Houseplants don't thrive during the winter months, yet we often try to "push" our plants to grow. Although indoor plants seldom drop all of their leaves, these plants go through a dormant period just like trees and shrubs. During this dormant period, which usually corresponds with less rain and light, new leaves and shoots aren't produced. This natural resting state is important for a plant to build up food reserves and compensate for unfavorable environmental conditions.

To help indoor plants stay healthy during the winter, follow these general care guidelines:

· Hot air blowing on a plant from a heat register may encourage weak, spindly growth. Avoid placing plants in a direct line with hot air.

· Likewise, avoid drafts. Cold air can damage leaves and buds. Plants should be at least 6 inches from a window. Keep plants away from frequently opened outside doors.

· Don't force houseplants into growth by applying fertilizers. As a rule of thumb, avoid using fertilizers between October and April.

· On the other hand, plants need as much light as possible during the winter months. A typical double-pane window can reduce potential light by 80 percent. Add that to the fact that light intensity is cut by roughly 50 percent during the winter and you can see why some plants look yellowed. South and west exposures provide the most light. Plants that typically thrive during the spring and summer in a north or east window may need to be moved to a brighter window. Supplemental light can also be added by placing the plant under a lamp. The top leaves of a houseplant should be between 10 and 24 inches under a fluorescent light, and 15 and 30 inches for a typical incandescent bulb. If you place the plants closer to the light than the recommended distance, the leaves might burn.

· Water only when needed. Over-watering during the winter kills most plants. Allow all but the most sensitive plants to wilt slightly before watering. Plants can appear wilted for several days before passing the point of no return. It's usually impossible to establish a schedule for watering during the winter. Outside and indoor temperatures have an effect. Check plants daily or weekly for watering needs.

· Increasing the humidity level is by far the most helpful. Group plants together or purchase a cold-water humidifier or vaporizer. Plants can also be set on trays filled with pebbles and water. The pebbles prevent the plants from sitting directly in water. As the water evaporates, it creates a "mini" greenhouse around the plants. Set plants in the most humid rooms of the house—the kitchen, bathroom, and laundry room. Misting increases the humidity around a plant for roughly five seconds. It might make you feel better, but it does little for the plant.

Worm composting is an easy way to turn your kitchen scraps into compost for both indoor and outdoor plants. And, vermiculture is a great way to teach kids about recycling and the environment.

All you need to get started is a plastic bin, a drill, newspaper, soil, worms, and vegetable or fruit peelings.

For first-time worm composters, 10-gallon plastic bins work well. The bin needs to be solid, not clear, because worms don't like the light. At a minimum, the bin should be 10 to 16 inches deep. Worms need air to survive so drill holes no larger than 1/4 inch or smaller into the sides and the lid of the bin.

Newspaper is readily available and easy to prepare as bedding for the worms. Tear newspaper into 1-inch-wide strips and pack it down into the bin to within a couple of inches of the top. The tearing process is a great time-consuming activity for kids. You can also run the newspaper through a shredder.

Add water to the newspaper and mix well until the paper is as wet as a wrung-out sponge. If it's too wet, just add more paper. Add a handful of soil to the moistened bedding. The gritty soil will help the worms digest and grind their food in their gizzards.

Next, add the worms. Red worms or "red wrigglers" work best in a bin. These are not the large earthworms found in your backyard after a heavy rain.

Earthworms like temperatures around 50 degrees F and like to burrow deep into the soil. They are not suited to the 70-degree temperatures in your home and the confined space of a worm bin.

Red wrigglers, on the other hand, are surface feeders and thrive in room temperatures. You can buy red wrigglers at local bait shops or numerous places online.

It takes about a pound of worms—1,000 worms—to start a bin. A pound of worms will cost from $17 to $20.

Add the worms to the bedding; they will immediately make a beeline under the bedding because they are sensitive to light.

Worms will eat potato, carrot, apple, banana peelings, orange and grapefruit rinds, oatmeal, coffee grounds with the filter, tea bags, and crushed eggshells. Chopping or grinding the kitchen scraps in a blender will make it easier for the worms to eat the scraps.

You can keep a supply of food for the worms in a plastic container in the refrigerator.

Do not feed them any meat, dairy products, or oily foods.

It is important to bury the scraps in the bedding. Leaving the food on top of the bedding may attract unwanted pests like fruit flies.

After feeding the worms, leave them alone for a couple of weeks to let them get used to their new environment. Feed them every couple of weeks. Add more bedding every three to four weeks.

In two to three months, you should have a bin of worm compost that is ready to harvest.

When harvesting the compost, you have a couple of options.

With the "divide and sort" method, you stop feeding the worms for two weeks. After two weeks, move the old bedding to one side of the bin. Add fresh bedding with food. The worms will migrate into the fresh bedding, allowing you to harvest the finished vermicompost.

Another option is "live and let die." After three months, just stop feeding the worms. The worms will die, leaving behind the finished worm compost.

The worm compost can be used as an amendment to potting soil for houseplants or as an organic addition to your garden soil.

One of the tasks that can get us outdoors this winter to work off holiday calories is pruning. Many trees and shrubs are best pruned during the dormant season.

However, depending on species, best timing can range from early winter to spring and into the early summer months.

While you can prune at any time through the year, the outcome and desired results may be less than favorable. For example, pruning spring-flowering shrubs in the winter will remove flower buds and decrease bloom.

When pruning, consider the type of plant and its growth response. Every species will respond to a pruning cut differently, especially in the location, number and rate of return bud, and shoot growth. When possible, "thinning" cuts should be made back to point of attachment, rather than abrupt stubbing or "heading" of branches, which stimulates excessive bud break. Also, consider plant health and condition, and the potential for creating disease and insect problems. Always focus on the desired goals and results, which can be as simple as removing a low-hanging branch for clearance, or thinning old branches from flowering shrubs, such as lilac, to stimulate new shoots.

The dormant season, from early winter to early spring, is the best time for pruning many deciduous species because the leaves are gone and you can see the structure of the plant. With a clear view, you can make better decisions on which branches and limbs to remove.

Trees that "bleed" sap when cut include elm, maple, and birch. Oozing sap can be detrimental, attracting insects and affecting appearance, and it can delay healing of pruning wounds. These species should always be pruned in early winter to avoid excessive sap loss.

For flowering shrubs, the ideal time to prune is after flowering, which usually is late spring to early summer, depending on species. If the shrub blooms later in the year on current season's growth, such as a butterfly bush, then late winter to early spring pruning is recommended. Pruning a marginally hardy shrub like a butterfly bush or some roses in the late fall to early winter can increase winter injury potential.

To enhance density and form of needled evergreens such as pine or spruce, tip-shear them in the early summer (May to June) after the new extension (candle) growth has stopped, but before it fully hardens. Large limbs and branches of these species can be pruned any time during the winter.

To increase density of evergreen hedges such as yew, arborvitae, or juniper, shear in late spring to early June after new growth has fully developed. Avoid late fall or winter shearing because it may cause tip burning. More vigorous spreading yews can also be sheared in the early spring and touched up again in September.

If not used in a hedge, holly and other broadleaf evergreens should only be lightly trimmed in the early spring to maintain shape and to preserve flowers and fruit. As a formal hedge, shear boxwood and holly in late June and then do a light touch-up in early September. Holly fruit may be reduced by harsh shearing.

The timing of pruning can affect the onset and spread of certain diseases. Dutch elm disease, oak wilt, and fireblight are spread and/or initiated by pruning. When pruned in the summer, fresh wounds can attract the beetles that spread Dutch elm and oak wilt diseases. Though Dutch elm has been a problem for many years, oak wilt disease is becoming more prevalent, affecting many species of oak in Illinois. Therefore, all oak and elm species should be pruned in the winter when the insects are not present. Avoid even light trimming in the summer season.

Fireblight, a bacterial disease spread by wind and moisture, damages shoots and branches in susceptible ornamentals such as ornamental pears and crabapples. Prune these trees during dry weather. Trim blighted shoots at least 8 to12 inches below the dead tissue, taking care to sterilize pruning tools with each cut to avoid spreading the disease to the lower clean wood.

The U of I Extension publication Pruning and Care of Trees and Shrubs (#U5040) is an excellent reference and can be ordered from your local Extension office.

Tree fruits and vegetables will be the focus of two training schools this winter. These schools are excellent opportunities to further your knowledge of fruit and vegetable production.

The Commercial Tree Fruit School focuses on apple and peach production. The school is offered at two locations—on February 3 at the Mt. Vernon Holiday Inn, and on February 4 at the First Presbyterian Church Hall in Hardin. Registration starts at 8 a.m. and the program runs from 8:20 to 3 p.m.

Peach-related topics include brown rot and other diseases; insect management, with a focus on OFM and borers; and size control using rootstocks.

Apple topics include pruning and training apple trees; super-high density apple orchards; San Jose scale and woolly apple aphid management; apple diseases of 2008; and chemical thinners for apples.

For the Mt. Vernon school, advance registration by January 30 is $20 per farm, with lunch on your own. Late and at-door registration is $30. For the Hardin school, registration by January 30 is $20 per person, which includes an on-site lunch. Late and at-door registration is $30.

The Commercial Vegetable School is set for February 11 at the Mt. Vernon Holiday Inn. Registration starts at 8 a.m. , and the program runs from 8:40 to 4:05 p.m.

Topics include new sweet corns, tomato bacterial diseases, mite management in vegetable crops, specialty cucurbit diseases, cucurbits for fall markets, strategies for direct marketing, tomato quirks, and low-tech strategies to reduce post harvest losses.

Registration by February 6 is $30 per farm. Late and at-door registration is $40.

For details about either of these schools, visit SI Gardening at http://web.extension.uiuc.edu/regions/hort and click the Commercial Growers section.

University of Illinois~U.S. Department of Agriculture~Local Extension Councils Cooperating~University of Illinois Extension provides equal opportunities in programs and employment. If you need special dietary or disability accommodations to participate in any events listed in this newsletter, please contact your local U of I Extension office.

The information in this newsletter is for educational purposes only. References to commercial products and trade names do not constitute endorsement by the University of Illinois and do not imply discrimination against other similar products that are not listed.