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Be careful when cutting back perennials so that you don't disturb the new growth.

Tidy up, test your soil and watch for disease

Running behind on spring garden cleanup? You're not alone! Cut back perennials carefully and consider testing your soil. Watch for winter burn and Volutella blight. With smart moves now, your garden will thrive all season.

Elite athletes aren’t the only ones who can gain benefit from pairing a creatine supplement with resistance training. Creatine may provide healthy older adults a small but significant increase in muscle mass and strength.

Can creatine supplements help older adults’ muscles? Here’s what to know.

For years, studies have shown that creatine supplements can help younger athletes build stronger muscles. Now, scientists are asking whether older adults at risk of age-related muscle loss could benefit from the supplement as well.

Jeannie Rice, who turned 77 on April 14, holds the women's age group World Record for every distance from 1,500 meters to the marathon. In fact, she’s even beaten the fastest men in her age group: in the 2023 Boston Marathon, for example, she was first overall in the 75-79 age group besting the first place male finisher by more than 20 minutes.

At 77, she’s as fit as a 25-year-old. What her body tells us about aging.

Jeannie Rice, who just turned 77, has the physiology of a 25-year-old woman. Researchers are studying Rice to understand how humans can stay fit as they age, regardless of natural ability and the reduced physical activity often seen in older people.

Hydrangeas can lose their blue coloring if the soil is too alkaline. Add sulfur to lower the pH and get the blue back.

Best practices to keep those blooms blue

Have you noticed your blue hydrangeas are turning pink? The flowers turn pink in more alkaline soils.

My grandmother’s cherry walnut mandelbread is a sweet, nostalgic treat

Mandelbread, also known as mandelbrodt, are often called Jewish biscotti because the two are essentially the same — twice-baked, crunchy cookies ideal for dipping in coffee, tea, milk or wine. Although the word means “almond bread” in Yiddish, these are made with a generous helping of chopped walnuts and chewy, sweet-tart dried cherries. With whole-wheat flour, olive oil and less sugar than is typically used, they satisfy a sweet tooth in a healthier way.

Brown rice does contain more arsenic than white rice, but various cooking techniques can reduce the amount in the rice.

Brown rice has more arsenic than white. Is it still the better choice?

In recent years, brown rice’s stellar reputation has been questioned. Some health and social media influencers have even discouraged people from eating it, saying brown rice should be avoided because it contains arsenic. Health experts, however, say that concerns about arsenic in brown rice are mostly overstated.

The increased use of electric bikes on forest preserve trails throughout the region has prompted officials to issue safety and etiquette reminders.

Increase in e-bike use prompts safety, trail etiquette reminders in forest preserves

The rise in trail use at forest preserves and parks throughout the region comes with words of caution from those who oversee the facilities, especially when it comes to electric bicycles, or e-bikes.