Author: staff

While Chicago figures out how to make its urban forest more equitable, some residents are taking tree matters into their own hands.A Tribune investigation found that…

The parkway in front of Marco De La Rosa’s home remains bare.There isn’t a sapling to bloom in spring or a shade tree to temper the…

A layer of mulch is a powerful way to defend your plants against summer heat, drought and overbearing weeds, while improving the soil to nourish their roots. But what is the best kind of mulch?“There are many materials you can use to create a mulch layer,” said Sharon Yiesla, plant knowledge specialist in the Plant Clinic at The Morton Arboretum in Lisle. “The critical thing is that it should always be made from plants.”AdvertisementPlant-based mulch is powerful because it emulates the way plants live in nature. When leaves, stalks, dead branches, and other plant materials fall to the ground, they form a protective layer over the soil. That layer of leaf litter keeps soil moist around plants’ roots and insulates them against extremes of heat and cold. Over time, a wide array of soil-dwelling organisms, including insects, fungi and bacteria, will consume the litter, breaking it down to improve the soil.What you choose for mulch in your garden may depend on price, availability, where you’re using the mulch and how long you want it to last. “In general, the larger the pieces of material in mulch, the longer it will take to decay,” Yiesla said.AdvertisementA mulch of composted leaves is used on garden beds at The Morton Arboretum. Many materials can make a beneficial mulch layer, as long as they are derived from plants. (Beth Botts/Morton Arboretum)Shredded wood. This is the most widely available kind of mulch in the Midwest. A bag labeled mulch at the home center most likely contains shredded byproducts from the lumber industry. Shredded wood mulch lasts a year or two. It works well around trees, shrubs and perennials, but may be too coarse and lumpy for beds where you will dig often, such as vegetable gardens.This kind of mulch also can be ordered in bulk from landscape supply yards and some garden centers. It is sold by the cubic yard.Dyed mulch. Shredded wood that is dyed black, brown or red is common. The dyes themselves won’t hurt plants. They are used to give a uniform appearance to a mixture of shredded wood from demolition sites, old pallets, and other reclaimed wood. “It’s not necessarily harmful, but you just don’t know what’s in it,” Yiesla said. The Mulch and Soil Council, an industry group, has guidelines for the content of mulch. Look for its seal on bags.Fresh wood chips. Tree-trimming crews use shredders to reduce branches to coarse wood chips. Sometimes homeowners can get a load of those chips for free from tree companies, utility crews, or municipalities. Since the chunks are large, this kind of mulch is best around trees and shrubs, where it is likely to take several years to break down. “You probably don’t want those big, awkward lumps in the soil of your garden beds where you’re likely to be working,” Yiesla said. To seek out free wood chips, start by asking your local municipality. Some have piles of mulch available to residents.Composted wood chips. The Arboretum uses wood chips that have been allowed to break down slightly to mulch its trees and shrubs and on its unpaved trails. A similar material, available from landscape supply companies, is dark brown with a less raw appearance than fresh wood chips.Leaves. An excellent and abundant mulch, leaves are free, if you remember to collect them in autumn when they fall from the trees. The thin, light leaves will break down fairly quickly, which makes them good for beds of annuals, vegetables and perennials. “You do need to renew leaf mulch fairly often,” Yiesla said, “but after all, nature renews it every year.” The Arboretum uses leaf mulch in all its garden beds, after the leaves have been allowed to compost for a few months.To prevent leaves from blowing around or forming an impenetrable mat, shred them by raking them into a pile on the grass and running the lawn mower over them. Some gardeners stow away a supply of leaves each fall, whole or shredded, to use for mulch or to add to the compost pile throughout the year.Straw. Stalks from wheat and other grains are a traditional mulch in vegetable gardens since they break down over the course of a growing season. In the city and suburbs, straw may be hard to find and relatively expensive. It also may contain weed seeds.AdvertisementCocoa mulch. Shells from roasted cocoa beans are sometimes available. They make an attractive, fine-textured mulch. Pet owners should be aware that they may contain compounds dangerous to dogs.“Any plant-based mulch will benefit your plants, but if appearance is important to you, decide on a material and use it consistently,” Yiesla said. That way, when mulch becomes thin because the lower layers are breaking down, you can simply add more of the same type to the top.Just be careful not to make it too deep. Mulch should be 1 to 2 inches deep around perennials, annuals and vegetables, and 3 to 4 inches deep around trees and shrubs.One material to avoid is gravel. “We don’t consider that mulch,” Yiesla said. “Rocks can’t do for your plants what a real, plant-based mulch will do.”For tree and plant advice, contact the Plant Clinic at The Morton Arboretum (630-719-2424, mortonarb.org/plant-clinic, or plantclinic@mortonarb.org). Beth Botts is a staff writer at the Arboretum.

TAMPA, Fla. — Steven Stamkos scored two goals, and the two-time defending champion Tampa Bay Lightning are headed to the Stanley Cup Final for the third straight year after beating the New York Rangers 2-1 in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals Saturday night.Stamkos put the Lightning ahead for good in the third period just 21 seconds after the Rangers’ Frank Vatrano scored on a power play with the Lightning captain in the penalty box for holding.AdvertisementNikita Kucherov and Ondrej Palat assisted on the winner with 6 ½ minutes left, with the puck deflecting off Stamkos’ knee and into the net after Rangers goalie Igor Shesterkin stopped the initial shot. Stamkos also scored on a wrist shot from the top of the right circle midway through the second period.Andrei Vasilevskiy finished with 20 saves for the Lightning, who won the series 4-2 — rattling off four straight victories after losing the first two games on the road — to advance to the Stanley Cup Final against the Colorado Avalanche.AdvertisementGame 1 is Wednesday night in Denver.Lightning center Steven Stamkos, center, celebrates his goal against the Rangers with Jan Rutta, right and left wing Ondrej Palat, left, during the second period in Game 6 of the Eastern Conference finals Saturday in Tampa, Fla. The Lightning won 2-1 to clinch the series and earn a berth in the Stanley Cup Final. (Chris O’Meara/AP)

PEORIA — Never underestimate the power of small ball.Sophomore Maddie Hernandez certainly won’t from now on, and neither will her St. Charles North softball teammates. Not after making program history this way.AdvertisementThe 5-foot-3 Hernandez is the North Stars’ smallest player, but in Saturday’s Class 4A state championship game against powerhouse Marist, she came up with the biggest hit.“I was in a bad spot,” Hernandez said of being 0-for-3 entering her final at-bat. “I lost confidence in myself, but the team and coaches never lost confidence in me.Advertisement“Earlier in the game, coach (Tom) Poulin said that I was going to get a hit in this game.”St. Charles North’s Maddie Hernandez connects on a pitch to in the top of the seventh inning against Marist during the Class 4A state championship game at Louisville Slugger Sports Complex in Peoria on Saturday, June 11, 2022. (Vincent D. Johnson / The Beacon-News)And what a hit it was.Hernandez’s sharp two-out RBI single to center field in the top of the seventh gave St. Charles North a 3-2 lead over the RedHawks at the Louisville Slugger Sports Complex.Freshman relief pitcher Paige Murray and an outstanding defense made it stand for the North Stars (27-4), getting three more outs to secure the program’s first state title.Hernandez, who’s hitting .320, had the winner in a 5-4 sectional victory over Glenbard North but struggled and went hitless in the supersectional and the state semifinal.“She was tough on herself all game and didn’t like her at bats,” Poulin said of Hernandez. “We had a running conversation the whole game, and she got it done.”Junior third baseman Julia Larson, an Illinois State recruit, and Ashlee Chantos each had two hits against Marist pitcher Brooke McNichols (23-5).Larson tried to encourage Hernandez.Advertisement“She was dropping her hands a little bit,” Larson said. “We kept saying, ‘Stay level, stay level, stay level.’“That’s exactly what she did too, taking the ball right up the middle to score the run we needed.”St. Charles North’s Auburn Roberson, Meghan Nicastro and Morgan Lahner, left to right, hold up the trophy after beating Marist the Class 4A state championship game at Louisville Slugger Sports Complex in Peoria on Saturday, June 11, 2022. (Vincent D. Johnson / The Beacon-News)Marist (31-6-1), the defending state champion, came in ranked No. 1, with St. Charles North at No. 7. The Redhawks had 45 home runs, compared to eight for the North Stars.“I think assistant coach Thijs (Dennison) were the only ones worried about that,” Poulin said. “These girls show up and win one at a time. They don’t know anything different.”The North Stars did know they were considered underdogs by most observers.They also were not deterred as starting pitcher Ava Goettel carried a no-hitter through four innings before giving up a double to Breanna Hanik.AdvertisementSt. Charles North, meanwhile, knocked on the door by putting runners in scoring position in three of the first four innings and stranding six runners.The North Stars then scored twice in the fifth inning on Sophia Olman’s sacrifice fly and Megan Bauwens’ RBI single for a 2-0 lead.St. Charles North’s Leigh VandeHei holds up her glove after making a diving catch in center field against Marist during the Class 4A state championship game at Louisville Slugger Sports Complex in Peoria on Saturday, June 11, 2022. (Vincent D. Johnson / The Beacon-News)Sierra Sass reached on an error in the bottom of the sixth before Goettel gave way to Murray, who gave up back-to-back hits that forced a 2-2 tie.It set the stage for Hernandez and her heroics.In between, the North Stars’ outfield of Butler commit Leigh VandeHei in center, Winona State recruit Chantos in right and Meghan Nicastro in left turned in stellar plays that left Marist’s players and fans shaking their heads in frustration.VandeHei provided the highlight by ranging far from left to right in center to make a diving, laying-out catch to rob Gianna Richy of an extra-base hit. AdvertisementTwo innings later, Chantos ranged into right-center to make a running catch on Richy.“All year we’ve told them they were the best outfield in the state,” Poulin said. “Maybe now they’ll believe it. “That catch by VandeHei, that’s the best catch I’ve seen in my years coaching, especially on this stage.”St. Charles North’s Meghan Nicastro stretches out to snag a catch against Marist in the Class 4A state championship game at Louisville Slugger Sports Complex in Peoria on Saturday, June 11, 2022. (Vincent D. Johnson / The Beacon-News)In the sixth, Nicastro started in before darting back to rob Caroline O’Brien of an extra-base hit that could have given Marist the lead.And in the seventh, junior second baseman Margo Geary ranged far to make a sliding catch on the right field line.“They are the best outfield in the state,” Goettel said. “I’m saying that right now.Advertisement“We came out here with nothing to lose, and getting the early lead was a big help.”Larson agreed and added, “All the pressure was on Marist.”

In a 1980s flashback, the first “Fire Tony” chants of the new era rang out Saturday in the 10th inning of the Chicago White Sox’s 11-9 loss to the Texas Rangers.Manager Tony La Russa also was loudly booed by the remnants of the crowd of 30,221 when he came to the mound remove reliever Matt Foster in the four-run 10th, reminiscent of the times he came out to remove Ken Kravec or another struggling Sox pitcher at old Comiskey Park in the 1980s.AdvertisementThe voices of discontent were impossible to ignore and a sign La Russa’s approval rating continues to plummet on the South Side.“Well, I hear it with one ear and I see it with one eye,” La Russa said. “I just know, I appreciate they want us to win, and when we don’t win they’re unhappy. I’m pleased that they are, you know? We have the team to win, and we’re losing games. Nobody in that clubhouse, including the manager and coaches, is happy. I like it when they care enough to be upset.”AdvertisementWhile there was no smoking gun pointing to La Russa for Saturday’s loss, like the infamous intentional walk issued with a 1-2 count Thursday against the Los Angeles Dodgers, the 77-year-old manager has a target on his back.White Sox manager Tony La Russa, second from left, talks to his players during the 10th inning against the Rangers on Saturday at Guaranteed Rate Field. The Sox lost 11-9 in 10 innings. (Nam Y. Huh / AP)“I’ve said before: I learned you’re accountable for everything, right?” he said. “Anything that is happening with this team, in the end, I’m responsible for, so. … And you figure that out.“If you don’t like the record, (it’s my) responsibility. If you don’t like the moves? Whatever is it. Never have dodged accountability, and I won’t start now.”For four innings Saturday the crowd was upbeat and enjoying the ugly polyester shirt giveaway. But the game turned into a virtual rerun of Thursday’s 11-9 loss, a game in which the Sox also blew an early four-run lead. Only the names changed. After being staked to a 5-0 lead, Lucas Giolito was hit hard during a four-run fourth, a rerun of Dylan Cease’s fifth inning surrender against the Dodgers.And the crowd began reacting to the carnage in much the same manner as Thursday. Sitting in Section 117 during the fifth, I heard multiple suggestions from fans loudly pleading with La Russa to start warming someone up, along with the inevitable wisecracks such as “Better walk this guy, Tony.”It’s apparent the intentional walk La Russa ordered to Trea Turner with a 1-2 count Thursday won’t be forgotten anytime soon, even if NBC Sports Chicago decided to edit the fateful inning out of the replay of its telecast because of alleged “time constraints.”Wow.I was watching the replay of the Sox-Dodgers game on NBC Sports Chicago to see that intentional walk sequence again.Only they literally cut the entire thing out for time constraints! pic.twitter.com/WEtOvvJ6rY— Kevin Kaduk (@KevinKaduk) June 10, 2022

Move on. Nothing to see here.La Russa was limited Saturday by a tired bullpen. He said the five relievers he used were the only ones available out of his nine-man bullpen without risking injury. Trailing 5-0 and 7-4, the Rangers eventually tied the game 7-7 in the seventh off Bennett Sousa. By the bottom of the inning, aggravated Sox fans began doing the wave.AdvertisementFoster gave up four runs while facing only four batters in the 10th before the Sox rallied for two runs in the bottom of the inning to fall short, just like Thursday’s last-gasp rally. The loss left the Sox at 27-30, six games behind the division-leading Minnesota Twins.Giolito blamed himself for failing to get stronger as the game went on, forcing La Russa to go to the pen too early. The players know La Russa is taking the heat for their performance and heard the “Fire Tony” chants.“Fans are going to have their own opinions,” Giolito said. “A lot of colorful opinions at times. For us, we focus on (putting) a little bubble around it, focus on the game, trying to keep it close in extra innings and mount that comeback. Just fell short. Again, responsibility falls on me, even letting the door open in the fifth inning. It could have gone way differently.”But it didn’t, and now it’s up to Michael Kopech on Sunday to try to win the series before the start of a trip to Detroit and Houston.La Russa has been booed before and no doubt will be booed again. But Sox fans also vented on some of the players, particularly Yoan Moncada, who went 0-for-5 with three strikeouts and watched his average fall to .133. He was one of three sub-.200 hitters in Saturday’s lineup along with Yasmani Grandal (.175) and Leury Garcia (.185). Grandal had two hits before leaving with a left hamstring injury that is certain to sideline him.Waiting for a turnaround has been a maddening process for Sox fans, whose patience has worn thin one-third of the way through the season. La Russa has kept the faith, hoping he’ll be rewarded down the line with the kind of performances his underachieving hitters have shown in the past.Advertisement“It’s clear to me that during the long season, guys are going to play somewhere near what they do in their career as long as they are healthy,” La Russa said before the game.“That’s part of what is optimistic is what Yaz has done the last few days, he’s swinging better. Starting adding some of those guys to our lineup and it gets deeper and deeper and we can score more than a couple, three runs.”Truth be told, La Russa has few options. Catcher Reese McGuire was the only left-handed bat of the 12 position players. The three switch-hitters — Grandal, Moncada and Garcia — haven’t performed. The Sox optioned left-handed-hitting Gavin Sheets to Triple-A Charlotte on Friday and have no reliable lefty hitter to call up.The lack of left-handed bats was a predicament everyone knew about in the offseason but one Sox general manager Rick Hahn failed to adequately address. That’s on Hahn, not La Russa.But when things started going south Saturday, the mood at Sox Park quickly turned from festive to ugly, and La Russa was the one taking the heat.You could hear it with both ears, and you could see it with both eyes.

Salsa, merengue and reggaeton music blasted from cars driving around Humboldt Park Saturday afternoon as red, white and blue flags with a single star blew in…

KNOXVILLE, Tenn. — Luc Lipcius hit two home runs in an eight-run fifth inning and No. 1 overall seed Tennessee rolled to a 12-4 victory over Notre Dame on Saturday to stay alive in the Knoxville Super Regional.Tennessee (57-8) and Notre Dame (39-15) will play a third game at noon Sunday with a berth in the College World Series on the line. The Fighting Irish beat Tennessee 8-6 on Friday. Tennessee is looking for its second straight and sixth CWS appearance overall. The Vols have never won the event, finishing second in 1951. Notre Dame has made two CWS appearances — in 1957 and 2002.AdvertisementTennessee was clinging to a 1-0 lead — on Trey Lipscomb’s RBI double in the first inning — heading into the top of the fifth. Lipcius homered off Notre Dame starter John Bertrand (9-3) on a 1-1 pitch to lead off. Cortland Lawson doubled and moved to third on a single by Seth Stephenson. One out later, Jordan Beck hit a three-run shot to make it 5-0. After Lipscomb popped out, Evan Russell homered to left field. Jackson Dennies relieved Bertrand and walked Jared Dickey before yielding a single to Christian Moore. Lipcius made it 9-0 with a three-run shot.Jorel Ortega had a RBI double in a three-run seventh to cap the scoring for the Volunteers.AdvertisementJack Zyska hit a two-run homer in the bottom of the eighth for Notre Dame. The Irish were held to seven hits — two for extra bases — after hitting four homers in their first-round win.Chase Dollander allowed just two runs on five hits in seven innings to up his record to 10-0 on the season. He struck out five.Tennesse played without its clean-up-hitting center fielder Drew Gilbert. Gilbert was suspended for a game after being ejected for arguing a strike call in the fifth inning on Friday. Pitching coach Frank Anderson, who was tossed for running on to the field, also missed the game.

John Sax, the son of former Major League Baseball player Steve Sax, was one of five Marines killed Wednesday in an aircraft crash in Southern California.“For those of you that knew Johnny, you saw his huge smile, bright light, his love for his family, the Marines, the joy of flying airplanes and defending our country!” Steve Sax said Saturday in a statement.AdvertisementSteve Sax throws a ball before an old-timers game in Los Angeles in 2017. (Chris Carlson/AP)“He was my hero and the best man I know, there was no better person to defend our country.”Capt. John Sax, 33; Capt. Nicholas Losapio, 31; Cpl. Nathan Carlson, 21; Cpl. Seth Rasmuson, 21; and Lance Cpl. Evan Strickland, 19; died in the crash.AdvertisementTheir MV-22 Osprey crashed around noon local time near Glamis, Calif., about 120 miles east of San Diego. The cause of the crash remains under investigation.All five men were part of the 3rd Marine Aircraft Wing based out of Marine Corps Air Station Miramar in San Diego. They were on a training flight.“There was never any doubt from a young age that Johnny would be a pilot and his passion was to fly!” Steve Sax said. “This loss will change my life forever and is a loss to not only the Marines but this world!”Steve Sax played 14 years in the majors and won the World Series with the Dodgers twice, once in 1981 and again in 1988. He won National League Rookie of the Year in 1982, and signed with the Yankees as a free agent ahead of the 1989 season. He was an all-star during two of his three seasons in pinstripes.With News Wire Services

Chicago White Sox catcher Yasmani Grandal left Saturday’s game against the Texas Rangers with left hamstring tightness.Grandal exited after he singled to right in the third inning and is being further evaluated, the Sox said. Grandal was 2-for-2 Saturday.AdvertisementYasmani Grandal departed the game with left hamstring tightness and is being further evaluated.— Chicago White Sox (@whitesox) June 11, 2022

He had two hits and three RBIs in Friday’s 8-3 win against the Rangers. Grandal broke a tie with a two-run double in the eighth inning.Grandal is slashing .185/.294/.237 with two homers and 15 RBIs in 50 games.