… deciduous, rounded, Missouri native tree or large, upright shrub that typically grows 20 to 30 feet tall and occurs in limestone glades, rocky limestone bluffs, and bald knobs in the area of southeast Missouri. Smoketree gets its common name, not from the 6- to 10-inch flower … colors in the fall, including yellow, red, orange, and reddish purple, producing some of the best fall color of any native American trees and shrubs. It is not subject to serious insect or …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Growing to only 12 inches tall, dwarf lily-of-the-Nile, or Peter Pan agapanthus ( Agapanthus 'Peter … plant, where keeping the plant slightly rootbound improves flowering. Agapanthus blooms best in a spot where it gets full sun and has moist, well-drained, acidic soil with a pH from 5.1 …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Snow Storm™ spiraea gets its name from the abundant clusters of pure white flowers that cover this mounded shrub in late spring. The … on new wood so may be pruned in later winter if needed. The genus Spiraea consists of small- to medium-sized flowering shrubs with a fine-textured twiggy mounding habit. The small, simple … are quite small, they occur in clusters of inflorescence that can be very showy. Spiraeas are best used in groupings in a shrub or mixed border, where they are valued as tough, reliable, and …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Fast and graceful, hummingbirds flit from flower to flower—but which ones and why? A Chicago Botanic Garden scientist and his collaborators have made some unexpected findings on the subject. It’s a common perception that plants are perfectly matched to their pollinators and … Finally, hummingbirds do have a sense of smell. So why would hummingbirds go out of their way to visit a limited selection of reddish, long-tubed, scentless flowers that produce cheaper …
Type: Blog
… While working out in the woods this winter, a small lump on the branch of a young elm tree caught my attention. At … might be a gall, or an injury that had healed-over. On closer inspection, the lump turned out to be a ruby-throated hummingbird nest from last summer. Although I see hummingbirds regularly … or triple the amount of room necessary to hold the family. One of the ways the hummingbirds get around this need for flexibility is that they construct the nest of soft plant fibers and …
Type: Blog
… This is a tall, dramatic plant that grows to 3 feet or more with large spherical umbels best grown in clumps. Sterile flowers have a long … pollinated. Its leaves are long and strap-like. It may be possible to get blooms on plants in the shade of deciduous trees if the leaf canopy is not complete when flowers open. This has been …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… Eco-Friendly Cards and Gift Wrap It’s easy and fun to enrich your holiday with eco-friendly alternatives to buying cards and gift wrap. Read on as the Garden offers tips on making holiday greetings and wrapping gifts using materials and methods … subtle colors may be visible on purchased, recycled paper or recycled card stock. (When folded in two, paper measuring 8 ½ by 11 inches will create two greeting cards of 4 ¼ by 5 ½ inches, …
Type: Page
… cherry blossoms. It is a miniature shrub with an arching habit that may take root where the stems touch the ground. Fall foliage is purple bronze. The genus Deutzia consists of medium sized flowering shrubs native to Asia, generally with slender stems and a fine-textured arching habit. The clusters of small … are white on most species, but may be pinkish in a few species and cultivars. Deutzias are best used grouped in informal settings as a hedge or background to a border. These shrubs may …
Type: Garden Guide Plant
… In late October 2012 when I was driving down a country road in rural northwest Illinois, I spotted some bright sky-blue asters blooming near the corner of a woodlot. I was traveling between nature preserves in this area of the state … interesting native flora that might produce a collection for the seed bank. It was impossible to make a positive I.D. traveling at 60 m.p.h., but the color of that patch of blue was …
Type: Blog
… If you’ve visited Lightscape , you probably noticed some striking transformations at the Chicago Botanic Garden. Following the illuminated trail, perhaps you stood to admire the distant and beautiful Elizabeth Hubert Malott Japanese Garden. You likely saw a … in the lake, and if you looked closely, you might have noticed that there’s actually no way to get to that island. Did you wonder why that is? Horaijima, or the Island of Everlasting …
Type: Blog
