Boyce Tankersley, Director of Plant Collections, takes us on a tour of the Garden to see some fall highlights. We saw the cascading mum hayracks over the Visitor Center Bridge, vibrant color combinations in the Circle Garden, developing colors on the roses in the English Walled Garden and fall color developing on trees throughout the Garden. Visit http://www.chicagobotanic.org/bloom before your visit for a list of what’s currently in bloom. Also don’t forget to visit the What’s in Bloom Cart outside the Visitor Center for more highlights.
We visited with Jim Steffen, senior ecologist here at the Chicago Botanic Garden, to learn more about the wildlife you can find here. The Barbara Brown Nature Reserve on the south end of the Chicago Botanic Garden is just one place you can find different wading birds. Visit http://www.chicagobotanic.org/birds/species for more information on birds at the Chicago Botanic Garden.
250 family members attended the Chicago Botanic Garden’s Military Appreciation Day with USO Discovery Kids on August 6. We’d like to thank the Tawani Foundation for their support and the USO of Illinois for their partnership. Visit http://www.chicagobotanic.org/therapy/military for more information.
Boyce Tankersley, Director of Plant Documentation, tells us about some of the flowers we saw blooming on the first meteorological day of summer at the Chicago Botanic Garden. We saw echium in the Heritage Garden, a very rare jade vine in the Tropical Greenhouse, allium in the West Flower Walk and poppies in the English Oak Meadow. Come see us soon or visit http://www.chicagobotanic.org/inbloom for updates on what’s in bloom.
Emily Shelton shows us what’s blooming on the Green Roof Garden this spring. She also talks about the ground nesting kildeer and babies that were just born. Emily will give tours and answer your questions about the Green Roof Garden at World Environment Day on June 4, 2011. Ask a Horticulturist, Green Roof Garden is from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m. at the Daniel F. and Ada L. Rice Plant Conservation Science Center. Visit http://www.chicagobotanic.org/wed2011/greenroofgarden.php for more information.
What’s a spring ephemeral? Ecologist Jim Steffen tells us about a few of the spring blooming wildflowers you can see blooming in McDonald Woods right now. As Jim says, there is always something in bloom in the woods, but spring is one of the showiest in this area, so don’t miss it! Visit http://www.chicagobotanic.org/walk/mcdonald_woods.php for more information on the woods.
The Model Railroad Garden opens for its 12th season on May 7. We caught up with Brian Busse from Applied Imagination as they were finishing their setup. The horticulture staff are currently planting the miniature gardens around all of the American landmarks Busse and his team installed. See how the garden turns out at the opening on May 7! Visit www.chicagobotanic.org/railroad for more information.
Donna LaPietra, Executive Producer of the Antiques & Garden Fair, recently interviewed Peter Wirtz who will be speaking at the Fair this year. Peter is a well-known contemporary landscape designer who has designed private gardens locally and his lecture, “Formal and Informal in Contemporary Landscape Design” shouldn’t be missed. Visit www.chicagobotanic.org/antiques/peter_wirtz.php for more information on the Fair and his lecture.
Richard Reynolds, a self-proclaimed guerilla gardener and blogger, comes to the Garden on Tuesday, February 8 to give us an inside scoop on his involvement with this movement. Check out this video on planting sunflowers in public spaces and then come join the discussion during his presentation. View the video on YouTube here. For more information and to register, visit http://www.chicagobotanic.org/school/symposia/
Boyce Tankersley, Director of Living Plant Documentation, shows us some of the best places to see fall color at the Chicago Botanic Garden right now. Come see the ever-changing fall display soon! Visit www.chicagobotanic.org for more information on fun fall events. View the video on YouTube here.
