert Nature Museum, director of the Illinois Butterfly Monitoring Network and much more. But we prefer to call him The Butterfly Whisperer. At least this week. He joins us on the show to talk monarchs, regal fritillaries, insect decline, and whatever else comes up in the realm of entomology.
Following a June 2021 that featured drought, excessive rain and destructive storms, homeowners and municipalities are assessing the damage done to their trees. Skeet from Bartlett Tree Experts and Julie Janoski, Plant Clinic Manager at The Morton Arboretum, offer advice on how to cope with severely compromised trees. Bob Dolgan from This Week in Birding reports on construction work at Chicago's famed Montrose Point Bird Sanctuary and why it has some conservationists perplexed.
Nancy Lawson has written an exceptional book called The Humane Gardener. On today's show, she talks about strategies for encouraging critters of all types, whether they are reviled or not, to become part of your local ecosystem. Her sister, Janet Crouch, then reports on how she took on her HOA to protect her native plant garden, and not only won the case, but got state law in Maryland changed.
Tomato experts Craig LeHoullier and Keith Mueller (KC Tomato) return to celebrate Tomatomania III: The Looming Drought. They talk about their work growing and breeding tomatoes and offer tips for backyard gardeners during dry conditions. Meteorologist Rick DiMaio then continues the conversation about the 2021 U.S. drought across most of the West and some of the Midwest.
In a special 90-minute deep green dive, Mike and Peggy welcome former City of Chicago department heads Suzanne Malec-McKenna and Sandra Henry. They will talk about the current "Chicago State of the Environment"--the good, the bad, and where we go from here.
Bob Beneson from Local Food Forum stops by to talk about the explosion of farmers markets in Illinois, and offers some tips for shopping in hot weather. Jessica Chipkin from Crate Free USA attempts to explain why Aldi USA continues to resist attempts to forego sourcing of meat from factory farms that use gestation crates. Guy Sternbergs say there might be hope for blue ash trees in central Illinois in the battle against emerald ash borer.
Garden writer and author Beth Botts returns to the show after a long absence to offer basic gardening advice. Colleen Smith, Deputy Director at the Illinois Environmental Council, weighs in on the chances of passing clean energy legislation for the state in the waning days of the Illinois General Assembly's spring session.
Will County Recycling Program Specialist Marta Keane returns to talk recycling failures and successes. Dennis Warnecke from Tainio Biologicals Inc also returns to instruct us on the importance of soil biology in growing plants.
When May starts, so does the farmers market season. Food aficionado Bob Benenson explains why he started his newsletter Local Food Forum. Farmers market manager Elsa Jacobson joins the conversation to talk about the state of 2021 farmers markets. Mike talks about his visit to see Monty & Rose at Montrose Beach in Chicago. Meteorologist Rick DiMaio reports on unusually cool and dry spring weather.
Nicole Virgil returns to the show with good news about her Right to Garden campaign in the Illinois General Assembly. She is joined by Ari Bargil from the Institute for Justice. Benjamim Krumstok from the Illinois Food Scrap Coalition (IFSC) and Mike Dimucci from Garden Prairie Organics talk composting and promote International Compost Awareness Week. May 2-8.
Like it or not, many homeowners think that gardening means maintaining a lawn. Alec McClennan from Good Nature Organic Lawn Care and Dan Dinelli, superintendent of North Shore Country Club in Glenview, discuss non-toxic ways of keeping lawns healthy. Taran Lichtenberger from Budburst at the Chicago Botanic Garden wants you to grab your camera and participate in next week's City Nature Challenge 2021. Leslie Graham and Chris Crone explain how the North Shore Plant Club can help folks save money o...
Garden expert Melinda Myers returns to offer advice about spring gardening, even as the potential for yet another April snow event looms. Mike and Peggy list some Earth Week events, including the One Earth Film Festival. Then, they report on the return of the CEGA 60-Second Video Challenge.
This week, we talk about efforts to protect butterflies and birds in Chicago, and what that means for the populations of monarchs, piping plovers and other species. Erika Hasle, Izabella Redlinski and Douglas Stotz from The Field Museum, and filmmaker Bob Dolgan join us.
How does a food co-op get off the ground? Representatives from Food Shed Co-op in McHenry County, Prairie Food Co-op in DuPage County, and Chicago Market: A Community Co-op in Chicago tell their stories. Architect Nate Kipnis returns to the show to talk about high design/low carbon sustainable buildings.
Certified arborist Evan Shorr from Bartlett Tree Experts returns to the show to talk about spring tree and shrub care. Mike and Peggy do a round up of environmental headlines. Meteorologist Rick DiMaio reports on the return of bald eagles and science to America.
Garden Rant is celebrating its 15th year of poison pens and killer wit about all things gardening. Ranter Marianne Willburn and co-founder Susan Harris stop by to talk about their work...and fun. Alaina Harkness of Current Water returns to talk about World Water Day 2021 and protecting water quality in the age of climate change and coronavirus.
Julian Hoffman has written an exceptional book about the crises our natural areas and iconic species face. Called "Irreplaceable," it chronicles his visits to the far corners of the planet in search of the ordinary people who will ultimately save our planet, if it can be saved at all. Karen Taira from the Evanston Environmental Association (EEA), previews the Wild & Scenic Film Festival.
