LaManda Joy from the Peterson Garden Project and Marianne Krasny from Cornell University promote the the American Community Gardening Association (ACGA) 35th Anniversary Conference in Chicago in August.

Eden Novak DeGenova of Tower Garden and Karen Quirk from Juice Plus explain how their state-of-the-art vertical aeroponic growing system works and why it's such a good fit for certain growing conditions. Artist Sharon Bladholm stops by to talk about how she represents many kinds of animal and plant life using many different media, including her installation featuring microscopic soil organisms at the Openlands Lakeshore Preserve.

Rosarian Susan Fox reports on her experiences as a judge for the Biltmore Rose Trials in Asheville, North Carolina, and as a recent guest of P. Allen Smith at his idyllic place in Arkansas, and talks about how her roses survived this historic winter. Kay Havens from the Chicago Botanic Garden and Scott Hoffman Black of the Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation preview a symposium called Make Way for Monarchs, dedicated to helping that species rebound from its decline in the past decade.

Dan Kosta from Vern Goers Greenhouse in Hindsdale talks about boxwoods and other evergreens that took a hit during the brutal winter, including how to help them recover and when it's time to remove and replace. Kelsay Shaw from Possibility Place Nursery and Marcy DeMauro, Executive Director of the Forest Preserve District of Will County, preview the Bringing Nature Home Native Plant Sale on May 31. Jennifer Walling from the Illinois Environmental Council, Josh Mogerman from the Natural Resources Defense Council and Stacy Meyers from Openlands report on environmental legislation being considered in Springfield that could gut the new Illinois fracking law and provide money for the ill-conceived Illiana Tollway.